China has been hit by devastating floods in recent weeks, inundating cities and causing deaths and infrastructural damage, as well as raising questions about the effectiveness of its 2015 'sponge city' initiative aimed at reducing urban flood risks.
Buildings and farmlands are seen partially submerged in floodwaters following heavy rainfall in Poyang county of Jiangxi province, China July 17, 2020. China Daily via REUTERS/File Photo
But cities remain vulnerable to heavy rain. In July alone, floods and related geological disasters caused 142 deaths and disappearances, destroyed 2,300 homes and caused direct economic losses of 15.78 billion yuan , China's emergency ministry said on Monday.China has long sought to, and make highly populated cities less vulnerable to flooding and drought.
Breakneck urbanisation has encased vast stretches of land in impermeable concrete, often along banks of major rivers that traditionally served as flood plains. With wetlands paved over and nowhere for surplus water to settle, waterlogging and flooding was commonplace. The researchers said the government had so far paid "minimum attention" to sponge city construction, and called for national legislation to be drawn up as soon as possible.Even if sponge city measures had been implemented in full, they would have been unable to prevent this year's disasters.
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