World Heritage Irrigation Structures Research Center Settles in Sichuan

The 18th World Water Congress opened in Beijing on September 11th. On the same afternoon, the International Commission on Irrigation and Drainage (ICID) awarded the Sichuan Dujiangyan Water Conservancy Development Center the plaque for "World Heritage Irrigation Structures Research Center" at the Dujiangyan special session, signaling the landing of the research center in Sichuan.

The relevant person of the Sichuan Dujiangyan Water Conservancy Development Center introduced that the research center will further expand the research scope to the whole country and even the whole world based on the research of its own heritage resources, and seek more commonalities and individualities among world irrigation heritage to contribute to the high-quality development of the world's water conservancy cause.

Awarding ceremony site [Photo via Sichuan Dujiangyan Water Conservancy Development Center]

Sichuan is known as the "province of a thousand rivers" with abundant water resources and profound water culture. At this congress, Sichuan's water management experience, represented by the Dujiangyan water conservancy project, made a wonderful appearance, showing the world a water conservancy model of harmonious coexistence between man and nature.

Dujiangyan, built in 256 BC, is the world's oldest, only surviving functioning water conservancy project that still plays a huge role today. Nowadays, the Dujiangyan irrigation area, with less than 1/20 of Sichuan's land, provides 1/4 of Sichuan's effective irrigation and grain production capacity, nurtures nearly 1/3 of Sichuan's population, and concentrates almost half of Sichuan's total production value. It is an indispensable pillar and backbone of Sichuan's economic and social development. Currently, the Dujiangyan irrigation area has two world irrigation heritage sites, the Dujiangyan water conservancy project and the Tongji Canal.