- by C Bartholomew
- The Guardian
- Issue #2119
Yellow River. Photo: fading – Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0)
The Yellow River or Huang He feeds 12 per cent of China’s population, irrigates 15 per cent of arable land, and provides water to more than 50 cities. It’s crucial to China’s human and natural worlds. However, the Yellow River’s ecology is particularly vulnerable to degradation, and the Yellow River basin suffers some of the worst water and soil loss of any river basin in the country. This contradiction between the Yellow River’s great importance and environmental vulnerability has given rise to a need for what China calls “high-quality development” with sustainability at its core.
China’s eastern regions, particularly along the coast, contribute more than half of the country’s GDP. However, economic development is accelerating in inland China. Technological innovation and cutting-edge industry of all kinds, from laser TVs to wireless data transfer, have found homes in China’s west. The growth of these kinds of tech industries are a major part of China’s program of high-quality development. But what exactly is high-quality development?
In short, quality over quantity. In 2017, Xi Jinping said that China’s economy was entering a transitionary stage between rapid growth and high-quality development. China’s previous growth model had achieved great results but also faced problems such as resource constraints and income inequality. High-quality development featured prominently in 2024’s plenary sessions. The new model changes the focus from the quantity of growth to the quality of growth. Outdated production and technology will be phased out as innovative and renewable technologies are developed. The goal is green development which sustains a healthy relationship between humanity and nature. High-quality development also aims to establish more equitable income distribution and the equalisation of public resources between urban and rural areas.
The Yellow River basin has been identified as a key area for high-quality development. During a visit to Yinchuan, capital of the Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, President Xi emphasised the need for ecological conservation to improve both the environment and the lives of the people. Having met many residents of the highly ethnically diverse region, Xi stressed the importance of strong communities able to make use of leadership and innovation from all sectors. The Yellow River Protection Law, mirroring similar legislation for the other great river, the Yangtze, has sought to address key issues such as water shortages, ecological vulnerability, and flooding.
Communities along the Yellow River have striven to implement green development. Over the past year, the Yellow River basin has seen improvements to its environment, which in turn has improved the outlook for crucial lakes and reservoirs. Water replenishment techniques have restored almost 1.5 billion cubic metres of water, so the Yellow River’s main stream will flow for decades to come. A “double reduction” of both the area and intensity of soil and water loss has also been achieved. For example, the Three-North Shelter Forest program, also known as China’s “Great Green Wall,” has been able to control 61 per cent of water and soil loss area, while annual sediment flow into the Yellow River has been reduced by around 400 million tonnes.
Gansu Province, another region key to the health of the Yellow River basin, has made strides in ecological regulation, environmental monitoring and renewable energy production. Xi has called for similar efforts to develop a green, low-carbon economy across the country. Coordination and planning is at the heart of China’s push for new large-scale wind and solar projects, as well as the transition away from fossil fuels in key industries.
The Yellow River is the birthplace of Chinese civilisation. It’s also home to promising examples of the high-quality development set to define China’s future.
