Yangtze River Fact File
Country: China
Length: 6300 km (3915 miles)
Source: Geladaindong Peak, Qinghai
Mouth: East China Sea
Other Yangtze River Facts
- The Yangtze River is also called the Chang Jiang
- It’s the longest river in Asia, and the third longest in the world (behind the Nile and the Amazon).
- The drainage basin of the Yangtze covers 20% of China.
- The river is one of the busiest in terms of traffic. Ships use it to transport coal and manufactured goods. Passenger ships also use the river, and Yangtze River cruises are become quite a big tourist attraction.
- Flooding of the Yangtze River can be a major problem. In 1954 around 30,000 people were killed as a result of flood waters.
- In some places, the Yangtze is very polluted from industry and agriculture.
- The Three Gorges Dam on the Yangtze is one of the biggest hydro-electric power stations in the world.
- There are more than 50 bridges spanning the Yangtze Rivers, and all of these have been built after 1955. Before then, people crossed the river by ferry.
- The River Yangtze has more than 700 tributaries.
- The Yangtze is home to many different species of animal. some of these, such as the Chinese Alligator, the Finless Porpoise and the Chinese Paddlefish, are endangered due to river pollution and high levels of river traffic.
Click here to find out more facts about rivers, or learn more about some of the other longest rivers in the world.
