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China’s Poyang Lake marks earliest dry season on record, sparking drought concerns
- Water levels at China’s largest freshwater lake fall to 70-year low for the period, raising concerns about a repeat of last year’s parched conditions
- Dry spells can affect irrigation water and drive migratory birds to artificial wetlands, raising risk of virus transmission
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China’s largest freshwater lake has made its earliest start the dry season in more than 70 years, raising concerns of a repeat of drought conditions that shrank the body of water to just a quarter of its usual size last year.
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Located in the eastern province of Jiangxi, Poyang Lake entered its dry period on July 20, the earliest date since records began in 1951, and 17 days earlier than last year.
According to the Jiangxi hydrological monitoring centre, the water level at the Xingzi hydrological station measured 11.99 metres (39.3 feet) on July 20, the lowest for the period since records began.
Because of the continuous decline in water levels, the centre called for attention to the potential impacts and urged more efforts in water management and drought relief.
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Villager fishes in drying pools at China’s biggest freshwater lake
Villager fishes in drying pools at China’s biggest freshwater lake
Li Yankuo, a professor at Jiangxi Normal University’s college of life sciences, said he was worried about the drought this year.
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