TanYe&Cui(55CWRA)

Water Management in a Changing “Climate” June 11 – 14, 2002
CWRA 55th
Annual Conference – Winnipeg, MB Page 1
West Route Project of South to North Water Transfer, China’s Strategic
Water Resources Engineering
Yingwu Tan1
, Shiqiang Ye*2
, Qian Cui3
and Hao Tan4
ABSTRACT
China’s topography is complicated and presents three obvious steps from the
Tibetan highlands at the western end to the eastern coastal plain. The southern
region is rich in water resources but poor in farmland, while northern and
northwestern regions have limited rainfall, suffer frequently from droughts, but
are rich in farmland. As a strategic measure to solve the uneven distribution of
water resources in China, the South to North Water Transfer has long been
studied, which links the larger rivers, such as the Yangtze River and Yellow
River. It includes three projects: West, Middle and East Routes.
Among the three projects, the hardest, largest and most beneficial one is the
West Route Project located in the “World Roof”, the Tibetan highlands. It is
expected to divert water from the Tongtianhe, Yalunjiang and Daduhe Rivers into
the upper reaches of the Yellow River. The total water diverted will be 17 billion
m3
annually. In this paper, we will present the principles of engineering planning
and design, study history, and planning schemes as well as social, economical
and environmental issues relevant to this large project in this remote, high and
cold region. Some technical and engineering difficulties will be emphasized.
1
Chief Designer of the project, Yellow River Conservancy Commission (YRCC),
Zhengzhou, China, tanyinwu@371.net
2
Ph.D Candidate, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, Canada; formerly Chief Geologist of
the project, YRCC, umyes@cc.umanitoba.ca
3
Vice-Chief Designer of the project, Yellow River Conservancy Commission (YRCC),
Zhengzhou, China, cuiquan@371.net
4
Design Engineer, Yellow River Conservancy Commission (YRCC), Zhangzhou, China

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1. THE MAIN FEATURES OF WATER RESOURCES IN CHINA
The total volume of water in China is about 2800 billion m3
/year, ranking sixth in
the world. But the available water for every Chinese person is only about one
fourth of the average amount used elsewhere in the world. Hence, China is a
country with a shortage of water. Nonetheless, China’s hydropower potential is
estimated in 378 GW, ranking first in the world, from which only 76.8 GW have
been developed so far (Zhu, 2001).
In Southern China, the Yangtze River (Changjiang River) and those rivers
situated south of it, yield an annual runoff that accounts for more than 80 percent
of the nation’s total. This area is known as the water rich area. On the contrary,
in Northern and Northwestern China, the Yellow (Huanghe), Huaihe and Haihe
River Basins yield about 12 percent of the total water resources. This area is
known as the water deficient area.
Furthermore, Northern and Northwestern China have rich agricultural and
mineral resources and, consequently, plays an important role in the national
economy. In these areas, the shortage of water has been a significant problem,
restricting the economic development and producing a great impact to the
environment. To cope with the shortage of water in these areas, the South to
North Water Transfer has been studied for decades.
2. GENERAL LAYOUT OF SOUTH TO NORTH WATER TRANSFER
The South to North Water Transfer consists of three main projects (Fu, 1998): 1.
Eastern Route Project (ERP). 2. Middle Route Project (MRP), 3. Western Route
Project (WRP). These projects will divert water from the lower, middle and upper
reaches of the Yangtze River to Northern and Northwestern China (Figure 1).

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Figure 1. Sketch Map of South to North Water transfer in China
2.1 Eastern Route Project (ERP)
The ERP will divert water from the lower reaches of the Yangtze River to the
provinces of Jiangsu, Anhui, Shandong and Hebei. The lower reaches of the
Yangtze River are rich in water resources. It is estimated that the amount of
water entering the East Sea is about 956 billion m3
annually. The conveyance
channel will be 1150 km in total length from Jiangdu, Jiangsu Province on the
Yangtze River to the City of Tianjin. Ninety percent of this channel belongs to the
already existing channels, the Beijing-Hanzhou Grand Canal, which will be
upgraded to accommodate the new flow. Broadly speaking the ERP consists of
the conveyance channel, pumping stations and two Yellow River crossing
tunnels.

