很快，中國最宏偉工程之一的主要部分即將完成，屆時揚子江的河水將流經1200公里抵達北京。這條水道還僅僅是這整個宏偉項目的一部分。

為了解決可威脅經濟 發展和穩定的水資源問題，中國領導人將這個耗資巨資的南水北調工程看成是解決問題的關鍵。北京周邊地區的糧食產地其人均水資源相當於乾旱國家尼日爾和厄立 特里亞國的水平。水資源的過度使用使得大量河流乾涸。

隨着地下水位的下降和河流的乾涸，可用的水資源在不斷減少；而那些沒乾涸的河流，由於污染嚴重，連用 來進行工業生產都不合格。世界銀行稱中國的水危機使中國的GDP損失了2%多，主要是衛生健康上的危害。

因此，即將抵達北京的這些水資源將官員鬆一口氣。 確實如此，北京的水資源是如此的缺乏，過去還有人建議遷都。

Grand new canals

宏偉的新運河

Vast new waterways will not solve China’s desperatewater shortages

即使接通了新的水道，中國的水資源短缺問題依然無法得到解決

SOON the centrepiece of one of China’s mostspectacular engineering projects will be completed, with the opening ofsluicegates into a canal stretching over 1,200km(750 miles) from the Yangzi river north to the capital, Beijing. The newchannel is only part of the world’s biggest water-diversion scheme. More than300,000 people have been kicked out to make way for the channel and theexpansion of a reservoir in central China that will feed it. But the governmentis in a hurry, and has paid their complaints little heed.

很快，中國最宏偉工程之一的主要部分即將完成，屆時揚子江的河水將流經1200公里抵達北京。這條水道還僅僅是這整個宏偉項目的一部分。這條水道的挖掘以及其水源地中國中部一個水庫的擴張導致30萬人搬遷。但是政府很着急，所以對人們的抱怨不管不顧。

China’s leaders see the so-called South-North WaterDiversion Project, which has already cost tens of billions of dollars, ascrucial to solving a water problem that threatens the country’s development andstability (see article). Grain-growing areas around Beijing have about as much water perperson as such arid countries as Niger and Eritrea. Overuse has causedthousands of rivers to disappear. The amount of water available is diminishingfast as the water table drops and rivers dry up; what little is left is oftentoo polluted even for industrial use. The World Bank has said that China’swater crisis costs the country more than 2% of GDP, mostly because of damage tohealth. The new supply’s arrival in Beijing will thus come as a huge relief toofficials. Indeed, so desperate is the lack of water that some have in the pastsuggested such drastic answers as moving the capital.

為了解決可威脅經濟發展和穩定的水資源問題，中國領導人將這個耗資巨資的南水北調工程看成是解決問題的關鍵。北京周邊地區的糧食產地其人均水資源相當於乾旱國家尼日爾和厄立特里亞國的水平。水資源的過度使用使得大量河流乾涸。

隨着地下水位的下降和河流的乾涸，可用的水資源在不斷減少；而那些沒乾涸的河流，由於污染嚴重，連用來進行工業生產都不合格。

世界銀行稱中國的水危機使中國的GDP損失了2%多，主要是衛生健康上的危害。因此，即將抵達北京的這些水資源將官員鬆一口氣。確實如此，北京的水資源是如此的缺乏，過去還有人建議遷都。

Yet China’s water problem will remain unsolved. Thecanal is the second leg of the diversion project; the first, which opened lastyear in eastern China, brings water from the south along the route of the oldGrand Canal, built 1,400 years ago, to the northern plain. Neither will provemore than temporary palliatives as demand continues to soar and pollutionremains widespread. China’s water crisis cannot be tackled by showymega-projects. Misguided policy is as much to blame as a mismatch in supplybetween the water-rich south and the arid north. A new approach to watermanagement, rather than more concrete, is needed.

然而，中國水問題依然無法得到解決。該水道是南水北調工程中的第二條；第一條於去年在中國東部開通，沿着1400年前所建的大運河的路線將南水北調。這些措施都只能暫時緩解北方水資源的缺乏，因為需求在不斷增加，污染也依然廣泛。

中國的水危機靠這些大工程是無法解決的。南方水資源多，北方水資源少，這是自然資源的不協調分布，而被誤導的政策同樣是導致中國水危機的原因之一。所以需要採用新的方法對水資源進行管理，而不僅僅是工程建設那麼簡單。

Send them the bill

給他們寄去賬單

The solution is simple: China needs to price itswater properly. Prices have risen a bit recently, but even in places wherewater is scarce it is ridiculously cheap, and as a result there is colossalwaste. Beijing is ringed with water-hungry golf courses for the elite.Householders are scarcely aware that water has a value. Planners fail to takethe cost of water into account, so provincial governments enticewater-intensive firms to invest in desert areas and officials designatedrought-prone regions as the sites of vast new cities. Raising the price ofwater in places where it is in short supply would discourage investment in suchareas.

