Fuyou Village, Hanyuan 1999-2005

Village leader speaking up at forestry training

DORS engineer inspecting DORS-supported tree saplings

Fuyou lies at altitudes ranging between 1,700-2,100 m above sea-level on a gently sloping hillside rising up to mountains beyond. The village, with a population of 738 in five hamlets, is a few kilometres down the road from the town of Huangmu. The land is dry and only one season of crops can be grown on farms which average 10mu (2/3ha) in size. Temperatures go below freezing for three months during winter. The main crops are maize and potatoes, with beans, Sichuan Pepper (huajiao), and sunflower seeds bringing in a small cash income. Rice is not grown so villagers swap potatoes to obtain it. The houses are poor, constructed of stone and mud brick, with a tiled roof. Some wealthier households have a TV and brick-built houses, but there are few of these, and still many households with no off-farm income. Most houses have electricity. There is a road to Huangmu and a primary school only walking distance away in the next village, which Fuyou Village children can attend. Most villagers are literate or semi-literate.

In 1999, in response to a request from the Township Government at Huangmu, DORS considered an initial proposal for forestry project, then a tea-growing project. After numerous discussions and visits to the village, it was decided to first tackle the water supply problems as, although some interest in other projects was in evident, this is what the villagers themselves identified as the most pressing need.

Branches strung full of plums--the fruit of Fuyou's successful forestry project

Water supply project

DORS is assisting the villagein installing a drinking water supply. The pipes and water tanks used in their original supply were in need of replacement, and some adjustments to the routing of pipes appears necessary to gain maximum benefit from the system. The new supply uses five spring sources from the mountain side behind the hamlets.