On August 15, 2017, The China Institute and the Department of Agriculture and Life Sciences sponsored a Chinese delegation from the Agricultural Water Management Research Institute in Northern China, the Institute of Water Saving Agriculture in Arid Areas, and the Northwest Agriculture and Forestry University to deliver a series of presentations on water use management innovations in China. Prof. Pute Wu, Prof. Hao Feng, Prof. Delan Zhu, and Dr. Yufeng Zuo discussed several theoretical and technological water use modernizations in China, as well as the social and political implications of these technologies. In particular, lectures focused on the significance of water management in the Loess Plateau region.
The Chinese Loess Plateau is the birthplace of agriculture and food production in China. While the region has historically been cold, semi-arid, and fertile, the climate of the Loess Plateau, as well as many other regions within China, has begun to rapidly change. The primary environmental constraint on this region is water scarcity, therefore efficient use of water management is essential to meet rising food and agriculture demand, as China's population grows, and its middle class swells. To increase and maintain high levels of food production, as well as cope with a changing landscape and climate, China must improve the efficiency of its agricultural water management.
In particular, presenters highlighted two key themes: first, the professors described China's changing demographics, and how this shift has impacted urban and rural landscapes. This theme was exemplified by a presentation on the 'water footprint' of China's cotton industry; a sector that has become more sustainable in Northern China, but less sustainable in the South. By determining the water footprint of the industry, researchers are now able to better quantify and explain the management of water tables in these regions. The second theme noted by presenters was an agricultural return to traditional knowledge and technologies. For example, researchers described modern sub-surface irrigation methods based on traditional porous ceramics as a means to efficiently irrigate agricultural lands.