問題的解決很簡單：中國要給水資源進行適當的定價。水的價格最近漲了一點，但是即使是在水資源嚴重缺乏的地區，水的價格還是非常低廉，因此導致了巨大的浪費。北京有為精英們服務的水需求量巨大的高爾夫球場。

家家戶戶很少意識到水的價值。規劃者沒有將水的成本計算進去，於是省政府就吸引耗水量大的企業到沙漠地區投資，還在易乾旱地區建造巨大的新城。在水資源稀缺的地區提高水價就可以避免人們在這裡大量投資。

The Maoist obsession with food self-sufficiencycompounds the problem. The arid northern plain, home to 200m people, produces water-hungry crops such as wheatand corn. Nearly 70% of water consumed in the area is used for agriculture. Itis time for China to abandon autarkic thinking and import more food.

糧食自給自足的毛澤東主義也加劇了這一問題。兩億人口的乾旱北方平原生產耗水量大的小麥和玉米。該地區幾乎70%的水都用於農業灌溉。所以中國是時候拋棄自給自足的思想並更多的進口食物了。

Last year the Communist Party pledged to let marketforces play a decisive role in allocating resources such as water, land andelectricity. If it did so in the case of water, it would reap many benefits.Development would become more environmentally friendly, China could devote itscapital and remarkable engineering skills to projects more productive thanshipping water around the country—and everybody would save a great deal ofmoney.

去年，中共承諾將讓市場力量在資源的分配中扮演決定性的角色，比如水，土地和電力。如果真的在水資源方面履行這樣的承諾的話，那將有很多的好處。經濟發展將變得更加的環境友好，中國就可以把自己的資本和工程技術投在更加具有效益的項目中去，而不是將水全國運輸——這樣各方都能省下一大筆錢。

以下是評論部分：

guest-sniewso Sep 27th, 17:47

Can I patent the idea of building a gimongous wallaround china’s coast including damming all rivers. No waste of fresh water.

揚子江 would needa lock system like the Panama Canal.

我想在中國沿海建造城牆阻止淡水資源流入海里，以及建造大壩將河流圍起來——我可以把這個想法申請為專利嗎？

揚子江應該像巴拿馬運河那樣設立一個河閘控制系統。

Iching88 in reply to guest-sniewso

There are already the ship locks of the threegorges dam to facilitate navigation.

三峽大壩已經設立船閘系統以促進船舶航行了。

guest-sniewso Sep 27th, 17:26

California aqueducts.

They have an invasive species of crab that blocksthe gratings.

Chinese Mitten Crabs.

America has the aqueduct technology, if china hasthe crab infestation solution, we might have a tech transfer foundation,pending equitable value exchange evaluation. (Never heard of ‘em, but we allshould have)

加州水渠遭受了外來物種即螃蟹的侵襲，這些螃蟹把隔欄給堵住了。

這些中華絨蝥蟹正是來自中國。

美國擁有開鑿水渠方面的技術，如果中國擁有解決中華絨蝥蟹侵襲方面的方法的話，那麼雙方可以進行技術方面的交換。
Iching88 in reply to guest-sniewso

How much do Chinese Mitten Crabs cost per kg inChinese market?

中國市場上每公斤中華絨蝥蟹多少錢？

guest-snieemj Sep 27th, 16:08

Another anti-Chinese article that ‘The Economist’is so famously known for.

Countless people are forced outta the way… it’s best to buy more foreignfoods than building this… Did I catch anything positive U said about this project?Kings and dynasties had all been wanting to do this, to better the domesticcommerce and inland transport of goods and services. I guess ‘The Economist’ isonly serving its own master- the Western Capitalists, and it has NO interest ofChina’s own welfare. If I have my way, I’d instruct the Chinese Gov’t to denyany visa to your firm, not even H.K., and all you busybody journalists couldfile reports from Korea, Japan, India, Philippines, Vietnam, or wherever orwhoever you are in bed with these days.

