Great Power Conception! China wants a new Baikal, and the North China Plain can be a big boat

The upper and middle reaches of the Yellow River generate more than 50 billion cubic meters of runoff in a good year. In the past three years, more than 30 billion tonnes of water resources have flowed into the sea every year without effective use. The water shortage in the middle and lower reaches of the Yellow River is mainly due to the influence of the continental monsoon climate. During the flood season, the Yellow River often suffers from severe flooding, while during the non-flood season, the entire basin faces the challenge of water shortage.

In order to make more efficient use of water resources, an ambitious water diversion plan has been proposed. The Yellow River's Black Mountain Gorge has more than 50 billion cubic meters of water in a good year, while the Danjiang Estuary of the Hanjiang River has more than 60 billion tons of water resources in the past three years. These water resources, combined with the flooding of the Huai River, will all be diverted to the Yellow River, leaving the lower reaches of the Yellow River with more than 90 billion tons of water resources per year (60 billion for the Han River + 15 billion for the Huai River + 15 billion for the Wei River). By properly intercepting these water resources, the upper reaches of the Yellow River can not only avoid flooding in the lower reaches of the Hanjiang, Yangtze and Huai rivers, but also solve the water demand of the Yellow River basin and help to wash away the sediment in the lower reaches of the Yellow River.

This water diversion project is equivalent to diverting the flood water of the Han River and Huai River to the northwest and storing it. In order to ensure that there is no shortage of water in the downstream, it is only necessary to ensure the ecological water demand in the midstream. Even in dry years, tens of billions of cubic meters of water are transported downstream each year due to the hundreds of billions of cubic meters of water stored upstream, which can effectively alleviate water shortages downstream. This strategy of storing water in good years and releasing water in dry years is a win-win water conservancy project.

For the ecological basic flow of the middle and lower reaches of the river, it will be finely adjusted through the tributary reservoirs to ensure that there will be no negative impact on the ecological environment. Unlike the United States Colorado River, which exhausts its water resources and does not distribute water to the Mexico, the water resources in the upper reaches of the Yellow River will be recycled and stored in the Yin'e Basin and the valley floor of the Junggar Basin in northern Xinjiang. These areas have the storage potential of hundreds of trillions of cubic metres, and most of the water will be conserved through recycling, replenished by new extraterritorial rainfall every year.

The Ordos Basin, as the second largest sedimentary basin in mainland China, has a total area of 370,000 square kilometers, covering Ningxia, Hetao and other regions. Although the inflow area of the Loess Plateau in the basin is between 1400~1200 meters above sea level, it is a low-lying area, but it is not suitable as a storage place for the water resources of the Yellow River. However, we still need to conduct in-depth research and discussion on other suitable storage solutions.

Both the Loess Plateau inflow area and the Hetao area are not suitable as the construction sites of large reservoirs due to their unique geographical characteristics.

The Loess Plateau, known for its famous loess slopes, is a vast plain with small undulations and ravines. Such topography makes the construction of large reservoirs face many challenges, such as limited water storage capacity, high natural loss of water resources, and possible geological hazards. Therefore, from a technical and safety point of view, the Loess Plateau is not suitable for the construction of large reservoirs.

At the same time, although the Hetao area has a certain amount of water resources, it is not suitable for the construction of large reservoirs due to its geographical location and climatic conditions.

The Yin'e Basin, from the west of Yinchuan City in the east to Ejina Banner in the west, is located in the central and western part of the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, with a vast area of about 123,000 square kilometers, ranking sixth among the top ten basins in China. The lowest point of the basin is 900 meters above sea level, near the famous Juyan Sea. If the Yin'e Basin is used to store the water of the Yellow River, its potential is so great that it is almost comparable to rebuilding Lake Baikal, with an estimated depth of 300 meters and an elevation of 1,200 meters, which has the capacity to store China's vast water resources. If the Yellow River continues to flow into the basin without evaporating, it is estimated that it will take hundreds of years to fill up.

To achieve this ambitious goal, the Yellow River's Heishanxia Dam will need to be raised to about 1,400 meters in order to divert water from the Yellow River to the Juyan Sea. Although the road is blocked by mountains, the maximum is not more than 1,450 meters, and the water resources of the Yellow River can be easily diverted to the Juyan Sea by constructing two tunnels with a diameter of 18 meters and a depth of less than 100 meters.

However, simply storing the Yellow River's water in the upper and middle reaches is not a long-term solution, as the environment there is not conducive to long-term conservation. Although the annual evaporation in the Juyanhai and Qingtu Lake areas is huge, the rainfall is between 250 and 400 mm, and they still have a certain water storage capacity. Assuming that 50 billion tons of water from the Yellow River flow into this area, the water requirement of 400 millimeters per square meter of wheat is enough to directly irrigate 125,000 square kilometers (about 200 million mu of arable land).

What's more, after this water evaporation, rainfall again and fall back into the area, creating a virtuous water cycle. This will greatly improve the ecological environment in Northwest China and provide strong support for local agricultural production and ecological restoration.

North China Shipping Revival Project.

Schematic diagram of the North China Shipping Revival Project

The Huanghan Canal is the abbreviation of the second line of the middle line of the South-to-North Water Diversion Project, which is both a canal and a waterway. It has a navigable 2,000-ton waterway with an annual water diversion of at least 25 billion cubic meters. An artificial canal with a flow capacity of 2,000 cubic meters per second.

How much will the North China Shipping Reconstruction Project investment be? How long will the construction period be?

The significance of the Huanghan Canal is not only for the water needs of Henan, Hebei and Shandong. It will also meet the needs of flood control and water storage in the Huai River and Han River basins. Ensure the water demand of the lower reaches of the Han River and Huai River.

Through the construction of pumped storage power plants ranging from 6GW to 12GW. It can ensure that 25 billion cubic meters of water will be transferred from the Three Gorges to the middle and lower reaches of the Han River every year. It can ensure that at least 40 billion cubic meters of water resources are transferred from Fangcheng Pass every year.

And the Han River, the Danjiang Estuary comes to the water harvest year. There is no need to enable pumped storage water transfer. For example, in the past five years, the amount of water coming from the Danjiangkou Reservoir has exceeded 50 billion. It is completely possible to link the Danjiangkou Reservoir and the Huaihe River Basin Reservoir to help each other with drought and flood.

The Huanghan Canal will not only meet the water needs of northern China, but will also provide more than 50 billion cubic meters of water to northwest China.

When there is no longer a shortage of water in the lower reaches of the Yellow River, we will divert the water of the Yellow River in the Black Mountain Gorge and on the Loess Plateau. Most of the Yellow River water is left in the northwest.

50 billion cubic meters of water directly irrigates 200 million mu of new cultivated land. And the evaporation of this water to form a secondary rainfall will completely change the landscape of the northwest. Storing water in Qingtu Lake, Juyanhai will form a greater climate improvement.

With this vision alone, China's future is promising.