Society

Joint efforts to ease drought

(chinadaily.com.cn)
Updated: 2010-03-23 13:43

3 express trains to bring drinking water to Yunnan

Three express trains, loaded with 380,000 boxes of Nongfu Spring mineral water, set off for Yunnan from East China’s Zhejiang province on Monday, chinanews.com reported.

The 380,000 boxes of drinking water, worth 13 million yuan ($1.9 million dollars), are expected to quench the thirst of 16 counties in Yunnan, a southwestern province hard hit by the drought.

7.5kg of water per person per day

The five-month drought in a village in southwest China’s Guizhou province has turned water into a luxury. Each villager can get only 7.5kg of water each day since last August, according to Guangzhou Daily.

The county’s reservoir dried up five months ago, and local government has been dispatching vehicles to bring water along rugged mountain roads to 3,980 villagers. 　　

Spring tea prices to soar after drought

The severe drought in southwest China’s Yunnan since February has greatly reduced the output of spring tea, only 2 to 5 percent of last year, according to Information Times. The purchase price of spring tea is expected to soar.

Water the most precious birthday gift

A man carrying 100kg of water by ox to his mother-in-law’s 50th birthday last Thursday in Yunnan was given a big welcome by his mother-in-law, as he brought what was probably the most precious birthday present ever, Chongqing Evening News reported Tuesday.

A boy waits for water beside a bucket in a village in Guizhou. [Photo/Xinhua]

Water has become a scarcity during the worst drought in a century in the village high up in the mountains in Yunnan. “Water is now the most precious gift for birthdays and weddings,” a villager said.

Drought doubles price of roses in Guangzhou

The wholesale price of roses has risen to 35 yuan ($5.12 dollars) from 18 yuan ($2.64 dollars) in Guangzhou, capital city of Guangdong province, due to the severe drought in southwest China’s Yunnan province, according to Information Times.

Famous artists donate to drought-hit provinces

China’s lead actors Zhang Guoli, Chen Daoming and film director Feng Xiaogang have donated 200,000 yuan ($29,300 dollars) each through the China Red Cross to South China’s provinces hard hit by severe drought, sina.com.cn reported on Monday.

Feng Xiaogang said that the donation was based on the agreement that he and Zhang and Chen had made on charities. Feng added that they would continue to contribute to charities until the very last days of their lives, according to sina.

Rice field to grow tobacco plant

Huili, a county in southwest China’s Sichuan province suffering drought will grow drought-resistant tobacco plants in rice fields at the end of April or at the beginning of May if rain still doesn’t come, the Beijing Times reported today.

The move is to ensure farmer’s revenue if the drought lingers, according to Gu Qing, an expert in Sichuan Climate Center.

The drought, which the local people say is the worst in a century, is forecast to linger till the start of the rainy season in May.