China Adopts Strict Water Pollution Measure

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The Chinese government has stepped up efforts to tackle the severe pollution of the nation’s rivers. Under a new “Watershed Permit Restriction,” the State Environmental Protection Administration (SEPA) will deny permits to new industrial projects in 13 cities and development zones that suffer from serious pollution in the major watersheds of the Yangtze, Yellow, Huai, and Hai Rivers, according to SEPA deputy director Pan Yue. The restriction is the strictest administrative measure yet under SEPA’s jurisdiction and the first major water pollution ruling since the contamination of Tai Lake disrupted the water supply for millions of people in May.

According to Pan, the water in several sections of the four designated rivers is heavily polluted. Cao Lake in the Anhui section of the Yangtze, for example, is considered a “V-level” water body, classified as dangerous for any human contact. Waters in Weinan City on the Wei tributary of the Yellow River and in Zhoukou City on the Shaying Tributary of the Huai River are considered “sub-V level,” meaning they have lost all basic ecological functions. Both the Huai and Hai Rivers, the two major water arteries for middle and northern China, are considered sub-V level.

The Cao Lake has suffered from algae blooms in summer, and these will likely worsen with the continuous influx of effluent from nearby factories. Meanwhile, the five main sewerage outflows in Bangbu City of Anhui Province discharge highly polluted water directly into the Huai River, forming a one-kilometer-long belt of foam on the surface. Water in the Ziya River, the major tributary to the Hai River in Hebei Province, flows a dark green color, exudes a repellent odor, and has shown no signs of life for over 10 years, devastating the quality of life for residents of the many towns, counties, and villages along it.

The 13 cities and development zones targeted under the new SEPA restriction must treat the pollution within three months, according to Pan. He notes that while the Songhua River incident in 2005 signified the severity of water pollution in China, the sudden blooms of algae in Tai, Dian, and Cao Lakes this summer represented the explosion of the crisis. In 2006, 26 percent of the water in China’s seven major watersheds was classified as V-level or sub V-level.

Over the past decade, the Chinese government has invested tremendous amounts into watershed pollution control, but the pollution has far outstripped treatment. China’s traditional path of industrialization has affected the nation’s environment and natural resource bases, and daily life has been jeopardized. Conventional pollution treatment methods appear to have had little success in solving the nation’s accumulating environmental problems.

As China enters a stage of rapid industrialization and urbanization, water treatment poses a grim challenge to the government and to social stability. Starting with the new “watershed permit restriction,” SEPA will be exploring new means of pollution control, integrating the power of government administration, market-based tools, and efforts by the general public.

Jianqiang Liu is a senior investigative journalist with China Southern Weekend. Outside contributions to China Watch reflect the views of the author and are not necessarily the views of the Worldwatch Institute.

China Watch is a joint initiative of the Worldwatch Institute and Beijing-based Global Environmental Institute (GEI) and is supported by the blue moon fund.