China's Water Warriors: Citizen Action and Policy Change

198 Pages·2008·2.815 MB·English

by  Andrew C. Mertha

China’s Water Warriors

China’s
Citizen
Action
Water
and Policy
Warriors
Change
With a New Preface
ANDREW C. MERTHA
Cornell University Press Ithaca & London
Copyright © 2008 by Cornell University
Preface to the Paperback Edition Copyright © 2010
All rights reserved. Except for brief quotations in a review, this
book, or parts thereof, must not be reproduced in any form without
permission in writing from the publisher. For information, address
Cornell University Press, Sage House, 512 East State Street, Ithaca,
New York 14850.
First published 2008 by Cornell University Press
First printing, Cornell Paperbacks, 2010
Printed in the United States of America
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Mertha, Andrew, 1965–
China’s water warriors : citizen action and policy change / Andrew C. Mertha.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-0-8014-4636-8 (cloth : alk. paper)
ISBN 978-0-8014-7668-6 (pbk. : alk. paper)
1. Water resources development—Political aspects—China 2. Environmentalism—
Political aspects—China. 3. Economic development—Environmental aspects—China.
4. Environmental policy—China. 5. China—Politics and government—1976–2002.
6. China—Politics and government—2002– I. Title.
HD1698.C5M47 2008
333.9100951—dc22
2007036946
Cornell University Press strives to use environmentally responsible
suppliers and materials to the fullest extent possible in the publishing
of its books. Such materials include vegetable-based, low-VOC inks
and acid-free papers that are recycled, totally chlorine-free, or partly
composed of nonwood fi bers. For further information, visit our website
at www.cornellpress.cornell.edu.
Cloth printing 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
Paperback printing 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
To my parents
Sok Szeretettel

Contents
List of Tables and Figures ix
List of Selected Institutions and Abbreviations xi
Preface to the Paperback Edition xiii
Preface xxiii
1 China’s Hydraulic Society? 1
2 Actors, Interests, and Issues at Stake 27
3 From Policy Confl ict to Political Showdown:
The Failure at Pubugou 65
4 From Economic Development to Cultural Heritage:
Expanding the Sphere at Dujiangyan 94
5 The Nu River Project and the Middle Ground of
Political Pluralization 110
6 A Kinder, Gentler “Fragmented Authoritarianism”? 150
Index 163

Tables and Figures
Tables
1.1. Selected bottom-up oppositional campaigns in China 15
1.2. Schematic of the argument 19
1.3. China’s coal production and consumption, 1993–2003 26
6.1. Incidents of social unrest in China, 1993–2005 153
Figures
2.1. Yimin propaganda, Wangong village, Hanyuan county 32
2.2. Organizational structure of the three principal hydropower xitong 42
2.3. Red fl ag over the Nu River 49
2.4. Dam construction at Dimaluo 51
3.1. Construction of the Pubugou Dam 70
3.2. Three views of Dashu 74–75
3.3. Protesters occupying the Pubugou Dam site 82
3.4. Post yimin-removal land use regulations 87
4.1. Dujiangyan Irrigation System 95
4.2. “The Min River, Report on the Guan County Watershed Plan” 96
5.1. Map of the Nu River Project 118
5.2. Still image, “The Voice of the Nu River” 128
5.3. Surveying equipment, Songta, Tibet 142