Weather

From drought to downpour: Climate change sounds alarm bells in northeast China

Recent weather phenomena in China have brought attention to climate change, most lately in northeast China. What are the impacts of extreme weather? Lianhe Zaobao China news correspondent Lim Zhan Ting finds out more.

Lim Zhan Ting

Beijing’s flood came for the elderly first 

Heavy rains in Beijing have left at least 44 people dead, most of them elderly and infirm. Despite official reports of evacuations, residents in Miyun district said they woke up to knee-high waters and had to leave on their own. Lianhe Zaobao senior correspondent Chen Jing assesses what more can be done.

Chen Jing

Why is flood control so challenging for China?

While China announced its plans for early warning for climate change adaptation at COP29 in Azerbaijan, the reality of implementing measures such as the “sponge city” concept may be more challenging than it seems, says researcher Genevieve Donnellon-May.

Genevieve Donnellon-May

Storing sunshine: How northwest China is making renewable energy reliable

Sustainable energy has had a reputation for being notoriously unreliable — up until now, that is. Lianhe Zaobao Beijing correspondent Sim Tze Wei looks at China’s Gansu province, where several sustainable energy factories have come up with innovative storage solutions to mitigate the volatility and wastage of renewable energy sources.

Sim Tze Wei

[Video] Chinese farmers’ cry for help amid extreme weather

Chinese farmers are bearing the brunt of extreme weather events. Severe droughts in the north and deadly floods in the south are causing havoc. ThinkChina’s Yi Jina looks at the issue.

Yi Jina

[Video] China's Harbin pampering visitors to win tourism battle

Harbin has seen an explosion of tourists this Chinese New Year season, and it is pulling out all the stops to welcome them, sometimes to the chagrin of locals. However, can this wave of tourism be sustained, and improve Harbin's economy? Lianhe Zaobao correspondent Daryl Lim takes a trip to China's land of snow and ice.

Daryl Lim

Bai Juyi: This Tang dynasty poet enjoyed a good life

Cultural historian Cheng Pei-kai gives us a glimpse into the life of Tang dynasty poet Bai Juyi, whose later years were leisurely spent as a carefree and frivolous official often writing about the blazing heat of summer.

Cheng Pei-kai

China's ambitious clean energy development raises questions on efficiency

The expansion of renewable energy in China has been driven by the government's 2020 pledge to reach peak carbon dioxide emissions by 2030 and become carbon neutral by 2060. But the reshaping of a new energy order still has a long way to go.

Caixin Global

How a 140-year flood caught Beijing and nearby cities off guard

After experiencing the hottest June on record for the city, Beijing is now witnessing the most rainfall in the 140 years since records began. How did Typhoon Doksuri bring the prolonged heavy rainfall to northern China thousands of kilometres away from its landing point?

Caixin Global

Huawei founder: Global economic outlook will be grim for next few years

In a recent internal memo, Huawei founder Ren Zhengfei did not beat around the bush in warning of the dire global economic situation. Zaobao associate editor Han Yong Hong notes that Ren is merely being candid about what has already been iterated by heads of states and economic experts. Amid a war in Europe, supply chain disruptions, geopolitical tensions and domestic economic troubles, can China hope for a recovery in the foreseeable future?

Han Yong Hong

Sichuan power crunch sparks calls for rethink of coal in China's energy mix

Extreme weather and declining water levels at hydropower reservoirs in Sichuan are sparking worries of a power crunch across China. This has forced electricity cuts to businesses and households in the province of 84 million people, along with loud calls for a rethink of coal in the nation's energy mix, putting a spanner in the works of its goal to reach peak carbon emissions by 2030.

Caixin Global

Electricity woes further dampen China's hopes of economic recovery

While China has yet to emerge from the shadow of the Covid-19 pandemic and its ailing real estate sector, power shortages caused by severe weather conditions are adding to its woes. Zaobao correspondent Yang Danxu tells us more about the severity of the power crunch, and its far-reaching impact across regions and industries.

Yang Danxu