ABSTRACT
The Yangtze Delta is one of the most important economic regions in China. China is making a strenuous effort to develop Shanghai into an international economic, financial, and trade center. The Shanghai International Shipping Center (SISC) is an indispensable part of this goal. SISC will provide Shanghai, the Yangtze Delta, and the whole Yangtze Valley with an important window on the world and will facilitate the entry into the international market. The greatest challenge to the sustainable development of agriculture in the Delta is increasing population and decreasing cultivated land. The important factor in the sustainable development of agriculture is the effort to increase the incomes of farmers. Due to the high costs of land and labor in the Yangtze Delta, traditional grain farming has been replaced by the production of high-grade agricultural products with high economic returns. In delta areas, the hazard of inundation due to a rise in the sea level is aggravated by land subsidence.
