Qinghai Province is situated in the northwest of China and is named after the famous Qinghai Lake, the largest inland salt-water lake in China. Qinghai covers a total area of 720,000 sq. km and has an average elevation over 3,000 meters. It has a population of 5.4 million people. The capital city is Xining.
The Yellow River originates in the middle of the province, while the Yangtze and Mekong have their headwaters in the southern part. Qinghai is rich in petroleum, lead, zinc, copper, chromium, cobalt, nickel, iron, asbestos, mirabilite, gypsum, lake salt, potassium, boron and coal. The Qilian is called the "treasure mountains" and the Qaidam the "treasure basin". |
