Half of China is Drought by a heat wave

• Record heat, flash floods, and droughts have had a negative economic impact on the second-largest economy in the world, occurrences that experts believe are becoming more regular and severe as a result of climate change.
• According to the agriculture ministry, Southern China has had the longest stretch of consecutively high temperatures since records have been kept more than 60 years ago.
• Over 370 million people live in the Yangtze River basin, which stretches from Shanghai’s shoreline to Sichuan province in southwest China.

According to government data, half of China’s huge area is currently experiencing drought, including sections of the chilly Tibetan Plateau. More high temperatures are predicted for Thursday for the hundreds of millions of people enjoying the nation’s warmest summer on record.

Record heat, flash floods, and droughts have had a negative economic impact on the second-largest economy in the world, occurrences that experts believe are becoming more regular and severe as a result of climate change.

According to the agriculture ministry, Southern China has had the longest stretch of consecutively high temperatures since records have been kept more than 60 years ago. According to experts, the current heatwave may rank among the worst ever observed throughout human history due to its severity, size, and endurance.

According to a map released by the National Climate Centre on Wednesday, the Tibetan Plateau and parts of southern China were both facing “severe” to “exceptional” drought conditions.

Over 370 million people live in the Yangtze River basin, which stretches from Shanghai’s shoreline to Sichuan province in southwest China. It is home to major manufacturing hubs, notably the megacity of Chongqing. On Thursday, the China Meteorological Administration forecasted that Chongqing and the provinces of Sichuan, Jiangxi, and Zhejiang would continue to experience high temperatures of up to 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Fahrenheit).

A 10 billion yuan ($1.45 billion) subsidy was announced by China’s State Council on Wednesday in order to help rice farmers who are suffering from drought circumstances that, according to the government, pose a “serious threat” to this year’s autumn harvest.

The world’s most populous nation, China, produces more than 95% of the rice, wheat, and maize it eats, but a smaller harvest could imply a greater need for imports, adding pressure to the Ukraine conflict’s already-stressed global supplies. Additionally, according to the readout, officials asked for “a combination of actions to boost water sources to fight the drought, first ensure drinking water for the people, and then ensure water for agricultural irrigation.”

In rural Sichuan and Chongqing, where remote mountain areas were especially heavily struck, trucks were seen helping people who lacked drinking and agricultural water on Wednesday’s CCTV evening news broadcast.

Multiple Chinese provinces have implemented industrial power cuts due to temperatures as high as 45 degrees Celsius (113 degrees Fahrenheit), as cities struggle to keep up with a rise in electricity demand that is partially fueled by people turning up their air conditioners.

The Yangtze River’s record low water levels have also put a strain on the area’s hydroelectric plants.

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