In 1998, China strengthened the control of water and soil erosion and renovated more than 50,000 km2 area undergoing soil erosion. However, the reduction of arable land was greater than last year, although since last year efforts had been made to stop non-agricultural construction on arable lands. In addition, local targets for total arable land area have been established to ensure stability in land use patterns.
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Land use The arable land per capita in China was 0.11 hectares and was only 43% of the world average. One-fifth of arable lands was polluted and 40% of the arable lands in arid and semi-arid areas was seriously degraded. Compared with last year, 1998 saw an increase of forest land and garden plot by 129,000 hectares and an increase of habitat and transportation land by 197,000 hectares.
Arable Land Area In 1998, due to non-agricultural construction, ecological degradation, agricultural restructuring and disasters, the area of arable land was reduced by 571,000 hectares. The area of cultivated land was increased 309,000 hectares through the expansion into and development of undeveloped lands. The total net reduction of arable land in 1998 was thus 261,000 hectares, which is an increase of 126 over the 1997 figure of 135,000 hectares.
Arable Land Quality Nationally, the organic substances in soil within arable land was stable. The content of total nitrogen and available phosphorus was basically stable, though there was some signs of increase. The content of instant effective potassium had decreased. However, the amount of organic fertilizer used in arable land was reduced and the soil quality had degraded to some degree. Meanwhile, due to the effect of acid rain, the soil acidification process was aggravated.
In China, the agricultural land irrigated with wastewater was 3.618 million hectares, accounting for 7.3% of the total irrigated areas in the country and 9.96% of the land irrigated with surface water.
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By the end of 1998, China had comprehensively treated soil erosion in 7.8 million hectares of land. Of this, 1.187 million hectares were of built terraced fields, constructed embankments and lands cultivated through desert control; 4 million hectares were of fruit trees and water and soil protection forests; and more than 0.4 million hectares were of planted grasslands. In addition, by the end of 1998, China had more than 100 million water storage and soil maintenance projects. Every year, construction and maintenance increase the water storage capacity by 25 billion m3 and which decreases the amount of erosion silt by 1.5 billion tons. Construction of the Three Gorges made great progress, and environment in the area of the Three Gorges was improved.
In 1998, the construction of water and soil conservation projects in the seven main basins extended over more than 20,000 small water basins in 800 counties of 26 provinces. Of these small basin projects, 5,000 had been completed. Many provinces, regions and large cities had carried out local key projects. Both central and local governments increased investment in water and soil conservation projects.
The year of 1998 saw the revision of the Law on Land Management of the People's Republic of China and other related laws and regulations. The revision provided a relatively complete legal basis for land management. The revised law emphasized the legal responsibility for stabilizing the total amount of arable lands in local areas through a process of 'occupying one, compensating one' where non-agricultural land development must be accompanied by the reclaiming of some land for agricultural use. The overall plan of land use, once ratified, must be strictly implemented. A system for the approval of land use changes related to construction projects was established. Land use changes should be approved strictly accordance to legal procedures and appropriate jurisdictional guidelines as set out by this system.
The construction of eco-agriculture pilot counties has seen successes and the effects of ecological environment construction were evident. According to incomplete statistics collected in 51 eco-agriculture pilot counties, the area of controlled desertification was 1.101 million hectares and the area of controlled soil erosion lands was 6.644 million hectares. In the surveyed counties, the forest coverage rate was up to 30%, the rate of abandoned land returning to fields was nearly 49%, and the proportion of economical stoves was approximately 72%.
June 25, 1999 is the 9th national Land Day. This year the propaganda subject of the Land Day is to execute according to the law and to reasonably use land. And the major contents of the Land Day are the Low on Land Management and its implement, including enhancing protection of arable land, strictly planning land using, strengthening land enforcement and reinforcing management of construction land.
