Bill Savadove
South China Morning Post
January 30, 2001

Shanghai: A reporter revealed Shanghai’s dirty secret live on national television yesterday by criticising the city’s drinking water quality in a question to Premier Wen Jiabao about the mainland’s environmental pollution. “Shanghai’s water is simply undrinkable, and what’s more it’s yellow,” a Taiwanese reporter, who identified himself as Chou Yo-fei from the Taiwan Human Rights News, said in a lengthy statement as cameras carried his words to millions. Mr Wen used the question to discuss what the mainland was doing to tackle pollution, without mentioning Shanghai. … Shanghai’s main water source is the Huangpu, a main shipping lane and a dumping ground for factories and households. Besides cleaning up the Huangpu, authorities have announced plans to bring more drinking water from the nearby Yangtze River and drill deep underground reservoirs. … Read the full story.