the Qinghai Lake

Saltwater lakes, mainly distributed in the western area in China, refer to the lakes with high amount of salt in water. Saltwater lakes take up 55% of the total area of Chinese lakes, of which the most famous is the Qinghai Lake.      

This huge expanse of deep, salty lake receives its name, literally Blue Sea, from the vastness of its azure waters. Lying in the northeast of Qinghai Province, the Qinghai Lake is the largest inland saltwater lake in China, stretching approximately 105 kilometers, with a width of about 63 kilometers and an utmost depth of 38 meters. It is more than 360 kilometers in circumference and 450 square kilometers larger than the Poyang Lake in the south of the Yangtze River, the largest freshwater lake in China. Located 3,196 meters above sea level on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, it covers 4,635 square kilometers.

There are more than 40 rivers flowing into the lake. According to statistics, compared with its original scale, the water level of the Qinghai Lake dropped by 80-100 meters, and its area dwindled to one third in recent years. The descent in the water level has been mainly caused by many years of dry weather and greater evaporation rather than man-made damage.