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The Yellow River is the highest point of the conveyance channel. Therefore, it is
necessary to pump water from the Yangtze River to the south bank of the Yellow
River. In total, 13 pumping stations will be constructed for a total lift of 65 m.
Water crossing the Yellow River can flow northerly by gravity to the City of
Tianjin.
The characteristics of the pumping stations will include low lifting height of (2-6
m), large flow (15-40 m3
/s), and long operating time (5,000 hours/year). For
diverting 14.33 billion m3
/ year of water, 1.9 billion kW.h is needed.
The pumped water will cross the Yellow River through tunnels excavated under
the Yellow River. The two Yellow River crossing tunnels are 8.67 km in length,
including inverted section of 634 m. The diameter of each tunnel is 9.3 m.
The total investment for the ERP equals about 20 billion Chinese RenMingBi
(RMB). The diverted water will be allocated into living, industry and navigation
(6.656 billion m3
), and agriculture (7.676 billion m3
). Consequently, The ERP will
promote economic development and improve the environment of these areas.
2.2 Middle Route Project (MRP)
The MRP will divert water, in the near future, from the Danjiangkou Reservoir on
the Hanjiang River, a tributary of the Yangtze River, to Beijing. The water will be
conveyed through a channel built along the Funlu and Taihang mountains. The
annual water quantity to be diverted will be 14.4 billion m3
, with a total water
supply area of about 155,000 km2
. In the future, additional water will be diverted
from the Three Gorges Reservoir or nearby from the Yangtze River. The
construction of the MRP will commence in 2003. The main components of the
project are the heightening of the Danjiangkou dam, construction of the
conveyance channel and construction of crossing structure at the Yellow River.

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As the primary water source of the MRP, the capacity of the existing Danjiangkou
Reservoir has to be increased. Namely, the height of the dam will be increased
from its existing crest elevation of 162 m up to 176.6 m with the total storage
capacity consequently increased to 29.05 billion m3
.
The main trunk canal, with a total length of 1241.2 km, will pass through four
major river basins, including the Yangtze, Huaihe, Yellow and Haihe Rivers. The
diverted water can flow by gravity along the whole canal which will include
concrete lined and cement treated masonry facing reaches. The channel starts
at elevation 147.2 m, and ends at 49.5 m, its slopes are 1/25000 and 1/3000-
1/15000 for its south and north parts of the Yellow River, respectively.
The crossing of the Yellow River will be the most critical structure on the main
trunk canal. Two inverted siphon tunnels with internal diameters of 8.5 m and
length of 7.2 km will be constructed. The design discharge of the tunnels is 500
m3
/s.
The annual runoff of the Hanjiang River at Danjiangkou is 39.34 billion m3
. When
14.4 billion m3
of this runoff is diverted northerly, several compensatory projects
has to be built on its middle and lower reaches in order to meet the requirements
of irrigation, navigation, industry and living.
The total static investment for the MRP equals 40 billion Chinese RMB. The
MRP will mitigate the water resources crisis in Beijing, Tianjing and Northern
China. It will also increase the irrigated area by 0.6 million hectares, increase
water supply for municipal and industrial use by 6.4 billion m3
, and increase water
for agricultural use by 3.0 billion m3
. It will significantly improve the environment
and boost the economic development in these areas.

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3 WEST ROUTE PROJECT (WRP)
3.1 Objectives of WRP
Being an important water resource for Northwest and North China, the Yellow
River’s average annual runoff is only 58 billion m3
. Furthermore, from 1991 to
1997, its average annual natural runoff was only 44.8 billion m3
, i.e, a 23% drop
from the long-term average. On the other hand, the water demand increased
greatly from the yearly average of 12.2 billion m3
in 1950’s to 30.9 billion m3
in
1990’s, equaling to 69% of the average annual river runoff.
With the development of Western China, the demand of water resources grows
day by day, making the water scarcity in the Northwestern area more and more
serious. The combined water deficits, for both of upper and middle reaches of
the Yellow River, are estimated to be 4, 11, and 16 billion m3
in 2010, 2030 and
2050, respectively.
As one of China’s strategic measures in national economic development, the
WRP is expected to divert 16~17 billion m3
of water before 2050. The water will
be diverted from the upper reaches of the Yangtze River to the upper reaches of
the Yellow River, providing the basis for harmonious and sustainable
development in population, resources and environment in these regions.
3.2 History of studies
The research on the WRP began in 1952. The Yellow River Water Conservancy
Commission(YRCC) of the Ministry of Water Resources (MWR) of China
organized over 1,000 persons to conduct investigations from 1958 to 1961 in a
area of 1.15 million km2
, involving the Nujiang, Lancangjiang, Jinshajiang,
Tongtianhe, Daduhe, Minjiang, Fujiang and Bailongjiang Rivers. These
preliminary investigations in such a large area provided engineers with an
assessment of options and difficulties of the project (Zhang, 1989).

