The project provides useful lessons on the process of changing institutional and policy making mindsets, in this specific instance in relation to flood management. Prior to the project, flooding was often perceived solely as an agent of damage and disruption to human settlement and socioeconomic activities, and even a cause of human casualties in the People's Republic of China (PRC). People, however, now realize that floods (in particular more frequent and smaller freshwater floods), sustain ecosystems and the services that ecosystems provide. The benefits of floods also include recharging ground water, maintaining river courses, making soil more fertile, purifying water, and sustaining natural habitats. The old belief that floods should be fought and controlled by construction of dams, dikes, and bypass channels was misleading. Furthermore, continuously strengthening and extending structural flood defenses is unsustainable economically, environmentally, and in terms of social equity.
Songhua River Flood Management Sector Project