Recent Trends in China's Population Policy

An examination of Chinese pop policies under Communist rule, based on 2 visits. A number of analyses of China's overpop are considered, & special attention is paid to that of the geographer Pierre Gourou (1948), who contrasted the overintensive use of the lowlands with 'unused uplands&...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Science & society (New York. 1936) 1966-04, Vol.30 (2), p.129-135
Main Author: Wertheim, W. F.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
China/Chinese
Communes
Crop production
Economic development
Heavy industry
Highlands
Human resources
Industrial agriculture
Land use
Overpopulation
Population policy
Population/Populations/ Populationists
Trend/Trends
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Summary:An examination of Chinese pop policies under Communist rule, based on 2 visits. A number of analyses of China's overpop are considered, & special attention is paid to that of the geographer Pierre Gourou (1948), who contrasted the overintensive use of the lowlands with 'unused uplands' & suggested a pop transfer from the former to the latter as a remedy, combined with rapid industr'ization. During the 1st visit, in 1957, Gourou's recommendations were, unknowingly perhaps, being put into practice, as witnessed by vast reforestation schemes & orchard plantings in mountainous Kwantung province. Industr'ization was making rapid progress with the help of Soviet experts, & a 3rd important element of Chinese policy was to increase the yields of traditional lowland crops. During a follow-up visit in Aug-Sep 1964, some changes were noted, although the econ rather than the demographic emphasis on solutions to the overpop problems has been maintained. In industry, quality is now stressed at the expense of quantity. In agri, there has been a slackening of the work of Gourou's 'unused uplands'; stress is laid on the rapid expansion of irrigation & drainage of the lowlands, to increase yields per acre & occupy manpower. However, the possibility of a future switch in policies cannot be excluded. I. Langnas.
ISSN:0036-8237
1943-2801