Completion of a large number of water projects has changed the past situation of water shortage and drought in Guangdong. The effective irrigation area has been increased from 9.78 million mu in the early 1950��s to 29.8523 mu, of which 23.2 million mu can ensure stable yields even in year of severe drought or excessive rains. By applying water saving techniques in farming, no more drought is found in Leizhou Peninsular, where is known as a historically prolonged dry area. Being irrigated, barren hills are transformed into fertile farmlands. Now the farmlands there yield two crops a year, which used to be a single in the past. The farmers have removed from their thatched
sheds to new brick houses.

Water supply enterprises have been greatly developed to guarantee sufficient water sources supplying to urban and rural areas. Up to now, totally 1,356 water supply projects have been completed, with a daily supply capacity of 545 tons. The Dongjiang �C Shenzhen �C Hong Kong Water supply project was completed and formally put into operation for supplying water to Hong Kong on March 1, 1965 and have been afterwards expanded for 3 times in larger and larger scales one after another in the 1970��s, 1980��s and 1990��s respectively. At present, annual water supply capacity of the project has reached to 1.743 billion m3. Prominent contributions have been made by this project for the stability, prosperity and smooth return of Hong Kong, as well as for the rapid economic development of Shenzhen Special Economic Zone.
In the past 20 years, since the reform and open, a number of motions have been adopted by the Provincial People��s Congress to solve problems of shortage in drinking water both for residents and livestock. The problem of shortage in drinking water has been overcome gradually for 2.5598 million people, putting the total figure up to 2.92 million counted from the year of 1950.