Introduction....

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Fishery....

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Within China's fishing industry, three distinct types of fisheries exist: deep-sea, inshore, and inland. Deep-sea fishing remains underdeveloped, with most vessels not venturing beyond the continental shelf's edge. Coastal fishing, while significant, lacks systematic development. Inland fisheries can be found in lakes, rivers, canals, and ponds. However, in western China, fish resources have become severely depleted. Overall, inland fisheries hold less importance compared to sea fisheries. "Although fisheries have a long history in China, they were kept in their original form and on a very limited scale until the end of the 1950s. In 1949, ... the production value was only 150 million yuan, accounting for 0.6% of the total agricultural production value ^[6]. From 1949 to 1957, the fisheries in China were in a stage of restoration and development....In 1950, the total production of the aquaculture industry was ... accounting for only 8.6% of the total aquatic products " Fig. 34.1: Fisheries productions in China, 1949-1954
In 1950, the majority of the 78,000 fishing boats in existence lacked diesel engines, resulting in a modest production of 546,000 metric tons in marine capture fisheries. However, there was a significant surge in the number of powered fishing vessels from 1951 onwards. Nonetheless, sea farming/ranching remained a minor contributor to both marine capture fisheries and overall production (see Fig. 34.1). Throughout the past few centuries, China had a longstanding tradition of cultivating more than ten marine plants and animals, including four seaweed varieties, five molluscs, one shrimp, and one fish species. However, due to the limited efficiency of prevailing methods and reliance on natural seed and substrates, the annual total production remained small, amounting to less than 10,000 metric tons. To foster growth in the fishing industry, the government extended financial aid in the form of cash loans for boat and tackle purchases. Furthermore, fish markets were established in Qingdao, Shanghai, Yantai, Ninghsien, Wusih, and Yongjia. Freight charges were reduced, salt prices were lowered, and profitable storage facilities were created. Robinson (1956) concludes that the industry, previously lacking organization, decentralization, and scientific methods, was undergoing a process of unification, centralization, and modernization.
The exclusive economic zone (EEZ) of the People's Republic of China refers to the maritime area adjacent to and beyond its territorial sea. It extends up to 200 nautical miles from the baseline used for calculating territorial sea breadth.
In addition to traditional fisheries, China also engaged in sea farming and ranching practices. A significant development occurred in 1952 when kelp cultivation and harvesting began on artificial substrates in the form of rafts. This marked the first instance of such practices in China. Recognizing the importance of marine fishery resources, the Chinese government increasingly invested in research and published several reports during the 1950s. In 1951, two directives were issued: the "Temporary Fishery Bylaw for the Mid South Region" and the "Temporary Regulations on the Reproduction and Protection of Aquatic Plants and Animals in the Mid South Region." These directives demonstrated the government's commitment to studying and preserving marine resources. To further enhance the understanding and knowledge of fisheries, the first university dedicated to fisheries was established in Shanghai in 1952. This institution played a crucial role in training individuals and advancing expertise in the field of fisheries in China. Fig. 34.6: Production of Japanese kelp, 1946 -1958

Irrigation, Hydropower and floods...

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Fig. 34.7: Irrigation infrastructure in China 1949–1954
"In the early days of the PRC, the central government clearly defined the basic principle of the public ownership of water resources. However, at that time, water consumption was low, water pollution was not serious, and competition and conflicts between water users were not prominent." During the period of restoring the national economy, irrigation played a crucial role as a key component of infrastructure investment, ranking second only to transportation and communication. From 1949 to 1952, the total investment in agriculture, forestry, and irrigation amounted to 1.03 billion RMB, which accounted for 13.14% of the overall infrastructure investment, with the majority of funds allocated to irrigation construction. In 1950, a large-scale irrigation project was initiated to manage the Huai River, resulting in a 65% reduction in flooded areas compared to 1950. In October 1951, construction began on the Upper Yongding River. Similar to the land reform initiatives, the construction of irrigation systems served as a means to mobilize rural areas. The Huai River irrigation project mobilized 220,000 workers, while the Guangting Reservoir construction in the Yongding River required 40,000 laborers, and the works in the Jingjiang involved over 300,000 workers. However, these construction endeavours were plagued by instances of fraud and negligence. Inferior and faulty materials were utilized, leading to significant challenges. For instance, in 1952, the Henan Province incurred disbursements exceeding 50 billion yuan (old RMB) in Shanghai for labour and equipment procurement for the Huai River project. Shockingly, dishonest merchants in Shanghai managed to cheat and steal several billion yuan from these funds.
In northern China, inadequate surface water resources necessitated the reliance on groundwater for irrigation projects. Furthermore, numerous rivers were harnessed for hydropower production. In 1949, only 22 large dams were operational, generating a total installed hydropower capacity of 163 MW2. Plans to construct a series of large dams along the Changjiang (Yangtze) River for flood control and electricity generation were initially conceived as early as 1919. However, these projects were abandoned due to the civil war. The devastating flood of 1954 expedited preparations for the Three Gorges Dam, and one year later, planning activities commenced with the assistance of Soviet Union experts. To fully harness hydropower, the central government mandated the installation of small hydropower generating units wherever feasible. In 1953, an administrative agency for Small Hydropower was established under the Ministry of Agriculture, and training programs were organized to cultivate experts nationwide. However, these small-scale projects remained isolated and scattered. Tragically, floods in 1931 and 1935 resulted in the loss of approximately 300,000 lives.