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Water and soil erosion
Table6 Conditions of ecological environment in China
|
กก กก Regions |
Percentage of desertification (%) |
Percentage of grassland degradation (%) |
Percentage of forest cover (%) |
Total amount of water and soil loss(108t / year) |
Percentage of water and soil loss (%) |
Erosion modulus of soil [t/(km2 -year)] |
Percentage of disaster (%) |
|
Beijing |
0.54 |
0.00 |
14.99 |
0.03 |
39.55 |
238.10 |
30.29 |
|
Tianjin |
1.58 |
0.00 |
7.47 |
0.02 |
4.66 |
252.10 |
29.81 |
|
Hebei |
34.07 |
56.11 |
13.35 |
0.83 |
37.20 |
575.69 |
33.56 |
|
Shanxi |
14.20 |
0.00 |
8.11 |
2.50 |
60.76 |
2239.28 |
77.01 |
|
Inner Mongolia |
59.27 |
20.29 |
12.14 |
4.77 |
15.72 |
605.24 |
52.94 |
|
Liaoning |
7.19 |
30.00 |
26.89 |
0.62 |
36.98 |
555.93 |
51.66 |
|
Jilin |
1.37 |
28.03 |
33.60 |
0.75 |
19.81 |
560.30 |
58.30 |
|
Heilongjiang |
0.00 |
29.12 |
35.55 |
1.71 |
11.09 |
566.08 |
34.76 |
|
Shanghai |
0.00 |
0.00 |
2.47 |
0.01 |
0.00 |
156.25 |
4.48 |
|
Jiangsu |
0.00 |
0.00 |
4.09 |
0.42 |
10.20 |
409.36 |
28.82 |
|
Zhejiang |
0.00 |
0.00 |
42.99 |
0.64 |
24.94 |
628.68 |
66.70 |
|
Anhui |
0.00 |
0.00 |
16.33 |
0.68 |
20.21 |
523.08 |
41.48 |
|
Fujian |
0.00 |
0.00 |
50.60 |
1.10 |
13.69 |
906.10 |
46.68 |
|
Jiangxi |
0.00 |
0.00 |
40.35 |
2.02 |
24.58 |
1210.31 |
74.68 |
|
Shandong |
0.14 |
0.00 |
10.70 |
0.81 |
33.17 |
619.02 |
34.81 |
|
Henan |
0.00 |
0.00 |
10.50 |
0.84 |
36.27 |
604.79 |
34.49 |
|
Hubei |
0.00 |
0.00 |
21.26 |
1.49 |
39.01 |
801.51 |
78.20 |
|
Hunan |
0.00 |
0.00 |
32.80 |
2.01 |
21.11 |
949.01 |
99.61 |
|
Guangdong |
0.00 |
0.00 |
36.78 |
1.40 |
7.20 |
786.96 |
65.46 |
|
Guangxi |
0.00 |
0.00 |
25.34 |
2.38 |
7.56 |
1005.49 |
45.37 |
|
Hainan |
0.05 |
0.00 |
31.27 |
0.49 |
1.03 |
1445.43 |
80.85 |
|
Sichuan |
0.01 |
15.80 |
20.37 |
3.51 |
43.56 |
614.04 |
34.46 |
|
Guizhou |
0.00 |
0.00 |
14.75 |
1.31 |
43.55 |
743.90 |
61.30 |
|
Yunnan |
0.01 |
0.00 |
24.58 |
3.66 |
12.85 |
928.93 |
31.81 |
|
Xizang |
0.49 |
30.36 |
5.84 |
0.99 |
0.00 |
80.59 |
24.76 |
|
Shaanxi |
0.19 |
58.55 |
24.15 |
4.92 |
66.87 |
3589.49 |
75.53 |
|
Gansu |
0.59 |
45.17 |
4.33 |
5.83 |
37.95 |
2180.90 |
60.96 |
|
Qinghai |
0.38 |
15.30 |
0.35 |
2.31 |
3.61 |
513.03 |
78.49 |
|
Ningxia |
0.88 |
97.37 |
1.54 |
0.50 |
69.64 |
1544.40 |
41.63 |
|
Xinjiang |
1.00 |
5.83 |
0.79 |
3.36 |
0.07 |
445.07 |
23.14 |
Data sources:
1. China Environmental Yearbook, 1995, 1996
2. China Statistical Yearbook, 1996, 1997
กก
Table 7 Per capita regional elements in China
|
Regions |
Forested area per capita (mu) |
Forest stumpage per capita (m3) |
Water resource per capital (m3) |
Cultivated land per capita (mu) |
Energy consumption per capita in 1996 (t) |
Territory area per 10,000 persons (km2) |
Carbon emission per capita (t) |
SO2 per capital (kg) |
Soot per capita (kg) |
|
China |
1.60 |
8.35 |
2517 |
1.70 |
1.14 |
79.26 |
0.68 |
15.6 |
12.20 |
|
Beijing |
0.20 |
0.14 |
342 |
0.63 |
2.91 |
13.43 |
1.74 |
278.2 |
22.38 |
|
Tianjin |
0.05 |
0.02 |
162 |
0.88 |
2.64 |
12.63 |
1.58 |
364.1 |
21.23 |
|
Hebei |
0.44 |
0.46 |
408 |
1.54 |
1.38 |
29.14 |
0.82 |
18.0 |
10.56 |
|
Shanxi |
0.45 |
1.23 |
508 |
2.26 |
2.20 |
50.80 |
1.32 |
32.8 |
26.97 |
|
Inner Mongolia |
9.98 |
47.03 |
2415 |
6.14 |
1.22 |
517.95 |
0.73 |
32.4 |
41.16 |
|
Liaoning |
1.45 |
2.66 |
964 |
1.99 |
2.37 |
36.05 |
1.41 |
26.6 |
23.70 |
|
Jilin |
3.89 |
28.00 |
1650 |
3.48 |
1.60 |
72.30 |
