China's Land Creation

Oh dear, that sounds just as bad. It's sound like what's going on the UK with building companies holding onto land to push house prices up

Like here, the population moves to where the work is which is large cities, while the country villages die. So, on paper it makes sense to flatten land to make the cities bigger. Mountains are only really, really big hills - it's just landscaping on a grand scale. Environmentally I don't suppose it's that much worse than building cities - like Shangai - on mud banks at sea level. It all looks good - on paper.

I gather none of it is necessary anyway as there are thousands of empty flats no one can afford to move into. We went on holiday to Chengdu to see the pandas and passed enormous estates of multi storey flats. All empty while the people lived in shacks alongside. There's a profit making scam here somewhere!

Nelliemoser

That does not sound good - I hope it doesn't come to that.

This is crazy. They are taking what have been very stable sediments of rock from one place where the slopes have weathered naturally over millennia and moving them from that position to create an artificial landscape.

In natural river erosion conditions the size of the boulders etc. get sorted naturally over the years until they reach a reasonably stable slope profile.

What the Chinese are doing is interfering with these natural rock sorting processes and destroying these naturally developed slopes.
By using explosive blasting they are serious messing about with this long slow processes, and dumping totally unsorted shattered rock fragments and bulldozing them into river valleys.

In terms of the stability of piles of rock the size an shape of the fragments and how they are layered is very important This will mean the sediments are loose, poorly sorted and as a result far less physically stable.

Water tends to run along valley bottoms (no surprise there) and fast moving water moves loose sediments disastrously quickly.
It really sounds to me in environmental terms like a disaster waiting to happen.

although on second thoughts don't the Chinese only have 2 children anyway. Maybe they live longer than us.

That's what I thought which is why I'm puzzled why they are having to go the extent of chopping tops of mountains!

^China's population growth is less than the UKs and has been since 2005.
Maybe we should be more worried about what is happening here. It's not all down to immigration.^

'Immigration also played a role. Mr. Basten said the fertility rate, or the number of births per 1,000 women, was 2.3% for foreign-born women versus 1.9% for U.K.-born women. He said that suggests that migrants are making a significant contribution to the increase.'

Further facts, figures and stats: online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424127887323477604579000830777336474

What would you suggest, durhamjen?

China's population growth is less than the UKs and has been since 2005.
Maybe we should be more worried about what is happening here. It's not all down to immigration.

sorry I thought it was 2 children for the Chinese. I agree it would be better if they recognised dual nationality. It makes me scared as to what the future holds.

The Chinese have a one child policy Silverfish unless you are either an ethnic minority or rich enough to pay what can be a substantial 'fine'. My daughter and her Chinese husband have 2 children. The elder one is Chinese and has his Beijing houkou (spelling??) and a Chinese passport. The younger one does not have his houkou (??) as this would have meant paying the 'fine' and he has a UK passport. Makes travelling interesting !! It would be so much easier if the Chinese recognised dual nationality.

Seem to have gone off post somewhat !

although on second thoughts don't the Chinese only have 2 children anyway. Maybe they live longer than us.
I wouldn't mind living on a squared off mountain- be a nice view.

maybe they just like sex and cant be bothered to use contraception.