Huge Financing for Harnessing Dongting Lake

Central China's Hunan Province will spend more than 15.6 billion yuan (approximately US$1.88 billion) in harnessing the flood-ridden Dongting Lake, inside the province, from 2001 to 2005.

Sources from the provincial water conservancy administrative departments said that the investment will be used to prevent flooding of the lake, an important tributary of the Yangtze River.

The preventive measures include heightening and reinforcing the main embankments along the section of the Yangtze in Hunan and 11 major embankments of the Dongting Lake, dredging of riverways, upgrading and adjusting the existing flood drainage facilities on the Dongting Lake to control water levels so as to prevent major decreases in grain output when floods occur.

Flooding on the Dongting Lake occurs each summer and serious floods have caused significant damage to this central Chinese province.

Situated at the middle reaches of the Yangtze River, the Dongting Lake is China's second largest fresh-water lake. With an water area of 2,700 sq km, Dongting Lake is also one of the most important wetlands in Asia. Every year, more than 10 million birds migrate to the Lake during winter. The Central Chinese Government has initiated an environment protection campaign by introducing a range of measures to clean up pollution in Dongting Lake.

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