Geography: What is the cause of the Zhouqu mudslide?
One crime: deforestation
China Garden Network August 13 news: From the 1950s to the 1980s, Zhouqu used to be a place with lush water and grass and lush mountains and forests. Longshang Jiangnan, but after continuous large-scale deforestation, the mountains that have lost their vegetation have gradually weathered and lost, and mudslides and even landslides will occur every time there are violent storms. According to statistics, from the establishment of the Zhouqu Forestry Bureau in August 1952 to 1990, a total of 1.8975 million acres of forest were logged, and the forests in many places became ruined secondary forests. Coupled with civilian use, indiscriminate logging, reselling and misappropriation, the county's forests are decreasing at a rate of 100,000 cubic meters every year, causing serious damage to vegetation and excessive damage to the ecological environment.
In addition, due to the scarcity of land and the large number of people in the area, people are forced to make a living. The activities of clearing wasteland for farming and logging for fields often occur. The forest area shrinks and the protection of vegetation is lost, resulting in serious water and soil erosion.
The second crime: indiscriminate mining
There are high mountains and ridges along the Bailong River, rich in resources, and it has become a place for many people to make a fortune. According to Zhouqu netizens, there are thousands of machines digging all year round in the mountains along the Bailong River. Mountain materials and jade are treasures. Only a few pieces of good materials can be dug out in a year, but the Lian'e materials and Qinghai materials are insignificant. It's not as good as anything, the mountain has been dug into a mess. In addition, digging for jade in the mountains involves certain risks. You don't need to take a shower for almost a month, and you only drink snow water and eat some biscuits and beef. If life is hard, it is easy to fall to death.
Three deadly sins: over-development
There are countless water conservancy projects along the Bailong River. Zhouqu netizens said that starting from Guangyuan, Sichuan in the lower reaches, to Wenxian and Zhouqu in the upper reaches, there are countless cascade hydropower dams and several mining sites on the river. More than half of the originally narrow river channel has been filled with slag. . There are countless excavators and trucks digging for gold and sand in the river. The water of the entire Bailong River is yellower than the Yellow River.
Where is "Longshang Jiangnan" today?
Jiuzhaigou Valley in Sichuan is separated from Zhouqu County in Gansu Province by a mountain. The beautiful scenery of Jiuzhaigou Valley makes many people who have been there forget to leave. However, in Zhouqu, Gansu, about 60 kilometers away in a straight line, it is a completely different scene. The mountains are no longer green and the water is not clear.
The reporter was looking for a car from Jiuzhaigou to Zhouqu. Although the price was quite high, many drivers were still unwilling to drive. When asked the reason, almost everyone answered "mudslide". Going from Jiuzhaigou to Zhouqu requires a detour of more than 300 kilometers of mountain roads. Many places on this road are prone to mudslides, which is very dangerous. The reporter saw many traces of landslides or mudslides along the way. Some sections of the road had to be repaired because of this. bypass.
The Gannan region is known as "Longshang Jiangnan". Its pleasant climate and beautiful ecology have always made Gannan people proud. However, in Zhouqu County after the mudslide, reporters were unable to associate the scene with "Longshang Jiangnan". The devastated urban areas and scarred mountains even local residents bluntly said were "terrible".
In recent years, the Gannan region has become a geological disaster-prone area, and many winding mountain roads have been rerouted or reinforced as a result. Whenever the rainy season comes, many drivers are reluctant to take the endless winding mountain roads. Zhouqu County is also prone to disasters. During the 2008 Wenchuan Earthquake, Zhouqu County, which is located at the tail of the earthquake zone, was one of the hardest-hit areas. Many residents of Zhouqu said that this rare mudslide in history has something to do with the earthquake.
Zhouqu’s resource advantages are mainly hydraulic and mineral. How to develop these two resources and how to protect the ecological environment have always been controversial. The Bailong River, which flows through Zhouqu County, has seen many hydropower projects built in recent years, and this is believed to have a certain connection with the debris flow disaster. The wood produced in Zhouqu is of very high quality and is one of the main distribution areas of natural timber forests in Gansu Province. Whether the debris flow is related to the over-exploitation of forestry resources has also filled the outside world with doubts. The various gold, iron, and coal mines scattered in the mountains not only bring economic benefits to Zhouqu, but also inevitably cause a certain amount of water and soil erosion.
The painful lessons have been learned. It is time to seriously consider what is more serious and what is the next step.