Maintenance of the Salt Field Canals and Water Disputes in Huainan during the Ming and Qing Dynasties:A Case Study of the Yaqiao Dam in Haian
In traditional times,salt field areas were governed by two distinct administrative units:the salt fields and the prefectures and counties,each with clear jurisdiction and responsibilities.However,for issues like water management that crossed these boundaries,cooperation was necessary.The salt field canals(zhaohe)originally served as transportation waterways for the salt fields.During the Ming Dynasty,their maintenance was generally overseen by salt field officials,but in the Qing Dynasty,with changes in the state's approach to salt field management,the dredging of these canals was increasingly led by merchants.However,when conflicts of interest arose between these two administrative units,the dredging of the canals would attract the attention of prefectural and even higher-level officials.The dispute over the opening and closing of the Xujia dam at Yaqiao in Haian persisted from the late Ming to the mid-Qing period,highlighting not only the water management conflict between salt transportation and county irrigation but also the competing interests between upstream and downstream counties.
salt fieldsprefectures and countiessalt field canalswater disputesYaqiao in Haian
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