Dujiangyan Irrigation System
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Dujiangyan Irrigation System (Chinese: 都江堰; pinyin: Dū Jiāng Yàn) is a historical Chinese irrigation and flood control system constructed around 250 BCE by governor of Shu, Li Bing (李冰) and his son, 56 km west of present day Chengdu, which it still supplies with water. This irrigation system diverts part of the Minjiang River into an aqueduct leading to Chengdu. In order to build this irrigation system, it was necessary to cut a path through the mountains on the bank of the Minjiang River. The builders accomplished this before the invention of explosives by repeatedly heating and cooling the rock to crack and weaken it. The system also includes a dike in the middle of the river to help reduce the amount of silt that flows into the aqueduct. A spillway allows excess water to continue down the Minjiang River in order to prevent the flooding of the Chengdu basin.
The three big water conservation projects in ancient China are:
- Dujiangyan Irrigation System
- Lingqu Canal
- Zhengguoqu Canal
Building Complex in Wudang Mountains | Capital Cities and Tombs of the Ancient Koguryo Kingdom | Classical Gardens of Suzhou | Dazu Rock Carvings | Ensemble of the Potala Palace, Lhasa | Great Wall | Huanglong | Imperial Palaces in Beijing and Shenyang | Imperial Tombs of the Ming and Qing Dynasties | Jiuzhaigou Valley | Lijiang | Longmen Grottoes | Lushan National Park | Historic Centre of Macau | Mausoleum of the First Qin Emperor | Mogao Caves | Mount Emei and Leshan Giant Buddha | Mount Huangshan | Mount Qingcheng and Dujiangyan Irrigation System | Mount Taishan | Mount Wuyi | Mountain Resort and its Outlying Temples, Chengde | Peking Man Site, Zhoukoudian | Ping Yao | Sichuan Giant Panda Sanctuaries | Summer Palace | Temple & Cemetery of Confucius and Kong Family Mansion, Qufu | Temple of Heaven | Three Parallel Rivers of Yunnan Protected Areas | Villages in Southern Anhui: Xidi and Hongcun | Wulingyuan | Yinxu | Yungang Grottoes
