| Pearl River Zhujiang | |
|---|---|
 Pearl River in Humen near Humen Town | |
 The course of the Pearl River system through China and Vietnam | |
| Location | |
| Country | China, Vietnam |
| Provinces | Guangdong, Guangxi, Guizhou, Yunnan, Hunan, Jiangxi, Fujian |
| Physical characteristics | |
| Length | 2,400 km (1,500 mi) |
| Basin size | 453,700 km2 (175,200 sq mi) |
| Discharge | |
| • average | 9,500 m3/s (340,000 cu ft/s) |
The Pearl River (or Zhujiang) Basin is one of China's largest river basins, located in South China within total area approximately 453,700 square kilometers in Guangdong, Guangxi, Guizhou, Yunnan, Hunan, Jiangxi and Fujian provinces, and part of Northeastern Vietnam.[1]
The Pearl River basin consists of three main tributaries: the Xi River, Bei River, and Dong River, and many small rivers within the Pearl River Delta. The Xi River is the largest tributary within total length of 2,214 kilometers, and the average slope of the river is 0.58%.[2] The Bei River with a total length of 468 kilometers has the average slope of the river is 0.26%. The Dong water system has the main stream 520 kilometers long with the average slope of the river is 0.388%. Total annual water volume of the whole basin is 345.8 billion cubic meters, which is the second only to the Yangtze River in China.[2]
The floods in the Pearl River are mainly caused by heavy rains. Since the area of the river basin is wide and the intensity of heavy rain is high, the floods in the alpine hilly areas of the upper and middle reaches are fast, and there are no lakes in the middle reaches.[3] Therefore, in the case of continuous heavy rain, the floods are often formed with high peaks and large quantities in long duration, endangering the middle and lower reaches in the cities and towns with low land and large population, and vast farmland along the river, which restricts economic development and affects social stability.[4]
- ^ Liu, L., Fischer, T., Jiang, T., & Luo, Y. (2013). "Comparison of uncertainties in projected flood frequency of the Zhujiang River, South China". Quaternary International. 304: 51–61. Bibcode:2013QuInt.304...51L. doi:10.1016/j.quaint.2013.02.039.
{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ a b Liu, L., Liu, Z., Ren, X., Fischer, T., & Xu, Y. (2011). "Hydrological impacts of climate change in the Yellow River Basin for the 21st century using hydrological model and statistical downscaling model". Quaternary International. 244 (2): 211–220. Bibcode:2011QuInt.244..211L. doi:10.1016/j.quaint.2010.12.001.
{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ "Ren min Zhujiang (Online)". Guangzhou: Shui Li Bu Zhu Jiang Shui Li Wei Yuan Hui. 1980.
- ^ "洪水特点". Archived from the original on 2019-05-17. Retrieved 2019-05-28.