Beijings water crisis 19492008 Olympics
This report traces Beijing's 60-year transformation from relative water abundance to water crisis, and the main policy responses to keep water flowing to China's capital. Official data indicates that Beijing's population growth, industrial development, and its expansion of irrigated farmland have driven huge increases in water consumption since 1949. The report also argues that drought and rapid demand growth aren't the only factors behind the water crisis. Short-sighted policies since 1949 have degraded Beijing's watershed and promoted the over-use of limited water resources.