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According to the directions of the China State Planning Committee, the early
planning stage began in 1987 with an engineering scheme that diverts water
from the Tongtianhe, Yalongjiang and Daduhe Rivers, upper reaches and
tributaries of the Yangtze River, into the upper reaches of the Yellow River. This
study covered an area of 300,000 km2
, and lasted over 10 years. As a result, the
YRCC submitted to the MWR “the Comprehensive Study Report on the West
Route Project of South to North Water Transfer” in 1996, answering the
possibility of the water transfer project and putting forward the reasonability
analysis. The submission of this report was a milestone that indicated the
completion of the early engineering planning stage.”
The planning work of the WRP began in the second half of 1996. Six sub-reports:
transferable water resources, engineering schemes, geotechnics, investment/
benefit, EIA and allocation of transferred water, were completed by YRCC in
2000. The reports were evaluated and approved by specialists organized by the
Administration Bureau of South to North Water Transfer, MWR. Based on these
reports “the General Planning of the West Route Project and its Phase I” was
submitted by YRCC and approved by MWR in 2001, indicating the completion of
the research and planning stage of the project. The next stage, engineering
feasibility studies and preliminary engineering design of Phase I are under way
(Shen and Tan, 2001).
3.3 Transferable water and diversion schemes
The planning report has answered two questions: how much water is available to
be transferred, and how to divert this water (Tan, 1995).
According to the engineering planning, the amounts of water to be diverted are 8,
6.5, and 2.5 billion m3
from the Tongtianhe, Yalongjiang and Daduhe Rivers.
These values represent 65~70% of the available runoff at the dam sites, while
30~35% of the runoff will be released. From the point of view of the whole river

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basins, the mean annual runoff are about 57.0, 60.4 and 49.5 billion m3
for
Tongtianhe, Yalongjiang and Daduhe Rivers basins, respectively. The combined
annual yield of these rivers is about 166.9 billion m3
and the total diverted water
is 17 billion m3
which represents about 10% of the runoff.
The WRP is situated in the Tibetan Plateau, an area called the “World Roof”
since its elevation is over 3000 m. Bayankala Mountain is the watershed division
between the Yangtze River and the Yellow River. The Yellow River is higher
than the Yangtze River with an elevation variation range of 80-450 m. For the
water transfer, two solutions have been considered: gravity and pumping. In
other words, high dams with long tunnels or pumping stations.
Advantages and disadvantages exist in both options. The main advantage of the
pumping scheme is that the length of the tunnel through the dividing mountain
can be shortened. The main disadvantage is that a large scale power source
system is required, such as a pump output of 4.0 billion m3
, lift of 428 m, the
installed capacity of 1.22 billion kW and annual energy consumption of 5.5 billion
kW.h. The high energy consumption and the long distance of the power
transmission result in more difficulties in construction, operation and
management in the highlands. On the other hand, the main advantage of the
gravity scheme is its flexibility as well as that the structures for water transfer are
relatively simple, which is good for construction, operation and management. Its
main disadvantage is that the tunnel for water transfer is long and deeply buried.
According to the present tunneling technique, the gravity scheme was adopted
after comparing the advantages and disadvantages.
3.4 General layout of WRP
After comparing many alternatives, the general layout of WRP consisting of
Da~Jia, A~Jia and Ce~Ya~Jia combined gravity routes were recommended for
three rivers and three phases of implementation (Figure 2). The Da~Jia, A~Jia

CWRA 55th
and Ce~Ya~Jia gravity routes will transfer 4.0, 5.0 and 8.0 billion m3
of water,
respectively. The static investments of these routes will be 46.9, 64.1 and 193.0
billion Chinese RMB, correspondingly.
Figure 2. General Layout of West Route Project of Water Transfer
The current layout has the characteristics of lower altitude and maximum
concentration. This scheme lowers the project to about El.3,500 m. With forest
and farmland in the area, it is good for human activities, construction, operation
and management. In this scheme, if the Da~Jia route is executed first, a
significant portion of the later water conveyance route will be constructed
alongside the Da~Jia route. Since these routes are close together, basic
information and treatment measures can be shared and a lot of the cost for
reconnaissance and construction access for the later works can be saved.

