China is to launch a giant water pollution control project
involving billions of yuan, said the environment watchdog on
Friday.
It will be the country's largest environment-related scientific
research project in terms of investment, said Zhou Shengxian, head
of the State Environmental Protection Administration (SEPA), at a
national conference.
The project will develop technologies to ensure drinking water
security, limit environmental deterioration of river valleys, and
control water pollution in cities, Zhou said.
It is also expected to specify the impact of water pollution on
economic and social development, he added.
The lack of water resources has impeded China's sustainable
development and also threatened people's subsistence. Statistics
show that per capita water resources in China are only one third
the world's average.
Ninety percent of waterways that flow through China's cities and
75 percent of the country's lakes are polluted.
More than 300 million of China's rural population are denied
access to clean potable water.
Experts predict that rapid economic and social development will
further worsen the water supply situation in the next five years,
making the control of water pollution a critical challenge for
China.
(Xinhua News Agency August 19, 2006)