China's strategy to address water stress offers Beijing opportunities to become a world leader in water management technologies, but it also threatens Beijing's debt mitigation efforts, relations with Southeast Asia and attempts to attract foreign investment. July and August have heralded severe floods and droughts in China for the past three years, prompting new response measures as Beijing attempts to address China's water stress issues. In the aftermath of recent extreme weather events, Beijing launched investigations into officials' neglect of duty, dispatched emergency response teams for early harvesting to stem crop losses, and released billions of yuan in funds to ward off follow-on disasters, like pest infestations. Extreme weather is already hitting this summer, with the central rail hub of Zhengzhou receiving 9.2 inches (23.4 centimeters) of water in just three hours on July 8; videos on social media showed cars submerged on main roads, and local authorities closed tourist...
