In response to this regional disparity, the government has undertaken the South-North Water Diversion Project, a pipeline transporting water from the Yangzi River to the north of the country. While this might add water resources for agricultural use in the north, it should be complemented by broader policies designed to promote water efficiency. Such policies are particularly important given imminent challenges to water availability such as the development of China’s water-intensive shale gas industry and the prospect of increased aridity in the north of the country from further climate change.