Half of China's shallow groundwater contaminated
(Xinhua)
Updated: 2006-10-08 14:11
Half the shallow groundwater in China has been contaminated, said a senior
official with the China Geological Survey(CGS) on Sunday.
Yin Yueping, director of the CGS Hydrogeology and Environmental Geology
Department, said the country's groundwater resources have been exploited so
irrationally that environmental damage is visible in many areas of the country.
The damage includes ground settling and depression, salt water intrusion and
desertification.
Yin said China's groundwater management model is inadequate, with a poor
automated supervision system and outdated contamination recovery methods.
"China's groundwater management has lagged behind the world for around two
decades," he said.
Groundwater has enormous potential in China. Official figures show that 884
billion cubic meters of natural groundwater are replenished each year, with 353
billion cubic meters available for use.
In addition, there are 260 billion cubic meters of shallow groundwater
available.
Yin said the 34th Congress of International Association of Hydrogeologists
(IAH), will be held in Beijing from Monday to Friday to discuss topics such as
groundwater quality, groundwater safety and contamination recovery, and the
management of groundwater in the context of rural and urban development.
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