BEIJING: As a monthlong heat wave and drought wilt crops in southern China, agronomist Xia Liming is focused on finding alternative ways of irrigation in Changsha, Hunan province, in order to save harvests. “We have been striving to find new water sources to irrigate thirsty crops,” said Xia, an official at the agriculture and rural affairs department in Changsha. Water for irrigation is going to be key in saving rice fields in Hunan, a major rice-producing area in the country, he said.
Xia’s team recently discovered a water source of about 2 million cubic meters in Yuelu district in an abandoned mineshaft. On Wednesday, water from the mine, after passing relevant tests, was pumped to farms in the district. “A few days earlier, farmers in Quanhong village told me that the prolonged drought led to wilted rice seedlings that will die without rain,” Xia said, adding that the new water source would alleviate the disaster.
Many agricultural experts like Xia are fighting to find new water sources in the fields of drought-stricken areas, after the heat wave and drought became the biggest threat to China’s autumn grain harvest, according to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs.
The rice and summer maize in some areas in southern parts of China have been damaged by the disaster conditions, the agriculture authority said, calling for targeted relief measures to reduce grain loss and ensure the autumn harvest, which accounts for 75 percent of the country’s annual grain output.
–The Daily Mail-China Daily news exchange item
