(October 25, 2006) It’s a busy season for audacious plans in China. Having accomplished an engineering marvel in laying a railway line to the roof of the world, Chinese scientists are dreaming up ever more fantastic plans in other spheres of endeavour, some of which, if implemented, would have worrisome implications for India.
Official says Tibet water diversion not feasible
(October 25, 2006) A controversial scheme to channel water from Tibet to the parched Yellow River in western China is unnecessary and anyway not feasible, China’s top water resources minister said on Tuesday.
Preserving the old to make way for the new
(October 23, 2006) Along the central route of China’s South-North Water Diversion Project, the excavation of cultural relics and the construction of the trunk canal are under way simultaneously.
Group monitors China’s water polluters using online mapping
(September 26, 2006) The new China Water Pollution Map enables users to survey water quality, monitor pollution discharges, and track pollution sources using digital mapping.
Scandal in China water clean-up
(September 20, 2006) The Beijing-based Institute of Public and Environmental Affairs, run by author Ma Jun, has launched a ‘name and shame’ website that lists more than 2,500 companies it accuses of polluting the country’s fragile water system.
Lessons of Huaihe River water pollution
(September 20, 2006) ‘To pollute the rivers just took a few years or a few days, but to turn the river clean will take more than a decade to complete,’ a SEPA official said.
Public is key to solving China pollution woes: expert
(September 19, 2006) ‘There needs to be a major shift in the way of doing things — no longer trying just to get permission [for a project] but to lead efforts for public participation,’ says environmental advocate Ma Jun.
SEPA slams local governments over pollution
(September 15, 2006) Official dereliction of duty has been blamed for a mass poisoning case triggered by a factory in Gansu province that belched out 800 times the acceptable level of lead
Clean environment or economic growth
(September 15, 2006) ‘When the nearby river was first polluted by wastewater from the plant, a villager reported to the higher authorities about the pollution. … Unfortunately, he was viewed by most villagers as crazy.’
Construction to start on Henan section of South-to-North canal
(September 14, 2006) Construction of the Henan province section of the central route of China’s south-north water diversion project will kick off by the end of September, Xinhua reports.
Cities urged to recycle more water
(September 13, 2006) It is not realistic to alleviate China’s water shortage in cities by digging channels to divert water from other regions, Vice-Minister of Construction Qiu Baoxing told a meeting in Beijing. ‘That would disturb the natural water cycle.’
Water scheme’s western route troubles Sichuan scholars
(September 12, 2006) ‘We are really concerned about the western route of the south-north water transfer project. We wonder whether the proposed scheme could do little or nothing to save the Yellow River, and end up destroying the Yangtze instead.’
Top Chinese official promises fight to conserve water and prevent pollution
(September 10, 2006) China will tighten pollution controls over the next five years to provide safe drinking water to its poor, populous countryside, Vice Premier Zeng Peiyan said at the opening of the five-day World Water Congress in Beijing.
In China, a water plan smacks of Mao
(September 10, 2006) ‘Under Mao, scientists were often sidelined, but now the government has realized that it needs technical expertise to solve its problems,’ said Zhao Yean, a senior member of the Yellow River Conservancy Commission.
Fitting venue for World Water Congress
(September 8, 2006) China will be looking to the 5th World Water Congress, held in Beijing Sep. 10-14, to tap the latest technology and attract more foreign participation in its water industry.
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