David Pietz

History
Managing Scarcity: Water and Hydraulic Engineering on the North China Plain

David Pietz

Dr. David Pietz’s research explores how the government of the People’s Republic of China managed water resources after 1949. Specifically, the project will formulate conclusions about the environmental consequences of different hydraulic engineering projects as China pursued developmental paradigms during the Mao and post-Mao periods. The state pursued Soviet-style central planning for much of the 1950s, Great Leap Forward decentralization and communalization between 1958-1961, a blend of state planning and mass mobilization during the 1960s and 1970s, and “market socialism” during the post-Mao era (1978-). The implications that each of these developmental approaches had on North China’s water resources will be examined. Comparative conclusions about the environmental consequences of these four developmental periods will be guided by several fundamental options that state and party leaders faced throughout the post-1949 period:

modern hydraulic engineering vs. traditional water conservancy and mass mobilization
central vs. local planning
international technical cooperation vs. self-reliance
economic development vs. environmental protection

The results of this study will suggest the potential environmental consequences of water policy choices that are made in China. Whether the issue is centralization versus decentralization, reliance on contemporary standards of hydraulic engineering versus traditional mass mobilization, or self-reliance versus international cooperation, an examination of the experience of water management in China since 1949 will point to the environmental consequences of hydraulic engineering choices.

The project will also foster a more nuanced view of China’s contemporary reform program. Because resource management is a significant component of economic growth, the study of how water management has changed under the influence of differing developmental paradigms since 1949 allows one to recognize and understand the range and limitation of choices available to China’s water policy makers. The conclusions of this study will also suggest potential implications of resource depletion on China’s role in world markets and on China’s security considerations. Declining agricultural productivity, one consequence of water scarcity, will shape China’s internal and external actions in important ways. This research will explore the historical context of China’s potential impact on world agricultural markets and its increasing presence in regional and global security arrangements.

Contact Information
David Pietz, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor
History

Washington State University
PO Box 644030
Pullman, WA 99164-4030

Telephone: 509-335-8660
E-Mail: pietz@wsu.edu

Health and Life Sciences

David Pietz

Dr. David Pietz is an assistant professor of history at Washington State University. He received his Ph.D. in modern Chinese history from Washington University and taught at Clark and Tufts universities before coming to WSU in 2001. Dr. Pietz’s research examines China’s post- 1949 state policies on water resources in the North China Plain, and, the impact these polices may have had on regional and international economic and security considerations. His book, The Huai River and Reconstruction in Nationalist China (Routledge), and numerous articles and presentations focus on resource management in China. He held visiting and teaching fellowships at Harvard University from 1992-1996 and served as a Mellon Fellow at the Needham Center for the history of Chinese science, technology, and medicine at Cambridge in spring 2005.

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