Extreme Heat, Drought, and Weather Manipulation Becoming Norm in China: Expert

A dried riverbed is exposed after the water level dropped in the Yangtze River in Yunyang county in southwest China's Chongqing Municipality, on Aug. 16, 2022. (Chinatopix Via AP)

Extreme weather has struck various regions in China. Heat waves and severe drought devastated agriculture in the north, while heavy rains inundated the south. Government measures, including artificial rain and early dam drainage, have exacerbated the severe weather’s impact, according to farmers and expert analysis.

On June 12, the Chinese Ministry of Water Resources issued a Level IV emergency response for the lingering drought in eight northern provinces. Farmers from the northeastern coastal provinces said that rain has been scarce this spring.

“We can only irrigate with well water,” said Mr. Chen, who only wished to be known by his surname, from Linyi, Shandong. “Local farmers have resorted to digging wells and fetching water from the river, but this has provided little relief in the exceptionally dry weather,” Mr. Chen told the Chinese language edition of The Epoch Times.

“The wheat yield is less than half because it’s been so dry. Other crops, such as corn, peach, peanuts, sweet potatoes, have been affected, and tobacco has been completely ruined by the drought,” he added.

A local from Xixian, Henan, surnamed Xu, told The Epoch Times that it is currently rice planting season but their village’s main irrigation pond had dried up. China is the world’s leading rice producer and many places in northeastern China are important grain bases for the country.

Ineffective Weather Interventions

Wang Weiluo, an engineer and geographer who formerly taught at Nanjing University and Technology University of Dortmund, observed that extreme weather has become increasingly common in China over the past few decades. However, the Communist regime’s attempts to battle nature have been futile, in his opinion.

Mr. Wang explained that China, located in a subtropical monsoon climate zone, experiences uneven rainfall distribution. Consequently, not every region enjoys favorable weather conditions each year. The regime has primarily relied on reservoirs for water supply in recent decades. However, political considerations often lead to decisions that have poor outcomes.

“To avoid accountability for potential dam failures during the flood season, reservoir managers often release water before the flood season begins in June,” said Mr. Wang. “As a result, there is no water left in the reservoirs when it is needed.”

He added that this is the practice every year. Some years it works out, but nature does not always cooperate. “Some years have more rain, while others have less. Current science cannot accurately predict long-term weather patterns,” he said, adding that “Humankind must respect nature, or extreme weather will become the norm.”

Localized Measures and Groundwater Depletion

As part of the Level IV emergency response for drought prevention, Chinese officials have mandated localized measures, including emergency water transfers and well drilling, to secure irrigation supplies and ensure safe drinking water for affected populations.

A farmer from the eastern province of Shandong, surnamed Li, said that local farmers have mostly switched from growing grains to greenhouse farming due to the lack of profit from grain cultivation. Dozens of farmers pool funds to drill water wells as deep as 180 meters (around 590 ft). “It used to be 150 meters [around 492 ft], and now even the small well in my yard is nearly 40 meters [around 131 ft] deep,” he said.

According to Mr. Wang, China’s historical groundwater abundance has suffered due to large-scale grain production policies. Intensive extraction in the Hai (in northern China) and Huai River (in east-central China) basins during the 1980s and 1990s depleted shallow reserves, prompting deeper drilling that rapidly lowered groundwater levels and triggered land subsidence. Recent efforts to replenish groundwater have offered some relief but have also inadvertently contributed to groundwater pollution.

“In the past, areas like the North China Plain and the Yangtze-Huai Plain, particularly the Huai River Plain, boasted high groundwater levels,” Mr. Wang said. “Places like Jinan were renowned for abundant springs, where every household had access to wells. Today, this landscape has drastically changed.”

He further added, “In regions such as Shouguang in Shandong, renowned for greenhouse vegetable cultivation, groundwater levels have plummeted below 100 meters [328 ft] due to extensive agricultural pumping.” He said that the decline in groundwater levels is a common issue in China.

Mr. Wang also blames a lack of innovation. China faces substantial agricultural water demands, averaging 400 to 600 cubic meters (105,668 to 158,503 gal) per mu (around 0.16 acre) of farmland. “But its flood irrigation techniques remain outdated, akin to those of the 19th century,” he said.

According to a 2022 report by scientists in Beijing, China withdraws more than 100 billion m3 (around 26.4 trillion gal) of groundwater annually, more than 10 percent of the global total, making it one of the major countries depleting its groundwater resources.

Artificial Rain

In response to persistent heat and drought, artificial rain operations have been launched in Shandong, Henan, and other regions across China.

On June 12, unexpected hailstones the size of quail eggs devastated local peach orchards already reeling from severe drought in Mengyin County, Shandong. As reported by Chinese media, some fruit farmers suffered over 200,000 yuan ($27,560) in losses within minutes.

Mr. Chen told The Epoch Times that peach cultivation is widespread in Mengyin, and on June 12, there was about 3 cm (1.18 inches) of rainfall followed by hail. “The government deployed rain-making efforts using cannons, but the results were far from ideal, leading to hail instead that hit the peaches,” he said.

The head of the Linyi Meteorological Observatory dispelled speculations, asserting that two rounds of artificial hail suppression and rain enhancement operations were conducted in response to severe convective weather. Chinese state media released reports that said the efforts effectively mitigated the drought conditions and reduced the hail damage.

Artificial Weather Manipulation

Mr. Wang characterized this as a typical game of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), “The CCP often portrays itself as the savior from natural disasters. Their use of artificial rain interventions can sometimes backfire, resulting in heavy downpours or, in this case, hailstorms, or they may fail to produce the intended effect altogether.”

He cautioned that the effectiveness of artificial weather manipulation varies. Failures, like the instance in Shenyang a few years ago where artificial rain caused severe flooding, underscore the risks of this approach. “Precision in execution is crucial, as improper measures can exacerbate rather than alleviate weather-related challenges,” said Mr. Wang.

On Aug. 6, 2018, Shenyang experienced torrential rains that led to widespread flooding. Within a span of 12 hours, local media reported that over 2,000 vehicles in the city had been submerged. Many residents woke up to find their vehicles underwater. Frustration mounted among residents who believed that the deployment of 100 rain-inducing shells had caused the relentless downpour. In response to public outcry, authorities denied any link between the fired shells and the intensity of the rainfall.

According to Chinese state media, CCP scientists frequently explore climate modification technologies to artificially induce rain in drought-affected regions. One technique involves firing shells containing rain-inducing chemicals such as silver iodide particles into gathering clouds to induce precipitation in the form of rain or snow over the city.

Mr. Wang said that the CCP believes it can conquer nature by introducing artificial rain or preventing rain. However, with the manipulation of weather, China continues to witness severe droughts in the north and catastrophic floods in the south.

“Do humans truly possess such capabilities?” Mr. Wang questioned.