Approaches to Providing and Managing Environmental Flows in China

This paper reviews the course of research on environmental flows in China. It briefly summarizes the history of environmental flows research and introduces twenty approaches used in China to calculate environmental flows. This includes methods adapted from overseas applications and those developed in China to tackle specific environmental issues. The paper gives examples of the implementation of environmental flows in China and identifies some of the deficiencies in environmental flow methodologies. Finally, it discusses obstacles facing the successful implementation of environmental flows in China and suggests the steps required to relieve these impediments.