$US 57 Billion Water Diversion Plan

December 27, 2002

Construction has begun on a massive water project that will transport 48 billion cubic meters water from the Yangtze River to arid provinces in the north. Most of the nation's 400 cities that face water shortages are in northern China.

Beijing has per capita water resources of only 300 cubic meters, one-eighth of the national average and one-30th of the world's average while Tianjin is in its sixth consecutive year of drought with its per capita water resources at only one-15th of the national average. While in Shandong province rainfall levels for 2002 were 85% lower than last year's, causing more than US$ 1.25 billion in damages.

At the Lixiahe section of the river near Yangzhou in Jiangsu province, workers have started building a pumping station for the project's eastern route. The eastern route's construction will involve building a 10km water tunnel under the Yellow River.

Pollution is also a major issue for the engineers since in 2001, more than 2.2 billion tons of industrial and urban waste was discharged into the Yangtze River. Officials plan to spend more than US$ 7 billion on 120 waste-water treatment plants, and will shut down hundreds of highly polluting paper mills, mostly in Anhui, Shandong and Jiangsu provinces, otherwise the project would be simply diverting polluted non-portable water.

Shanghai's Water Use to Increase Dramatically

December 17, 2002

Shanghai residents are expected to be using up to 250 liters of water a day by 2005, an increase of six times the current figure, which experts predict will lead to major shortages.
The report said the predicted per-capita water consumption level - which represents an increase of more than 25% over last year's level of 196 liters a day - would be the result of an upsurge in household use even though the municipality's industrial and agricultural water use had been falling. Cities in developed nations have an average per-capita water use rate of only 150 liters a day.

This may lead to a crisis because Shanghai's per-capita water supply was only half the nation's average and will put more pressure on the city's already overloaded waste water treatment system that is currently only treating 40% of the city's waste water.

To deal with the future water shortage, experts have urged Shanghai to adopt more water-conservation measures, increase capacity for treating and recycling waste water and seek alternative water supplies. Shanghai is just one of many mainland cities facing water shortages caused by overuse. Beijing has per-capita water resources of only 300 cubic meters, one-eighth the national average and one-30th the global average.

Students Save Water
November 22, 2002

Tianjin, hit by a six-year dry spell, is testing a card that will regulate people's use of the most of water. The new card has initially been handed out to students taking part in a pilot project at Tianjin University of Finance and Economics. The students must swipe the cards, which allow the use of 1.5 tons of water a month, every time they want to turn on a tap inside the dormitory.

Once the card balance is used, the taps are firmly turned off for the holder for the rest of the month. The pilot project has one major flaw in only regulates cold water. Hot water is unregulated.

Tianjin, a northern port city of more than 10 million people, is good example of the problems China will face in the coming decades as water resources decrease. In one attempt to address the shortage, shops in Tianjin have recently started selling bottles of desalinated ocean water.

(Source: AGENCE FRANCE-PRESS)

Yangtze Clean-Up Plan

November 19, 2002

China will invest US$ 5 billion over the next seven years in efforts to clean up the Yangtze River. Efforts will focus on controlling water pollution in the area of the river where the Three Gorges Reservoir will be built, and the upper reaches of the Yangtze.

Environmentalists fear the Three Gorges Dam, the world's biggest hydroelectric scheme, will create a reservoir that will eventually be more than 600km long and about 200m deep and that it will become a cesspool. The reservoir, which will cover an area of more than 1,000 sq km, will submerge 40,000 tombs and more than 4,000 hospitals, factories and other sites containing toxic materials.

By the time the dam and reservoir are completed in 2009, the quality of water in the upper reaches of the river is expected to be and remain at grade two, which is second best on a scale of one to five. Experts warned that soon after water storage begins, the rapid increase of pollutants will pose a great challenge to the reservoir as that part of the river's self-cleaning capacity will be weakened because of the slower water flow rates.

A program has been developed to control pollution, calling for all cities and towns to have their own waste management systems by 2009, and to ensure that MSW can be centrally disposed. Also, more than 1,300 factories in the reservoir area will be relocated by then and hazardous materials will be treated before the sites are submerged.
Ships, which are a main source of pollution, will be required to have special equipment to prevent oil seepage, and passenger ships will have to discard all waste when they dock to ensure it is disposed of correctly and does not enter the water system.

