The Red Flag Irrigation Ditch

China is rich in water resources and boasts many rivers. In total there are more than 1,500 rivers with a drainage area of 1,000 square kilometers or more each. In total China has 2,700 billion cubic meters of water, ranking the third in the world. Since ancient times, China has built many big or small dams across rivers in order to use the water to irrigate fields or generate power and created one wonder after another in the construction of water conservancy projects. In addition, China is one of the earliest countries to dig canals in the world. The south-north Grand Canal is a marvelous project in China and even in the world.

This ditch is in Linzhon City, Henan Province in central China. Its construction lasted for more than nine years, from February 1960 to July 1969. The water originates from the Zhuozhang River and is blocked by a dam in Pingshun County in Shanxi Province. Then the water from the river is led to Linzhou in Henan Province. Almost for 10 years, 100.000 laborers relied on their own efforts, dug tunnels on mountains and built bridges over the mountain valleys. In total, they leveled 1.250 mountain tops, built 152 aqueducts, dug 211 tunnels and finally built 70.6 kilometers long tributary ditches for leading water to the fields. Also they constructed 396 sized reservoirs and ponds. They brought into full play the natural drop and built 45 small hydropower stations. Also they constructed a large-scale water system with an irrigation drainage, Power generation and tourism. The local laborers built 12,408 buildings of various kinds, dug 22.25 million cubic meters of earth and stone. If a two-meter-high and three-meter-wide wall built with these earth and stone, the wall can run from Harbin in northeast China to Guangzhou in south China. The project has put an end to the history in which Linzhou was hit by drought nine of 10 years and has fundamentally changed the production and living conditions of local people. This ditch as a ditch of life, happy ditch or man-made river by the local people.