ABSTRACT
Water is the foundation on which human civilization depends for survival and development, and water management is, therefore, an eternal subject of study in human society. In a traditional society, water management concerned the survival of the nation and the destiny of the state; in a modern society, water is the core element of sustainability of human civilization. In Chinese history, governing the country has always been closely associated with the governance of water resources, just as Guan Zi 1 says: ‘Floods and droughts control are fundamental to govern a country’ (Gu, 2006, p5). Because of the importance of water management, traditional Chinese society is sometimes called a ‘hydraulic society’ (Wittfogel, 1957). 2
