Abstract
At first glance, shared basins should rank high on China’s agenda. Just over one-third of the country’s land area, 3,200,000 km2, lies in 19 international river basins (Gleick 2000: 249).1 Only Russia (8 million km2), the US (6 million km2) and Brazil (5 million km2) have a greater basin area. With the notable exception of its long and arid interface with Mongolia, China shares a river basin along most of its 22,000 km land border with 14 countries and two special administrative regions (Hong Kong and Macau) (Fig. 9.1).
In the Northeast, these are the Heilong (Amur), Yalu, Suifun and Tumen; in the Northwest, the Aral Sea, Har Us Nur, Ili, Irtysh (Ob), Pu Lun To, and Tarim; in the Southwest, the Beilun, Ganges-Brahmaputra-Megna, Indus, Irrawady, Lancang (Mekong), Nu (Salween), Pearl (Xi and Bei), and Yuan (Red) (He et al. 1999, which provides the regionalization; Gleick 2000:249).
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Preview
Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.
References
Ahn Y (2006) Competing nationalisms: The mobilisation of history and archaeology in the Korea-China wars over Koguryo/Gaogouli. Japan Focus, 9 February. httpyapanfocus.org/article.asp?id=518
Burke J (2001) Kazakhstan, China make progress in transborder river talks. Kazakhstan. Daily Digest, 12 June. http://www.eurasianet.org/resource/kazakhstan/hypermail/200106/0025.html
Chua A (2002) World on Fire. Doubleday, New York
Conde CH (2007) Asean leaders chase dream of integration. International Herald Tribune, 13–14 January, pp 1, 4
Department of Hydrology, Ministry of Water Resources, People’s Republic of China (1992) Water Resources Assessment for China. China Water and Power Press, Beijing
Dong Y, Ma Z, Li Y (eds) (2004) Shuili Fadian Fenci (Volume on Hydropower). Water and Power Press, Beijing
FAO (Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations) (2003) Review of World Water Resources by Country. Water Reports No 23. FAO, Rome, pp 78–82
Furuya K (2006) From backwater to powerhouse. China’s northeast and Northeast Asia on a roll. International Herald Tribune/Asahi Shimbun, 2 August
Furuya K (2007) Chuugoku saihoku samusa kankou no mura (The sightseeing village in the frigidity of northernmost China). Asahi Shimbun, 18 January, p 6
Gladney DC (2004) Dislocating China. University of Chicago Press, Chicago
Gleick P (1998) The World’s Water 1998–1999. Island Press, Washington DC
Gleick P (2000) The World’s Water 2000–2001. Island Press, Washington DC
Goldstein A (2005) Rising to the Challenge. Stanford University Press, Stanford
Greenberg I (2007) Talks stall over Central Asia basin. International Herald Tribune, 9 March, p 3
He D, Liu C, Yang Z (1999) Zhongguo guoji heliu kechixu fazhan yanjiu (A study of the sustainable development of China’s international rivers). Acta Geographica Sinica 54(suppl.) pp 1–10. Reprinted in Liu (2004) pp 527–535
He D, Feng Y (2006) Guoji Heliu Kuajing Shui Ziyuan Heli Liyong yu Xietiao Guanli (The Rational Utilization and Coordinated Management of Transboundary Water Resources of International Rivers). Science Press, Beijing
Herrfahrdt E, Kipping M, Pickardt T, Polak M, Rohrer C, Wolff CF (2006) Water governance in the Kyrgyz agricultural sector: on its way to Integrated Water Resource Management? Deutsches Institut für Entwicklungspolitik, Bonn
Jin X, Zhai P (2005) Lake Xingkai/Khanka: Experience and lessons learned brief. In: Companion CD-ROM to ILEC (International Lake Environment Committee) (2005). Managing Lakes and their Basins for Sustainable Use. International Lake Environment Committee Foundation, Kusatsu, Japan
Karaev Z (2005) Water Diplomacy in Central Asia. The Middle East Review of International Affairs, vol 9. http://meria.idc.ac.il/journal/2005/issue1/jvol9no1in.html, viewed 23 March 2006
Liu C (2004) Shuiwen Shui Ziyuan Yanjiu Lilun yu Shijian: Liu Changming Wenxuan (The Theory and Practice of Studies on Hydrology and Water Resources: Selections from the Works of Liu Changming). Science Press, Beijing
Ma J (1999) Zhongguo shui weiji (China’s Water Crisis). China Environment Press, Beijing
Makkonen K (2005) Integrated water resources management in China. In: AK Biswas, Varis O, Tortajada C (eds) Integrated Water Resources Management in South and South-East Asia. Oxford University Press, New Delhi, pp 267–296
Mehtonen K, Keskinen M, Varis O (2008) The Mekong: IWRM and institutions. In: Varis O, Tortajada C, Biswas AK (eds) Management of Transboundary Rivers and Lakes, Springer, Berlin, pp 207–226
Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Sweden (2001) Transboundary Water Management as an International Public Good Development Financing 2000 Study 2001: 1. Ministry for Foreign Affairs, Stockholm
Nakayama M (2005) China as basin country of international rivers. In: Turner JL, Otsuka K (eds) Promoting Sustainable River Basin Governance. Institute of Developing Economies, Chiba, pp 63–71 (IDE Spot Survey No 28)
Onishi N (2006) Tension, desperation: The China-North Korean border. New York Times, 22 October
Pannier B, Magauin E (1999) China discuses future of Irtysh River. Asia Times Online, 5 June. www.atimes.com
Stuart-Fox M (2003) A Short History of China and Southeast Asia. Crows Nest NSW, Allen & Unwin
United Nations (2006) Water: A Shared Responsibility. The United Nations World Water Development Report 2. UNESCO, Paris
United Nations Economic and Social Council (2006) Preliminary Assessment of Other Major Transboundary Rivers in Central Asia Originating in or Flowing Through EECCA Countries. ECE/MP.WAT/2006/16/Add.5, 5 October
United Nations General Assembly (1997) Press release GA/9248, 21 May. http://www.internaitonalwaterlaw.org/IntDocs/Convention_Press.htm, 24 July 2005
Weinthal E (2002) State Making and Environmental Cooperation. MIT Press, Cambridge, MA
Wolf AT, Natharius JA, Danielson JJ, Ward BS, Pender JK (1999) International River Basins of the World. Water Resources Development 15(4): 387–427
Yermukanov M (2006) China obstructs river management talks with Kazakhstan. Eurasia Daily Monitor, 17 February. http://www.jamestown.org/edm/article.php?article_id=2370793
Yessekin BK (2006) Central Asia. In Institute for Global Environmental Strategies (IGES). 2005 Top News on the Environment in Asia. IGES, Hayama
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2008 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Nickum, J.E. (2008). The Upstream Superpower: China’s International Rivers. In: Varis, O., Biswas, A.K., Tortajada, C. (eds) Management of Transboundary Rivers and Lakes. Water Resources Development and Management. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-540-74928-8_9
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-540-74928-8_9
Publisher Name: Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg
Print ISBN: 978-3-540-74926-4
Online ISBN: 978-3-540-74928-8
eBook Packages: Earth and Environmental ScienceEarth and Environmental Science (R0)