- Title: Analysts identify limitations to Chinese sponge cities in extreme weather
- Date: 4th August 2023
- Summary: ZHUOZHOU, HEBEI PROVINCE, CHINA (AUGUST 3, 2023) (REUTERS) FLOODED STREET FLOODED STOREFRONTS WITH SUBMERGED CARS LOADER DRIVING THROUGH FLOODED AREA FLOODED RESIDENTIAL COMPOUND MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA (AUGUST 4, 2023) (REUTERS) (SOUNDBITE) (English) RESEARCH ASSOCIATE AT THE ASIA SOCIETY POLICY INSTITUTE GENEVIEVE DONNELLON-MAY, SAYING: "So I think with what we're seeing with the unfortunate flooding at the moment in Beijing is that we're really looking at the limitations of the sponge city concept, and that it has poor planning for the drainage systems that are currently in place, in not only Beijing, but across a number of cities in China. And of course, we're likely to see, to continue seeing rather, the damaging socioeconomic and humanitarian costs of this as well." BEIJING, CHINA (RECENT - AUGUST 1, 2023) (REUTERS) FLOODED STREET WITH SUBMERGED CARS SUBMERGED CARS RESIDENTS ON BRIDGE LOOKING AT FLOODED STREET MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA (AUGUST 4, 2023) (REUTERS) (SOUNDBITE) (English) RESEARCH ASSOCIATE AT THE ASIA SOCIETY POLICY INSTITUTE GENEVIEVE DONNELLON-MAY, SAYING: "Urban development and the rate of urban development in China, I think it's really put a strain on the storm management and on the drainage system. So we can see that cities in China have encroached upon areas that were once natural drainage systems like lakes, like wetlands and forests and so on. And so because those lakes and the wetlands now have buildings that apartments or shopping centers or something like that, that's forced China to have to build new infrastructure to handle all of the rain that it's receiving." ZHUOZHOU, HEBEI PROVINCE, CHINA (AUGUST 3, 2023) (MUTE) (REUTERS) VARIOUS DRONE SHOTS OF FLOODED ROADS BEIJING, CHINA (AUGUST 4, 2023) (REUTERS) RESIDENTIAL AREA DAMAGED BY FLOODING UPTURNED CAR NINGBO, ZHEJIANG PROVINCE, CHINA (AUGUST 4, 2023) (REUTERS) (SOUNDBITE) (English) ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR AT THE UNIVERSITY OF NOTTINGHAM NINGBO CHINA DR. FAITH CHAN, SAYING: "Sponge cities can bring a lot of good for the cities in terms of the protection from mild and frequent small rain, that's very useful. But sponge cities is not for the climate extremes and those issues." ZHUOZHOU, HEBEI PROVINCE, CHINA (AUGUST 3, 2023) (REUTERS) RESIDENTS EVACUATED IN RUBBERY DINGHY PARTIALLY SUBMERGED VEHICLES ON FLOODED STREET RESIDENTS EVACUATED ON LOADER
- Embargoed: 18th August 2023 12:46
- Keywords: beijing china climate change climate disaster doksuri emergency flood flooding floods hebei natural disaster rescue rescuers typhoon weather zhuozhou
- Location: BEIJING, NINGBO, ZHEJIANG PROVINCE, ZHUOZHOU, HEBEI PROVINCE / MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA
- City: BEIJING, NINGBO, ZHEJIANG PROVINCE, ZHUOZHOU, HEBEI PROVINCE / MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA
- Country: China
- Topics: Asia / Pacific,Disaster/Accidents,Floods
- Reuters ID: LVA001226204082023RP1
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: Intense flooding with record-breaking rainfall in China in the last week have highlight the shortfalls of so called "sponge cities", said environment and city planning specialists.
The sponge cities, which are designed to safely retain and drain more rainwater, with permeable asphalt and pavements as potential technological solutions, were being tested by the effects of Typhoon Doksuri that cause massive flooding and at least 20 dead in China.
Analysts are divided on the efficacy of sponge cities in a future where extreme weather events are more common.
Typhoons are relatively rare for China's northeast. Most typhoons typically move west or northwest after making landfall in China.
(Production: Josh D. Arslan, Tingshu Wang, Nicoco Chan) - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
- Copyright Notice: (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2023. Open For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
- Usage Terms/Restrictions: None
