Avoidance of the River Channel Dried-up Tragedy in the Lower Reaches of the Tarim River to Occur in Its Middle Reaches

The annual runoff volume out of the debouchures of the three main source streams, i.e., the Aksu River, Yarkant River and Hotan River in the Tarim River watershed, was 2.17×10 10 m3 in 2002, and it was 2.4×109 m3 higher than the multiannual average. However, the total water consumption in these three main source stream basins was as high as 1.64×10 10 m3 due to the irrational utilization of water resources. Moreover, there was no stream water recharge from the Yarkant River to the mainstream of the Tarim River. Thus, the river channel of 320 km in length from Ailiktam Hydrological Station over the Yarkant River to Xiaoxiak Hydrological Station over the mainstream of the Tarim River was dried up for 20 years, the ecological environment along this river section was seriously degenerated, and this region is currently becoming as a new source field of aeolian sand. Such situation not only threatens the safety of the Aksu Oasis, but also impacts the production in the Yarkant Irrigated Area. Such behavior destroying human's homesteads must be forbidden, the local residents should understand that our homesteads in arid areas can be protected well and the sustainable utilization of the limited water resources can be achieved only by maintaining the perennial stream of the rivers in arid areas. We can not let the tragedies of river channel dried-up and the serious degeneration of the ecological environent in the lower reaches of the Tarim River occur in its middle reaches.