CWRA 55th
Based on the principle of executing from the low elevation to the high, from the
small to the large and from the easy to the difficult, the combined gravity route
(Da~Jia) from Daqu (tributary of Yalongjiang River) to Jiaqu (tributary of the
Yellow River) was selected as the first phase. This first phase includes 5 dams, 5
tunnels and an open channel 16.1 km long. The five embankment dams range
from 63-123 m in height. The water conveyance tunnel is 260 km long in total,
with 7 natural sections and the longest of which is 73 km. Construction of phase I
is planned to start in 2010.
A~Jia gravity route was selected as the second phase and Ce~Ya~Jia gravity
route as the third phase. The third phase work would be constructed after
completion of the first and second phase works in 2030.
3.5 Technical feasibility
The WRP possesses several distinctive characteristics. 1) The region is mostly
above EL.3,000 m with cold climate, low oxygen content, low atmospheric
pressure as well as ice problems that will be studied more during engineering
design and operation (Ye, et. al., 1999). 2) The area is sparsely populated with
2.4 persons per square kilometer. Communication is inconvenient, the area is
undeveloped. The exploitation of water resources is limited. 3) Minorities living
in the area have unique religious beliefs and customs. 4) Topographically, the
northern area is higher than the southern area. The riverbed of the upstream
Yellow River is higher than the riverbed of the diverted rivers. 5) The geological
conditions are complicated, and the project is located in a region of high
earthquake intensity.
These unique characteristics determine that the WRP will provide many
challenging engineering problems for its decision-makers, designers and
constructors, such as high dams and long, deeply buried tunnel. Biodiversity,
climatic and environmental issues, native Tibetan-related social and religion

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issues, and engineering development approach and its role in national economic
strategy will also be a challenge for the developers. A lot of work has to be done,
and international cooperation is expected.
3.6 Benefits of the project
The diversion 17 billion m3
of water into the Yellow River can increase its annual
amount runoff by nearly 1/3 of its average annual yield, and increase the
available water of this river by ½. This has tremendous social, environmental,
and economic benefits.
A few of these benefits are: to increase the irrigated area and grain output by 7
million tonnes; to fulfill the long-term demand of industries and municipalities
along the Yellow River, yielding GNP of 40 billion Chinese RMB; to increase
power generation by 4 billion kW; to dilute the water in the Yellow River, and to
improve water quality; to create workplaces in the undeveloped areas and
improve life quality for the local people; and to improve the ecological conditions
of Northwestern China.
4. CONCLUSIONS
The East, Middle and West Route Projects of the South to North Water Transfer,
together with the Yangtze, and Yellow Rivers as well as the Huaihe and Hai
Rivers, form a “4 transverse and 3 longitudinal” integrated and interconnected
water resources network in China. Among these three routes, the hardest,
largest and most beneficial one is the West Route Project located in the “World
Roof”, the Tibetan highlands (Li, 2001).
From national strategic point of view, the WRP will be constructed after MRP and
ERP. The full implement of WRP will take a long time. The engineering design

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and studies have a long way to go, will take decades to carry out, and present
many challenges.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
The authors would like to appreciate Rafael Murillo and Shawn Clark for their
kind assistance during the preparation of this paper.

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REFERENCES
Fu, B. 1998. A look at the mega hydro-projects for transferring water from
southern to Northern China, News Journal of International Society for Rock
Mechanics, 5 (2) 25-30.
Li, G. 2001. Prospects and views on the west route project of water transfer from
south to north, People’s Daily (Oversea version), November 15 (in Chinese).
Shen, F. and Tan, Y. 2001. Planning outlines of the west route project of water
transfer from south to north, Yellow River, No.10 (in Chinese).
Tan , Y. 1995. Significant Function of Promoting the Economic Development in
Northwest China For West Route Water Transfer, Proceedings of the Second
International Conference on Hydro-Science and Engineering ,Vol.II, Part A, P48.
Ye, S., Liu, X. and Zhu, Q. 1999. Ice problems in the Yellow River, China, 10th
Workshop on River Ice, 126-134, Winnipeg.
Zhang, W. 1989. Synopsis of the west-route project of south-to-north water
transfer from the Yangtze to the Yellow River, Taming the Yellow River: Silt and
Floods, Kluwer Academic Publishers, the Netherlands.
Zhu, R. 2001. The Main progress in the hydraulic research in China, 29th
IAHR,
Beijing.

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