Mississippi vs. Yellow River - Basic Information

Team 9: Xiawa Wang

Basic Information

1. The importance of Yellow river safety and the urgency of research for its control
Zuo Da-Kang, Institute of Geography, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, PRC

Yellow River is very important to the social and economic development in China. But the treat of flooding in the Lower River is increasing. Controlling Soil Erosion in Loess Plateau is critical to harnessing the Yellow River. Ninety percent of sediments in the river comes from Loess Plateau. The soil erosion not only causes serious aggradations in the Yellow River but also created great damages to the production and construction in the Loess Plateau. Severe soil erosion results from natural conditions and human activities. Human activities, like increasing in population, large-scale land reclamation, sloping land faming, excessive deforestation, over-gazing and destruction of vegetation, are the main cause. Now there is a vicious cycle, the poorer the area, the more farming is done and the more faming is done, the poorer it becomes.

2. Rivers in Motion
Rivers are in constant motion. They move in a meandering way. In low area, the river’s channel will wiggles back and forth in loops and turns. Any irregularity will contribute to that. The erosion of sediments from the outside bank also helps deflect the flow. Rivers form the flood plains which are always flat. The sediments in the water also help to build a natural levee. Those places are always rich farmlands.

3. Mississippi River
http://www.nps.gov/archive/miss/features/factoids/

This is an article addressing the background information about the river. Mississippi is quite a big river. Over 18 million people in more than 50 cities everyday rely on the river. It also has tremendous influence in commerce. The agriculture production in the basin takes over ninety percent of the nation’s export. The largest port in the world is also in located in Mississippi River. The river and the floodplain have a diverse population of living things.

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