In the form of extreme weather such as droughts, heatwaves, and unusual rainfall, climate change rears its head once again; this time, it has set its sights on China. Over 2 months of temperatures of more than 40℃ ( 104°F ) have left the country facing a number of economic and environmental problems. At this rate, it could become a global issue.
Recently, temperatures recently reaching as high as 45℃—an unusual occurrence outside the desert area of Xinjiang—ravage a number of cities in China. Minimum temperatures also remains high, the lowest being 34℃. Climates such as this plague over 900 million people in at least 17 provinces. This range of temperatures implicate a few troubling things for China, most evidently in the agriculture industry. Chinese farmers have reported dying, unharvestable crops and the heat has caused the soil to harden up in certain areas, making agriculture ever more impossible. During the day, most of the rural landscape remains silent as everyone seeks shade from the heat, and are only able to work during the slight drops in temperature. Some farmers have remarked that, these days, they get up to work the fields at 3am, and once the sun comes up, they have to retreat back into their houses due to the unbearable temperatures. Crops aren’t the only ones affected either, as the heatwave as well as lack of rain caused the death of multiple livestock, and left 66 rivers dry in Chongqing.
This attack on the agriculture industry leaves the country —and possibly, the world vulnerable to food inflation. In July, vegetable and fruit prices increased by 12.9% and pork by 20.2%, compared to prices in 2021. Experts believe grain supply will be the most affected, as the locations the heatwave hits account for 30% of China’s grain production area. However, they also imagine there won’t be immediate scarcity, since the country has one of the largest stockpiles on grain. Towards the end of August, it was announced by the government that a $1.45 billion worth of subsidies would be provided to support these rice farmers, which may ease up the economical situation a bit more. The money can prove extremely useful in the farmers’ survival of this harvesting season, so that the next one would be more fruitful.
The heatwave has also damaged the electricity capacity of some provinces considerably, particularly that of Sichuan. According to a visualizer by the South China Morning Post, 80% of the electricity generated by this province comes from hydropower, and with the rivers drying up the capacity dropped by 50% in August. Not only does this trouble the province, but also the rest of China. Sichuan’s hydropower production also makes up for 30% of China’s overall electricity manufacturing and with its reduced ability, China faces a decline in energy generation. This proves troublesome as it puts a limit to the electricity available for use. The Chinese government, in this desperate situation, was forced to prioritise power for households. A number of factories were forced to shut down and malls were instructed to only be open for half a day. Economically, this deals quite the blow to already struggling businesses from the previous COVID-19 lockdowns.
Urban areas aren’t the only ones in danger. On August 22, it was announced by the government certain areas are extremely vulnerable to forest fires. It was advised for the fire safety departments to be on standby and ready for any and all fires, most especially in areas of southern and central Chongqing and eastern Sichuan. Local governments were urged to put fire restrictions in forest areas, spread public awareness and strengthen fire prevention to minimise the possible impact of the forest fires. There were efforts of cloud-seeding in Anhui, a process of modifying precipitation levels by scattering substances which serve as cloud condensation, attempted 48 times in 31 urban and rural districts. The government also deployed cloud-seeding in Sichuan, however, that resulted in sudden violent rainfall that caused floods. 119,000 people were forced to evacuate their homes. Such torrents afflicted much of Northern China in July—in contrast to Southern China, where the heatwave hits hardest—causing multiple floods, and thus, casualties. The precipitation levels extremely exceeded what is usual for that month.
On the 19th of August, a meeting was convened by the China Meteorological Administration to discuss the provision and prevention of disasters, such as the heatwave and the floods. It was emphasised that they should prioritise the lives of the people, and three key points were made: enhance monitoring and warning in timely manners, mobilise relevant departments for disaster relief, and increase public awareness of risk prevention. Political pressure is put on the Chinese Communist Party during these trying times. As it plans to hold a party congress on October 16, during which it’s expected the President will be seeking a third term in power. Therefore, it is crucial to the political party that they keep food affordable to retain public bias.
As China goes through environmental, economical and political hardship, it would do some good for the rest of the world to become wary of rising prices, as many manufactured products come from China. What this means for the future of the world, is yet to be ascertained.
