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China’s record-breaking drought takes heavy toll on farmers as crops wither in the fields
- Fields in rural areas of Sichuan are drying up after a month with no rainfall and little to no irrigation equipment available to farmers
- The prolonged heatwave, which has seen temperatures pass 40 Celsius (104 Fahrenheit) has exposed the vulnerability of the agricultural sector to climate change
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Hundreds of chilli plants lie wilting in farmer Zhao Yaoren’s field in Xuanhan county in rural Sichuan province.
There has been no rainfall this month and the daily temperature can be as high as 43 degrees Celsius (100 Fahrenheit). The onions are so tiny in the dry soil that they can barely be seen, and the nearby loofah plants are no larger than sausages.
The record-breaking drought and heatwave that have swept across southern China have resulted in a more than 50 per cent reduction in Zhao’s corn yields, he said, while the amount of rice, peanuts, sweet potatoes and green vegetables he has managed to grow are minimal.
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“It has never been more difficult than this year,” the 68-year-old farmer said.
China is currently experiencing the most severe drought and heatwave since national records began in 1961.
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As of last Sunday, the drought had affected at least 2.46 million people and about 2.2 million hectares of agricultural land in nine provinces along the Yangtze River basin, including Sichuan and the neighbouring metropolis Chongqing, according to the ministry of water resources.
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