Ancient and Modern China

Part 1: Ancient China

Ancient China experienced varied weather changes and climatic conditions just as they do today. There were three types of distinct landscapes in ancient China. The first was in the west of China and it consisted of mountainous regions. These regions experienced extreme temperatures during the summer and the winter. They were extremely cold during the winter and the mountains were covered in snow. During summer, the temperatures increased and the region was very hot.

The second was in middle China and although there were several hills, the region did not have very high mountains. The small mountains in these regions were not covered with snow and the area was mostly desert-like. The Yellow river and the Yangtze River are some of the rivers that flow in this region. The region experienced heavy flooding as the snow from the mountainous regions melted during the summer and it flowed to these regions. The presence of the rivers also enhanced flooding in the region.

The third was in the East. The South experienced a mixture of different types of climate (Ancient China Life, 2009). The monsoon winds determined the weather conditions that were experienced. In eastern China, the distribution of the monsoon winds led to droughts in the north, while the southern parts experienced floods. Major floods were experienced in the second millennium BCE. The Yellow river has changed courses many times with each subsequent flooding.

China probably experienced a warmer climate during the Shang dynasty as evidenced by the presence of elephants and rhinos in the northern territory (Wilson, 2011, p. 127). The temperatures experienced in 3000 and 1100 BCE were warmer during the summer and colder during the winter than they are today. There were many varieties of tree species at around 4000 BCE, but they decreased as people took up farming. In the Shang dynasty, there were dense forests especially before 2000 BCE but these were later used as people used them more frequently for construction, fuel and making wood products. They also cut them down and cleared the land for cultivation (Wilson, p. 2011, p. 130).

Climate deteriorated at a gradual rate between 2200 and 800 BCE and this can be attributed to the deforestation during that period. Flooding of the Yellow river caused the dynasties to change capitals and relocate many times. Population increase was followed by deforestation, which increased erosion during periods of high rainfall and this increased the severity of the floods. Ancient people were concerned with the environment and they insisted the people must take care of nature.

They established laws that were aimed at protecting nature and they were conscious of the natural resources, which included birds, animals and forests. Deforestation was negatively affecting the environment although people were doing it for agriculture. People were engaged in other activities such as hunting and fishing and they did this indiscriminately. Between 221 and 206 BCE, laws were established to help reduce these activities and anyone who violated these laws was punished. These laws helped to protect wild animals, turtles and fish.

In some regions, they practiced good farming practices such as balancing water consumption and soil characteristics when growing millet. Different rulers recognized the need to protect the environment and the role of man in protecting the environment. They emphasized this to the people and they urged them to be more active in protecting the environment since it would be for their own benefit. They realized that if they were to get the full benefits that nature had to offer they had to protect it and this included grass, trees, flowers and animals. They took advantage of the long rivers and they established irrigation systems, inland waterways and facilities for storing and distributing water. They established flood controls to control the frequent flooding that used to occur.

China’s population grew with time and it became more difficult to control the people. More land was needed to accommodate the people and many of them flocked to areas, which had suitable climates. They avoided areas with extreme conditions such as deserts and mountainous regions. Most of the suitable areas were once dense deserts and the people looked for areas where the long rivers flowed since it was good for farming and fishing. Seventy-five percent of the population lives in the northern, northeastern, eastern and south central regions of the country and this regions account for forty-four percent of the country’s arable land.

Population growth is often accompanied with other factors such as water scarcity and increased energy consumptions and other resources. Governments must come up with ways of ensuring that the people are well catered for, by providing the required resources. China is the most populous country in the world and the government has to look for affordable and available sources of energy. Coal is the most frequently used source of energy in China and it causes a lot of pollution. As long as people continue using coal, the country will continue to suffer from air pollution. It also causes acid rain, which is harmful to the soil and subsequently to the vegetation. Coal combustion also causes industrial smog and this is harmful to the environment and to people’s lives. Various types of cancer, hepatitis and bronchial diseases and illnesses were prevalent in areas where there is air and water pollution.

