China's tremendous investment of about 150 billion yuan into taming the flood-prone Yangtze River during the past ten years has paid off.

The massive investment, mainly used for building reservoirs, consolidating embankments and turning fragile farmland on lakes to flood storage areas, has generated benefits of more than 700 billion yuan, Deputy Director of the Yangtze River Water Resources Committee Xiong Tie recently told Xinhua.

The drainage area of the Yangtze, home to more than 400 million Chinese people, has became one of the most important economic engines of the country since the country implemented its reform and opening-up policies.

However, as the population continues to increase and the economy further develops along the drainage area, frequent floods have brought increasingly severe losses to the area.

Li Antian, a noted water conservation expert, once said flood control should top the agenda of Yangtze River harnessing.

To date, the construction of large and medium-sized reservoirs along the upper and middle reaches of the river is well underway.

Good progress has also been made in the massive Three Gorges Dam project. The dam halted the Yangtze in 2002 and the Three Gorges reservoir is expected to be filled this June, at which time, its first four electricity generators will begin operation and navigation through the dam will begin.

By the end of 2002, a total of 89.6 billion yuan had been invested into the Three Gorges Project and in 2009, the investment will reach 180 billion yuan.

In addition, the preparation work for the construction of another two large reservoirs, namely Xiluodu and Xiangjiaba, both located on the upper reaches of the river, now is in full swing. Meanwhile, reservoirs on some branches of the Yangtze are also under construction.

Great achievements were also scored in embankment consolidation.

According to Vice-Minister of Water Resources, Jing Zhengshu, since 1998, the year a major flood hit the Yangtze causing tremendous economic loss, the special fund allocated by the central government for embankment consolidation along the Yangtze has exceeded 68.4 billion yuan, five times more than the total investment by the central government from 1949-1998.

To date, the 3,578-km long embankment along the mainstream of Yangtze has finished construction and its quality could well meet the flood control requirements.

During the past five years, the central government also poured a total of 10.1 billion yuan into controlling soil erosion, turning fragile farmland on lakes into flood storage areas, as well as relocating about 2.4 million locals whose residences were often hit by floods.

Meanwhile, the massive campaign of afforestation of fragile farmland has been vigorously launched on the upper reaches of the Yangtze in a bid to relieve soil erosion.

During the past ten years, the central government invested almost 2 billion yuan into reducing soil erosion, so far saving about 70,000 square kilometers.

(Xinhua News Agency February 10, 2003)