(Source: AGENCE FRANCE-PRESS)

Higher Water Fees to Promote Conservation

October 19, 2002

Scientists estimate that by 2030, the per capita water resources will drop to 1,760 cubic meters. The internationally recognized benchmark for water shortage is 1,700 cubic meters.

The north of the country is in the grip of drought. In Shandong province, this year's rain levels have dropped by 50%, with reservoirs reaching dangerously low levels. Still some other regions are using more water than developed countries.

Many feel that all levels of government must implement strict and broad-ranging water polices including increasing charges for water to reflect the true cost of storage and supply. Beijing has already raised prices from US$0.002 per cubic meter to US$0.30. In the future the price will rise to about US$ 0.60 per cubic meter.

Hong Kong Water Crisis

October 12, 2002

Hong Kong could face water shortages within a decade because of pollution of the mainland source of much of its supply. . Guangdong is worried that economic development will ultimately be affected if water pollution cannot be controlled. It was reported that water shortages forced some Shenzhen factories to close temporarily in July.

Hong Kong was exploring ways to recycle water, including diverting treated waste water for non-drinking purposes. A trial scheme would be carried out at the proposed Ngong Ping sewage treatment plant on Lantau, which will provide treated water to the MTR Corporation for irrigation, car washing, flushing and landscaping.

Dongjiang water accounts for about 85 per cent of the 924 million cubic meters of water consumed in the SAR. The Water Supplies Department has projected that fresh-water demand will increase to 1.05 billion cubic metres by 2021. The department said it had cut consumption by at least 17 per cent by using sea water for toilet flushing.

$US 5 Billion for Pearl Basin Cleanup

October 8, 2002

Guangdong authorities plan to spend US$5 billion during the next eight years to clean up the polluted Pearl River. As part of the package, 175 firms in Guangdong considered serious threats to the Pearl River's water quality will be ordered to meet the new requirements. The package is also expected to include 161 waste-water processing plants.
As part of the program, Guangzhou will spend US$ 500 million by the end of next year. The sum includes a US$ 400 million waste-water processing plant.

The program goals are that 90 per cent of the industrial waste water disposal systems in the area upgraded will meet environmental protection standards. Following the project, 60 per cent of the sewage from urban areas in Guangdong will be processed before being discharged in to the Pearl River.

Red Tide Threatens Shanghai

May 30, 2002

A red tide is approaching Shanghai, caused by microscopic organisms that live and breed on the sea surface, had invaded the region for the past three weeks and had spread to a coastal area measuring 1,500 square km, threatening the environment and fishing industry, officials have warned.

Red tide is a menace to sea life, and to seafood eaters, because it releases toxins into water and fish. The micro-organisms deprive sea creatures of oxygen and block sunlight from oxygen-producing plants in the water.

The Shanghai Government has set up a special taskforce headed by a deputy secretary of the city to deal with the red tide problem and are monitoring the red tide movement at four coastal stations to warn Shanghai citizens of possibly toxic seafood.

Zhejiang’s Ningbo City Groundwater Problems

May 8, 2002

Coastal Ningbo in Zhejiang province could sink below sea level by 2030 due to over-consumption of groundwater is causing the land to subside. The provincial government recently introduced water conservation measures for the city of 5.4 million people.

Authorities plan to hire experts to equalize the rates of groundwater use and return of irrigation water to the ground. The amount of water available per capita in Ningbo is 61 per cent of the national average and 62 per cent of that elsewhere in Zhejiang. This shortage has led to an "unfair" exploitation of groundwater, which in turn has caused parts of the city to sink, 175 square km of the 9,365 square km city has sunk.

Unless groundwater use matches the return of irrigation water, Ningbo could "drown" under a high tide by 2030, according to experts cited by the report.

Shenzhen Proposes Increase in Water Charges

May 1, 2002

Shenzhen authorities have proposed looking into increasing water usage fees and waste water treatment charges to turn loss-making state sewage plants into profitable businesses. Water treatment charges will be doubled this year from US$0.04 per cubic meter to US$0.06 per cubic meter, and to US$ 0.14 by 2005.

The minimum water usage charge will be scrapped and instead the price of water will rise after a certain amount has been used. The four waste water treatment plants in the city have between them lost more than US$ 12.4 million over the past three years. The current level of charges on waste water treatment is so low that it does not even cover the maintenance cost of the plants. Public schools, kindergartens and hospitals, now exempt from water charges, will also have to pay.