Part 2: Modern China

In modern China, the climate has changed a lot from the ancient past. The climate is can be considered as mainly continental climate. However, the climate varies with the different regions where some areas such as the Northern part of China have long winters but no summers, while in the Southern part has long summers but no winters. In the modern China, the environment has continued to be adversely destroyed due to several factors that have caused the different climatic conditions in the country (China window, 2011).

In modern China, there has been an increase in population leading to China becoming one of the most populated countries in the world. The population increase has changed the environment in several ways. One of the ways is deforestation in search of land. The demand for land in China has gradually increased leading to deforestation for the search of land. This has caused most of the forestland to be cleared as the people of China are trying to acquire land. Additionally, due to deforestation, the weather patterns have changed. In the West that is characterized by the mountains, the weather patterns have changed from extremely cold to extremely hot. Deforestation has also led to the displacement of some animals. Due the increase in population, people in China have been competing for land with wild animals thus leading to the displacement of most of the animals from their natural habitats.

Another way in which the increase in population has led to the degradation of the weather conditions is the increase in pollution. In the modern China, the population is increasing at a high rate. For instance, when the population increases by one person it means that the number of cars driven also increases by one. This means that the amount of pollution that is emitted by the different cars continues to increase thus leading to increase in pollution. In the end, this population leads to the destruction of the environment as they contribute to the production of acid rains that destroy the soil and the crops in general.

Additionally, pollution due to population increase has brought about the green house effect. As the population increases, a lot of carbon dioxide is produced resulting to the green house effect. In the modern China, technology has changed leading to many fuels being burned for the sake of pollution. This fossil fuels result in the production of the carbon dioxide, which leads to the green house effect. This has not only destroyed the environment of China but also it has led to the destruction of the world’s environment.

Another reason that is causing the environment in modern China to change is the economic growth. With the country fighting to become a superpower in the economic sector the environment has been adversely affect. China is one of the industrialized countries where it has very many industries. Despite the fact that it has increased the living standard of its citizens, the environment has continued to be destroyed. The industries that have been created in China have resulted in the environmental degradation due to the amount of fossil fuels that they have continued to burn (Valsson, 2006, p. 126). This has led to the increase in the production of carbon dioxide in the air leading to the green house effect.

In modern China, the economy has drastically grown. On the other hand, the economic growth has led to the destruction of the environment. In the housing sector, the numbers of houses that are being built to cater for the increase in population are built using the modern technology. This means that they are using a lot of energy to build thus leading to the increase in pollution. This is because of the different fossil fuels that are burnt due to the increase in technology being used. Additionally, the industrialization of the country has led to the country farming activities to reduce due to the search for land thus diminishing the efforts of protecting the environment.

Political instability in the recent past is another way that has led the destruction of the environment in the modern China. In the early and mid-nineteenth century, China has been affected by very many wars. These wars range from civil attacks to attacks by neighboring countries like Japan. It is during these wars that the country was not concentrating about controlling the destruction of the environment but in ways in which it is going to win these wars. As a result of this, the environment continued to be destroyed gradually resulting to different climatic changes in the country.

Additionally, the different leaders who have been at the helm of leadership in the country were the determinants of the country’s way forward. In the mid-nineteenth century, the leader Chairman Mao had a strategy called the “great leap forward” which failed drastically leading to famine and disease due to environmental degradation (Briney, 2011). This means that if a leader in the modern China was environmental friend then the country will not be in the same state as it is today. Therefore, the different leaders in the modern China have politically led to the environmental degradation of the country.

Lastly, fishing has been another way in which the environment of modern China has been destroyed. Due to the increase in population the amount of food need by the different people have continually increased. This has resulted in the increased fishing especially by the people lying in the coastline leading to the population of the ocean. The different method in which China has been using for fishing has led to the pollution of the water leading to the death of some of the species. Additionally, the different water activities have led to the increase of acid rain destroying the different inhabitants of the water and the soil in general.