0.96 |
12.3 |
25.08 |
|
Heilongjiang |
6.70 |
41.96 |
2369 |
5.48 |
1.57 |
122.67 |
0.94 |
9.2 |
29.45 |
|
Shanghai |
0.01 |
~ |
174 |
0.39 |
3.37 |
4.52 |
2.02 |
34.6 |
13.43 |
|
Jiangsu |
0.08 |
0.05 |
523 |
1.18 |
1.14 |
14.52 |
0.68 |
13.0 |
5.80 |
|
Zhejiang |
1.25 |
1.92 |
2232 |
0.87 |
1.12 |
23.57 |
0.67 |
12.5 |
6.02 |
|
Anhui |
0.51 |
1.03 |
1483 |
1.55 |
0.74 |
21.62 |
0.44 |
8.1 |
10.48 |
|
Fujian |
2.40 |
10.56 |
4337 |
0.69 |
0.75 |
37.50 |
0.45 |
5.3 |
3.71 |
|
Jiangxi |
2.30 |
6.64 |
4030 |
1.09 |
0.52 |
41.08 |
0.31 |
8.9 |
9.35 |
|
Shandong |
0.17 |
0.06 |
427 |
1.41 |
1.05 |
18.00 |
0.63 |
26.7 |
14.93 |
|
Henan |
0.27 |
0.40 |
527 |
1.35 |
0.73 |
18.35 |
0.43 |
7.3 |
7.58 |
|
Hubei |
1.11 |
1.93 |
1920 |
1.24 |
1.03 |
32.21 |
0.62 |
9.4 |
7.45 |
|
Hunan |
1.78 |
2.77 |
2760 |
1.01 |
0.85 |
33.14 |
0.51 |
8.8 |
5.01 |
|
Guangdong |
1.37 |
3.16 |
3341 |
0.76 |
1.11 |
25.90 |
0.67 |
8.2 |
3.35 |
|
Guangxi |
1.95 |
5.48 |
4658 |
1.38 |
0.53 |
52.10 |
0.32 |
16.7 |
11.01 |
|
Hainan |
~ |
~ |
~ |
1.53 |
0.47 |
46.82 |
0.28 |
2.8 |
1.38 |
|
Xichuan |
0.98 |
10.03 |
2957 |
1.52 |
0.83 |
50.33 |
0.49 |
19.7 |
12.19 |
|
Guizhou |
1.13 |
4.11 |
3375 |
1.77 |
1.04 |
50.20 |
0.62 |
20.5 |
11.40 |
|
Yunnan |
3.90 |
31.04 |
5795 |
1.81 |
0.68 |
98.75 |
0.41 |
9.0 |
7.02 |
|
Xizang |
45.58 |
673.33 |
170557 |
2.25 |
0.00 |
5118.33 |
~ |
~ |
~ |
|
Shaanxi |
2.17 |
8.14 |
1434 |
2.36 |
0.99 |
58.51 |
0.60 |
22.8 |
19.92 |
|
Hansu |
1.25 |
7.75 |
1323 |
3.29 |
1.14 |
186.38 |
0.68 |
17.2 |
15.18 |
|
Qinghai |
0.68 |
4.01 |
14720 |
1.89 |
1.43 |
1499.38 |
0.86 |
6.2 |
18.71 |
|
Ningxia |
0.33 |
0.64 |
280 |
3.88 |
1.54 |
100.97 |
0.92 |
44.8 |
21.44 |
|
Xinjiang |
1.18 |
14.06 |
6081 |
5.15 |
1.91 |
999.64 |
1.14 |
21.1 |
20.47 |
Data source:
The area of the Three Gorges
Water and soil erosion in area of the Three Gorges was basically controlled. In 1988, the State Council listed the area of the Three Gorges as one of the major water and soil conservation areas in China and carried out the major project of water and soil conservation in the upper Yangtze River. By the end of 1998, the major project of water and soil conservation in the upper Yangtze River had already carried out three-stage comprehensive treatment in 29 counties (or cities, regions) of the Chongqing City and the Hubei Province. 12,800 km2 area undergoing soil erosion was renovated. According to the statistic data, forest and grass coverage rate in the area of the Three Gorges had already gone up from 23% to 44%, meanwhile the quantity of soil erosion was reduced by 70%.
Other related laws and regulations
On December 24,1998, Implementation Regulations of the Law on Land Management of the People's Republic of China was carried and issued by the State Council in the 12th routine meeting. From January 1,1999, these regulations had been carried out.
Land Day
Table 8 propaganda subjects of the Land Days over the years
1.China Statistical Yearbook, 1995, 1996, 1997
2.China Agricultural Yearbook, 1996
3.China Environmental Yearbook, 1996
|
year |
propaganda subject of the Land Day |
|
1991 |
Land and the state of a country |
|
1992 |
Land and reform |
|
1993 |
Land and economy |
|
1994 |
Land and market |
|
1995 |
Land and legal system |
|
1996 |
Land and development_protecting our lifeline |
|
1997 |
Land and the country_cherishing our homeland |
|
1998 |
Land and the future_intensively using land and benefiting future generations |
