Drifting on the Drying Water Pool: China’s Water Scarcity and Its Political Foreboding

Behind China’s recent accomplishments in economic development lies the barren picture of a drying and decaying water pool. China’s faltering water resources have created a scarcity that affects drinking, irrigation, and industrial production. This situation poses a threat to the Chinese people’s human security, the country’s agricultural production, its long-term economic program, and perhaps even the stability of the regime in the long run. Competition, antagonisms, and even violence around depleting water resources have already taken place. Regretfully, the PRC government has been lukewarm in its response to the water scarcity, and its capacity to heal the malaise is limited.