Extreme heat in Chinese cities is driving rising needs for energy to cool homes and offices while searing temperatures in China’s heartland raised concerns about rice crop damage. According to municipal officials, Hangzhou, a megacity with 12.5 million inhabitants and some of China’s largest corporations, banned all non-essential outdoor lights and light shows this week to conserve energy as excessive heat taxed power grids.

Hangzhou, known for its entrepreneurs and digital behemoths such as Alibaba and NetEase, has been sweltering in temperatures above 40 degrees Celsius, while eastern and southern China experience persistently high temperatures. The maximum load, or demand, on Shanghai’s power grid surpassed 40 million kilowatts for the first time, as heat waves drove up electricity usage in the city of roughly 25 million people.

Shanghai has the highest power load density in the country, according to its grid operator. The city’s central Lujiazui region consumes twice as much electricity per square kilometre as New York’s Manhattan or Tokyo’s Ginza district.

As the maximum load on Hangzhou’s grids reached new highs, officials announced a “practical” plan to ensure the regular operation of functional lighting in public spaces and the safety of nighttime transport.

According to Chinese meteorologists, the record extreme heat in Chinese cities in 2024 was caused by global warming, despite the cooling impacts of the La Nina weather pattern.

China experienced its warmest spring since 1961, followed by the hottest May and weeks of drought-like conditions in the central agricultural region.

Through Sunday, Hubei, Hunan, Jiangxi, Anhui, and Zhejiang had maximum daily temperatures ranging between 37 to 39 degrees Celsius and even exceeding 40 degrees Celsius. The extreme heat in Chinese cities overlaps with the harvest of early-season rice crops in those regions, prompting calls for more irrigation to keep fields cool. Fatalities were reported in nearby South Korea and Japan as intense summer heat blanketed northeast Asia. China has yet to disclose whether any deaths have resulted from the excessive heat.

Conclusively, extreme heat in Chinese cities has a severe impact on rice cultivation, jeopardising food security and farmers’ lives. As temperatures rise, rice crops endure increased heat stress, decreased yields, and poorer quality. This climate challenge exacerbates water scarcity, increasing the strain on irrigation systems. Heat-resistant rice varieties and enhanced water management are critical adaptation methods to reduce these effects. However, the need to tackle climate change and adopt sustainable agriculture techniques should be emphasised. The resilience of rice production in the face of excessive heat is critical for China’s food security and rural economy.

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