In addition, the different fishing activities have led to the extinction of some of the animals that inhabit the ocean due to the increased fishing activities in the oceans. In order, for the increased population of Modern China to be fed food generating activities like fishing have to be increased to obtain a lot of food that can feed the countries increase in demand for food. It is because of this and the other factors that have led to the displacement and the extinction of some of the animals that live in the ocean.

Part 3: Comparison between the ancient China and Modern China

In ancient China, the population of the people was not that high therefore there was not that much environmental degradation. People were confined to different communities. These communities were environmental friendly since they adored the environment. They had rules for those people who tried to destroy the environment. In the modern China, the population has increased gradually becoming had to control those people that are destroying the environment. Therefore, in the past, in ancient China, the environment was not at risk of becoming destroyed since the different people were environmental friendly. In addition, the animals were not displaced from their original inhabitants. On the other hand, in the Modern China people are not environmental because they have continually destroyed the environmental in search for land and it has been very difficult to control this problem. Additionally, due to this search of land, it led to the displacement of the different kinds of animals.

In ancient China technology had not yet developed. For instance, horses were being used as a means of transport thus; there was no destruction of the environment. In addition, they practiced farming as one of their economic activities, which was environmental friendly. This means that the environment at that time it was very safe from being destroyed by the technology. On the other hand, in modern China technological advancement has been a key factor in the development of the country. For instance, the mode of transport that is being used currently is the different types of cars. These cars need a lot of energy in order for them to move from one place to another leading to the destruction of the environment. Additionally, industrialization in the modern China has led to the destruction of environment as compared to the ancient China where their economic activity was farming, which was environmental friendly.

In ancient China, the leaders played a great role in maintaining the environment. They put in place the different laws in which were trying to protect the environment from being destroyed by the human activities at that time. This was because the people of ancient China used to adore the environment very much. On the contrary, the leaders in modern China have not been keen enough to maintain the environment from being destroyed. At one point, they did not consider the protection of the environment since they were concentrating too much on power and the improvement of the economy thus leading to the environmental degradation.

Ways to address the current environmental issues

China as a whole should institute ways in which it would reduce the destruction of the environment because it has not only led to the destruction of the country’s environment but has affected the environment globally. One of the ways in which China should do in order to solve the problem of environment destruction is family planning. This is because of the high increase in population. Even though they have put in place measures to control the increase in population China should put more efforts (Bauknight & Rollins, 2010, p. 31). This will stop the deforestation problems and the reduction in the carbon emissions.

China should also try to come up with ways in their technology, which do not burn many fossil fuels. For instance, they should take advantage of the desert like weather and use solar energy as one of their energy sources. Although they have done this, they are not doing it to their level best. This is because many industries are still using the fossil fuels as one of their main energy resources thus leading to the destruction of the environment.

China should consider the introduction of some rules concerning the destruction of the environment. This is because the environment is severely destroyed almost everyday causing many of the animals in the water and on the land to be displaced while others become extinct. They should do this by reclaiming those lands that have not yet been destroyed for the purpose of the different animals to inhabit them. Additionally, those who are seen trespassing these lands should be punished (Bauknight & Rollins, 2010, p. 32). Laws should be created to control fishing in the country to stop polluting the water and at the same time to stop the destruction of the animals that are leaving water.

References

Ancient China Life, (2009). Ancient China Environment. Ancient China life.com Retrieved From: http://www.ancientChinalife.com/ancient-China-environment.html

Bauknight, L., & Rollins, B. (2010). Green. Southlake, TX: Fountainhead Press

Briney, A. (2011). The Geography and Modern History of China. About.com. Retrieved From: http://geography.about.com/od/Chinamaps/a/China.htm

China window, (2011). Brief Introduction to China. ChinaWindow.com. Retrieved From: http://www.China-window.com/China_travel/China_tourism/brief-introduction-to-chi.shtml

Valsson, T. (2006). How the world will change with global warming. New York, NY: Sprinter.

Wilson, L. (2011). Human Interactions with the Geosphere: The Geoarchaeological Perspective Geological Society. AvaxHome.Ru. Retrieved From: http://avaxhome.ws/ebooks/science_books/Humanergserge.html