Q and A.: Yang Yong on Documenting the Damage to China’s Rivers
Yang YongPlans to build a dam that would submerge this area around the Jinsha River on the border of Sichuan and Yunnan Provinces have led to a scramble for mineral extraction. Slag and wastewater from more than 100 mines have flowed into the river.
As a geologist for a state-owned company, Yang Yong saw firsthand both the beauty of China’s rivers and the damage done to them by the country’s rapid development. In 1992, he set out to document the degradation of China’s waterways on his own, and has since widely explored rivers across China, particularly in the south and west of the country. His photographs of the Jinsha River, the Yangtze River’s upper reach, which flows through Qinghai, Sichuan and Yunnan Provinces, show vividly how that critical waterway has been harmed by the development of mining and hydropower. In an interview, he discussed what led him to this line of research, what his exploration of China’s rivers has revealed and how rapid development affects people living along these waterways.
Q.
When and how did you decide to start photographing river pollution?
A.
In 1985, I started studying the Jinsha River, and in 1986, I rafted the length of the Yangtze River. For nearly 30 years since, I’ve always been doing this sort of work on all of the rivers in western China. Previously, I did geological and environmental management work in the mining district of Panzhihua city [in southern Sichuan]. After I left that job, I continued to do my own research as a citizen scientist.
Yang YongMining has encroached on a mountain village in the Jinsha River canyon.
Q.
Where have you seen the worst environmental damage?
A.
Many rivers in China are in the midst of seeing their appearances changed.
Q.
And what are the reasons for those changes?
A.
The development of hydropower, mining and roads, which is becoming more and more intense.
Q.
Why is the Jinsha River important?
A.
The Jinsha River is the upper reach of the Yangtze. It flows toward many cities and places with large populations, important areas for China’s economy and development. It has a significant influence on the aquatic environment of the Yangtze, and pollution in the Jinsha has a huge effect on water quality in the Yangtze.
Q.
What is the situation like now along the river?
A.
Along the Jinsha, it’s mainly villages and farmers, but there are also many cities that are developing quickly, especially in districts where mining and smelting are concentrated. The pollution is getting worse and worse and much more complex, and the dangers are much more severe. In particular, after the reservoirs built along the Jinsha began storing water, the ability of the river to dissipate pollution has lessened and layers of polluted sediment collect in the reservoirs, creating long-term problems that will be hard to manage.
Q.
How does the pollution and development along the Jinsha affect the people living there?
A.
They are all the direct victims of the pollution. Most importantly, the water they use for their farming and personal use has been affected, even to the point they can no longer use it. Development, particularly of mines, means a group of people can find work as laborers, and others can get a little financial compensation for land use, but afterwards, they discover that the development is deadly for them.
Yang YongIron ore mining in Huili County in the Jinsha River canyon.
Q.
Do you ever feel helpless doing this sort of work? Do you think these polluted waterways can be cleaned up?
A.
Very few media outlets have paid attention to the situation on the Jinsha River, the government’s management is lacking, and there’s insufficient oversight of the situation.
Q.
Are there any rivers in China that you would say are relatively clean and undamaged?
A.
All of China’s rivers are in the midst of being developed now.
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