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Beijing to divert water from Yellow River
(Xinhua)
Updated: 2005-11-26 10:27
The national capital Beijing will divert 300 million cubic meters of water
from the Yellow River, the second longest river of China, to supplement the
expected water shortage next year, official sources said on Friday.
The starting point of the water divertion will be the Wanjiazhai Reservoir in
the middle reaches of the Yellow River, located at the juncture area between
Shanxi Province and the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region in north China, said
Ran Lianqi, head of the policy research office of the Beijing Municipal Water
Affairs Administration.
He did not disclose the specific date of the water divertion.
Yellow River water will run for about 400 kilometers through the Yellow
River-Shanxi water divertion channel, the Huihe River and Sanggan River before
finally reaching the Guanting Reservoir in Beijing.
Given the penetration along the route, about 150 million cubic meters will be
finally diverted to Beijing, and Yellow River water will be mainly used for
industrial purposes, said Ran.
The Yellow River water will not only ease the water shortage but will also
help recover vegetation in areas it flows through, Ran said, adding the project
will end in 2007 when several other water projects begin providing water for
Beijing.
Beijing is one of the major Chinese cities facing grave water shortage.
Beijing's per capita quota of water resources is less than 300 cubic meters,
only one-eighth of the national per capita quota and one-30th of the world
average.
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