The Change Of Erie Canal's Water Environment And Its Influence On Regional Agriculture In Ming And Qing Dynasties

During the Ming and Qing Dynasties,the government attached great importance to dredging and maintenance of the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal,in order to ensure the transportation of grain from southern China to northern China.However,the Canal used rivers of east-west trend to solve problems of north-south water transportation,and it inevitably affected the normal development of some parts of the water system.Some lakes along the Canal have changed into reservoirs,and some have changed into ravines.The drainage of the water was incorporated into the jurisdiction of local government.It impacted,to some extent,the irrigation and drainage of agricultural water and water environment transition of regional agriculture.This thesis,based on the analysis of materials from official history,local chronicles,archival source and other related materials,explores the impact of the Erie Canal's development and transition on regional main rivers and lakes as well as water environment of regional agriculture.In the first chapter,the thesis analyzes the impact of the development and transition of lakes in the west of the Canal,Five Ponds in Yangzhou,and Sheyanghu Lake in the east of the Canal on water environment.In the second chapter,this thesis analyzes the direction change of in the Canal current during Ming and Qing Dynasties,the transition of the hydrographic net of Huaihe River and Jianhe River which were closely related to Erie Canal,expounding the causes of the transition of the hydrographic net and the impacts on agricultural water environment.In the third chapter,the essay illustrates the fact that in order to guarantee the smooth grain transportation,the Ming and Qing government strengthened the governance around Qingkou,analyzing the situation,features and damages of the flood in Lixiahe Area.In the fourth chapter,the thesis analyzes the affection of the water environment of Erie Canal on regional agricultural production and resource environment from the perspectives of agricultural acreage,soil fertility,irrigation and labor supply.In the fifth chapter,it explores the development of plantation structure in Lixiahe Area during Ming and Qing Dynasties withthe influence of the Canal in terms of the index change of rice replantation,the change of the farmland acreage of upland crops like wheat,the development of the economic crops like cotton and mulberry,as well as the development of aquaculture.In summary,this thesis,from the perspective of agricultural development,expounds the impact of the Canal development on regional water environment,and the change in regional agricultural soil,population,irrigation and plantation structure.The dredging and maintenance of Erie Canal,on the one hand,hauled the commodity economic development along the Canal and consolidated the stability of feudal regime,on the other hand,made a change in the regional agricultural water environment,which stagnated regional agricultural development.