ABSTRACT
The Nationalist government established the Huai River Conservancy Commission (HRCC) as a valley-wide institution of the type envisioned by Zhang Jian, and absent since the abolition of the Yellow River Commission in the late Qing. The HRCC incorporated technically trained personnel into Huai institutions, as well as enlisted the involvement of international technical and financial organizations. The organization of the HRCC reflected the relative importance the National Government placed on Huai control. Discussions and debate among Anhui and Jiangsu interests over the Preliminary Engineering Plan reaffirmed the desire of a sea-access channel, but reflected keen differences on its route and the related issue of the fate of Hongze Lake. In general, Anhui interests wanted a sea-access route that would allow Hongze Lake to be dried and reclaimed. They also argued that a Guan River route had natural advantages: the large capacity of its channel, the advantageous slope toward the sea, and the precedence of Sun Yatsen’s earlier plan.