"…the 10 largest flood-prone areas in China are the Yangtze River Delta region, the area between Nanchang and Nanjing along the Yangtze River, the middle and lower parts of the Gan River region, the Dongting and Poyang Lake areas in the middle- and lower-Yangtze River basin, the Huai River basin, the piedmont region of the Taihang Mountains, the lower parts of the Hai River and Luan River, the Pearl River Delta, the lower part of the Liao River region, the Sanjiang Plain in Northeast China, the Wei River Plain, and the Sichuan Basin." Between June and September 1954, there were heavy floods, which affected Hunan, Hubei, Jiangxi, Anhui and Jiangsu provinces and caused the death of 30,000 people and affected 19 million people. "...the Beijing-Guangzhou railway line was suspended for more than 100 days. It is estimated that the 1954 flood caused more than 10 billion Yuan (about 0.98 billion Euros) of direct losses, and uncountable indirect ones (YWRP,1999)." On October 14, 1950 GAC makes the decision to the governance of the Huaihe.

While there was a big flood in the central provinces, there was draught in the North.

Huaihe River

Forestry...

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China traditionally had a lot of forests, about half of the country was covered with forests, especially in southwestern China. In 1949 the estimated coverings had been reduced to 8,6%. The growing population and failing government policy caused more decline to less than 5%. "The Ministry of Forestry was organized and run principally as a supplier of raw materials for industry, rather like the ministries of coal and mining, and not as the manager of a limited but renewable resource. This led to tremendous over-exploitation with scant attention to re-planting...Procurement prices were set at a very low, fixed rate, which led to constant overcutting, shortages and waste at all levels of the system." Timber, as one of the most important industrial materials, was one of the earliest products whose purchase, transportation and sale were controlled by the government. The ministry was understaffed, 27 cadres and 2 SU experts who are responsible for managing forest areas measuring some 100 million ha.
During the land reform campaign, natural forests privately owned by wealthy landlords were confiscated and redistributed. Part of the forests owned by the rich peasants, and the common forests were also conficated and 42% of the total forested area of China was nationalized, effectively giving the state control over 68% of the timber volume produced yearly. "The rest was redistributed equally to rural households, with former landlords receiving the same share as everyone else. The campaign covered all of China with the exception of Tibet and the border areas in Yunnan where minority ethnic groups resided. In these remote areas, confiscated forests were not redistributed to households but were designated as common property of the village community, due largely to attention given to political sensitivity of border areas.⁷"
Zhao (2012) states "The progress of greening in the 1950s was considerable: in the spring of 1951, 500 000 acres of land were afforested, more than what the Kuomintang did in all its 22 years of ‘misrule’ (1927–1949),³⁴ and this was also the case in 1953.³⁵ In eastern Henan and western Hebei provinces and in northeast and northwest China, 1 625 000 acres of land had been afforested by the middle of 1954. These new plantations were intended to provide shelter for nearly 52 million acres of arable lands. By 1955 an additional 550 000 acres of trees had been planted to create a shelter belt stretching from eastern Inner Mongolia into the north-eastern provinces, with agricultural yields in the vicinity being reported to have increased fivefold.³⁶" He concludes however, "However during the Mao era the implementation of greening was a general failure. This was firstly due to an overemphasis on numbers of trees planted, rather than on establishment. Secondly, as a result of a desire to demonstrate increasingly numerous results there was a general lack of care after trees were planted."
In the first period of the establishment of cooperatives (See Article 29), private forest ownership still existed during the period 1953-1955 and was effectively dismantled in 1956 with the establishment of advanced cooperatives. Fig. 34.8: Tenurial and management arrangements for forestland during the early 1950's

The growing population and the growing importance of industry made the demand for timber high. The export of timber to China from western countries declined due to their embargo policy. (See Article 37 ) "…since 1949. More people needed more food, and more food could only be grown on more arable land. As a traditional agricultural society, about 85% of the Chinese population was living in rural areas. Using the same old slash-and-burn techniques as their ancestors did for generations, the Chinese peasants cleared and burned forest tracts in order to enlarge the cultivated land area. Just as Li (1990) noted, “a vicious circle appears to characterize the relationship between population growth and deforestation in China” (p. 255)." Fig. 34.9: Change in the distribution of deforested areas in Heilongjiang 1949-1958
Forestery