The Irrigation, Water Rights, Water Cases And Rural Society Of Hexi Corridor In Modern Times

Gansu Hexi Corridor is an important agricultural production region since ancient times.In modern times,it is still an important cash grain base in Gansu,even in the whole country.Because of geographical,climatic factors,the development of the local agricultural economic is closely related to irrigation.Water has been regarded as the lifeblood of agriculture since the Tang Dynasty,so the irrigational disputes have been very common in the Hexi Corridor areas.Water disputes,resulted from the double pressures of ecology and society,are regarded as an important social phenomenon in China's traditional agricultural society.So we can see the social changes by analyzing the phenomena.Our population,biology and national policies keep changing all the time since modern times.So,by analyzing Hexi water affairs which is mainly about the use of water resources,we can see complex interaction between national policies and social needs,governmental officials and publics,the relationship among various local forces and water users.Besides,we also can find the impact of water cases on management order,the inter-village relationship,social atmosphere,customs,and the users' psychology in using water,etc.So studying the water cases in Hexi Corridor Area is a good point to the study of Hexi villages,even the villages all over China.As for the water cases and social changes in Hexi villages in modern times,we can find really few studies on them.So the significance of the study lies as the follows:firstly,by investigating,we can find out the real social and natural reasons for the irrigation disputers in Hexi Area,so that we can have good understanding of its history in modern times.Secondly,Irrigation disputes in modern Hexi region are such complex that they involve in many issues.Because the solutions to the water cases are related to the interest of different social classes,the mechanism and ways to deal with the irrigation disputes have been complicated and diverse.The analysis of the types,solutions and impacts of modern water casess in Hexi Region can help us form a dialectical view on the relationship among national policies,local forces and common public struggles so that we can get some inspiration in balancing the inter-relations between local government and public interest,water conservation projects and agricultural production,ecologic development and ecological protection. Thirdly,the study on water cases and social changes in Hexi Region can refresh our ideas about Hexi modern history from the social history's point of view.Hexi Region is characterized by water cases,so the irrigation disputers in the region can be regarded as a mirror,from which we can see the rich Hexi culture,including water resources,water cases,development of water resources,water organization,water management,water mechanism,local people's social outlook and their inter-relations. So the result of the study can help us renew our ideas about all these affairs in Hexi Region.On the other hand,the results of the study can offer us some advice on how to deal with all these kinds of affairs actively in today's new socialist countryside construction.