Local industries could face increases in their new water bills by 140%.

Hong Kong- Mussels to Treat Water Pollution

May 1, 2002

About 240,000 mussels have been put on artificial reefs in Hong Kong to reduce water pollution. The two-year trial, which began last week, relies on the mussels filtering the sea water which is heavily polluted with feed and waste from fish farms.

The mussels, which grow at a rate of 1cm per month, reach maturity after six months and can then filter 30 litres of sea water per day.

Officers of the Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department hope the mussels will help increase the level of oxygen in the water by absorbing oxygen-consuming organic pollutants. Keith Wilson, Senior Fisheries Officer of the department said the anti-pollution measure had already been adopted in Russia and Israel.

The trial is costing about $1.3 million. Experts from City University will assist in evaluating the success of the project including whether water quality has improved - and whether the mussels could be safe to eat.

River Dredging Project in Tianjin

April 24, 2002

Tianjin kicked off a major river water pollution treatment project with over 70 dredgers were mobilized on the Haihe River, which runs through the north part of the City.
The river's mainstream runs for 105 km, and is joined by five rivers in north China before debouching into the Bohai See. The Haihe River plays a crucial role in the city's navigation, flood discharge, water storage and urban environment operations.

However, it has become one of the most polluted rivers in China, with wastes and algae floating and greatly damaging the city's ecological environment.

Over USD 3.8 million has been raised for the project which is expected to be finished by the end of June.

(Source: Xinhua)

Hong Kong Continues Ocean Dumping Practices

April 23, 2002

Environment officials stated that soils dredged from civil engineering sites over the next three years would largely be dumped in the sea in either open or controlled waters depending on its toxicity.

Under new regulations early this year one-third of soils, which could previously be disposed of without controls, will be confined to restricted waters. The remaining two-thirds will be allowed to be dumped in the open sea. The new regulations are expected to affect only 10 percent of soils needing disposal. Hong Kong is a member of the London Convention, an international ocean-dumping agreement that requires signatories to avoid dumping at all if possible.

The Government's request for $USD 12 million to be injected into the Environment and Conservation Fund to finance non-government projects has won preliminary approval from lawmakers. Some hope that the fund could help achieve a target of recycling 40 per cent of waste by 2007.

One Missing in Shanghai Ship Collision

April 02, 2002

An out-of-control freighter bumped into a dock on the Huangpu River in downtown Shanghai on Sunday, causing a collision between several oil tankers.

The accident resulted in the sinking of one of the oil tankers, and left one person missing and two slightly injured.

Police and fire fighters rushed to the site to assist the victims.
An oil spill from the accident has been fenced off to prevent further pollution.
The cause of the accident is still under investigation.

(Source: Xinhua)

China's Ocean Pollution

April 01, 2002

According to State Oceanic Administration (SOA) 2001 Bulletin on China's Marine Environment, the country's heavily polluted sea area rose by 4,000 square kilometres to a total of 32,590 square kilometers last year, though the country's total area of polluted sea waters decreased.

By the end of last year, China had altogether 173,390 square kilometres of coastal seas suffering from varying degrees of pollution, 33,000 square metres less than in the previous year.

"The heaviest pollution is found in the offshore waters of populous cities and advanced industrial centers, like Tianjin and Shanghai. Inorganic nitrogen and phosphates, contained in great quantities in industrial waste water and sewage, remain major threats.

Water Conservation Drastically Needed

March 23, 2002

Among all the pressing issues China is facing, maintaining a continuous supply of water is one of the most important, experts say. China's shortage of water resources could become a menace to the future of sustainable development in this century with its rapid economic growth and increasing population, experts said.

The country's per capita share of water resources will decrease by 20 per cent, dropping to some 1,700 cubic meters, by 2030, while the population will peak to an estimated 1.6 billion people, a water report reads. A series of government measures are being planned to increase China's water capacity, optimizing current water resources, reforming the water pricing system, and coordinating water administrations across regions.

To maintain sustainable development of China's economy in the following decades, China must broaden its sources of water and enforce water-saving policies, experts urge.
The government is currently considering a policy where water-use charges would vary among users according to water quality, supply, different seasons, and different regions.

China Protects More Wetlands