The office also said water-intensive crops such as rice were banned from being planted in certain areas.
Water management authorities in northwestern China have warned of shortages in the Yellow River this year that could worsen in the years to come, posing a risk to agriculture in Ningxia and Inner Mongolia.
The two autonomous regions cover the major grain-producing area of the Hetao Plain, which straddles the Yellow River and is the largest artesian irrigation area in northern China.
“All water users should plan crop planting according to the amount of water allocated,” the Ningxia Qinhan Canal Management Office said in an undated open letter.
“They should plant drought-tolerant crops as much as possible, reduce water-intensive crops and avoid affecting food production.”
“The task of resisting drought and securing irrigation is very arduous this year. We must prepare well against severe and long-term droughts … and ensure the irrigation of 1.06 million mu [71,000 hectares] of farmland,” it said.
According to the Ministry of Water Resources, water flows into the Yellow River Basin were down 28 per cent to about 20 billion cubic metres [706 billion cubic feet] from July to October last year.
“Although the Yellow River Basin experienced four consecutive wet years from 2018 to 2021, the water shortage situation in the Yellow River Basin has not changed,” the ministry said in a report in November 2022.
“This year has turned into a dry year. There may be consecutive or extremely dry years,” it said, adding that local governments should conserve and use water effectively.
Ningxia has been allocated around 6 billion cubic metres of water from the Yellow River this year, or about 11.5 per cent less than last year.
The Centre for Water Resources Management in Ningxia said it would make the best of the limited water resources and ensure that the flow of key rivers, lakes and wetlands reached environmental standards.
Meanwhile in Inner Mongolia, 930 million cubic metres of water has been allocated for summer irrigation on the Hetao Plain – well below the demand of up to 1.9 billion cubic metres.
Su Xiaofei, chief engineer at the water resources development centre of the Hetao Irrigation District, said water supply stations should work with local governments to improve water management at the grass-roots level and ensure compliance with water usage rules.