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Climate Adaptation

China’s Poor Have to Pay the Price When Natural Disasters Hit

When the government diverts flood waters to rural areas, it devastates a region

The Wangjia dam on July 20, 2020 in China’s Anhui province.

The Wangjia dam on July 20, 2020 in China’s Anhui province.

Photographer: TPG via Getty Images
Bloomberg News

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Natural disasters in China cause tens of billions of dollars in economic loss and hundreds of deaths every year. While people accept most of the disasters as unpreventable, the losses worsen already stark social inequality.