Operation of a chemical company flushing 2,000 tons of alkaline
wastewater into a northwestern river has been ordered to suspend
operation pending punishments, the local environmental protection
authority announced Thursday.
The spill at the Jintai Chlorine and Alkaline Chemical Company
Ltd. in Mizhi County, Yulin City in
Shaanxi Province, occurred on late February 4 when three of the
company's processing tanks collapsed, discharging some 2,000 tons
of alkaline waste into the Wuding River, according to a notice
released by the provincial environmental protection bureau.
Several processing tanks had shown signs of leakage ten days
before the incident, but the company failed to report it to local
environmental protection officials, the bureau said.
The Wuding River was badly polluted, but the spill did not
produce much of an impact on the quality of the drinking water, the
notice said.
Operation of the chemical firm came to a full stop on Tuesday
evening, and environmental protection officials are working at the
site for further investigation.
The company will face a penalty in line with Chinese laws and
those held responsible for the incident will receive corresponding
punishment, the notice said.
(Xinhua News Agency February 17, 2006)