這又是《經濟學人》雜誌一貫以來的反中文章。

“無數人被迫離開家園。。。。與其南水北調還不如更多的進口糧食。。。”

《經濟學人》在這個工程上有說過什麼好話嗎？歷朝歷代都想完成這樣的工程，都想更好的完善國內的商業和貨物與服務的內陸運輸。我猜《經濟學人》僅僅是在給自己的主人服務吧，也就是西方資本家，哪裡會關心中國的死活。

中國記者不應該給你們的記者頒發任何的簽證，甚至也不讓你們去香港。這樣你們這些愛管閒事的記者就可以從韓國，日本，印度，菲律賓，越南等地方發布報道了，或者在任何地方與任何人上床的時候進行報道了。

guest-sniewso in reply to guest-snieemj Sep 27th, 17:33

I am daily reassured that the cctv is the mosttrustworthy, neutral, journalistic entity in the world.

Supported by the fact that they are not in bed withany other media outlet in the world.

Must be lonely.

我每天都可以肯定的是中央電視台是世界上最有價值的，最中立的，最職業的新聞機構了。因為中央電視台沒與世界上任何的新聞媒體上過床。肯定相當的寂寞。

honorablesamurai in reply to guest-snieemj 3 hours 42 mins ago

Poppycock, for every article The Economist writesabout China condemning some unworthy policy, they write 10 condemning Westernpolicies. When was the last time you saw a positive article about France? Tobelieve that the Economist singles out China exclusively for negativejournalism is truly arrogant as they slam and smash stupidities from allnations when they get the chance. Every single issue they publish takes issuewith European, American, African, Middle-Eastern policy. No one is exclusively pilloried- all are ridiculed for foolish politics.

胡說，經濟學人每寫一篇譴責中國無價值政策的報道時，就會寫十篇文章譴責西方無價值的政策。你上次什麼時候見到經濟學人在寫法國的文章時是積極的？不管是哪個國家，只有存在愚蠢的政策，經濟學人都會進行抨擊。

Gemini star Sep 27th, 14:01

It is not easy to solve the water problem bypricing the water. First, water is inelastic for household consumers. Charginga high price for water will affect their welfare, and probably socialstability. Second, I think less agricultural products and more food imports isnot a solution at all…

給水適當的定價，也不是那麼容易就能解決水危機的。首先對於居民來說，水是缺乏價格彈性的。提高水價無疑會對他們的生活水平造成影響，甚至可能導致社會不穩定。第二，自己少種並多進口，這根本也不是解決問題的辦法。

Iching88 Sep 26th, 07:10

Economic development for more than three decadeswith an ‘ends-justify-the-means approach has got Chinese people to become awareof what ‘sustainability” really intends to.

In the past 30 plus years, GDP remained the merecriteria for performance appraisal for and promotion of officials so much sothat lower-level officials can be elevated to higher positions only if GDP ofthe administrative area will be upraised, which has brought disasters not onlyto environment but also to human beings as a consequence. What would become ofthe southern provinces blessed with water should shortage of water resultingfrom either drought or diversion canal at work occur, I wonder?

One more thing, when I drive my car throughout thecountry I see few or no devices for car washing wastewater to be recycled andreused for social and economic benefits, be it in the south or the north. Toraise the price may be the solution?

30多年來的“結果決定手段”的發展模式讓中國人看清了“可持續性”到底意味着什麼。

過去30多年來，GDP成為了官員業績指標和升官的唯一標準，因此只要官員所在地區的GDP上去了，那麼就可以得到升官，這不僅給環境帶來了巨大的破壞，對人類來說也是個巨大的災難。如果這些水資源豐富的南方地區因為南水北調或者遭遇乾旱而缺水的話，那對這些南方省份來說意味着什麼？

還有，在我開車遊歷中國時，我幾乎沒有看到那些洗車廢水被重新利用或者循環利用的，不管是在南方還是北方。所以提高水價或許是個解決的方法？

guest-sniejaa in reply to Iching88 Sep 27th, 14:11

Economic development for more than centuries withan “Ends justify the means” approach by those European colonialistshas got European people to become aware of what “slavery” and”colonization” really intends to instill in people mind.

bla bla bla …. continue the imagination.

西方殖皿煮義者幾個世紀以來的“結果決定手段”的發展模式已經讓歐洲人意識到人們腦海中的“奴役”和“殖民”到底意味着什麼。

廢話連篇，繼續想象。。。。

blinded in reply to Iching88 Sep 27th, 16:10

you are correct. The ecological and economicalconsequences have not been thoroughly studied – what if water shortage in southbecomes a problem due to the project? The money used for the water diversionproject may be better used to build water recycling/reuse facilities and todevelop sustainable water usage plans.

樓上上說的沒錯。這個項目沒有對生態和經濟所產生的影響進行全面的考量——如果南方因為南水北調項目而缺水那怎麼辦？其實可以使用這個項目的資金來建設水循環或者水重複使用的設施，以及用來發展可持續的水使用計劃。