Below is the second in a series of Beijing water oral histories, as told to Wang Jian by Sun Jiaming and Sun Jiayi.
Oral History: The Lost Rivers of the Forbidden City
Oral History: Remembering Miyun Reservoir
Below is the third in a series of Beijing water oral histories, as told to Wang Jian by 60-year-old Huang Deyu and 59-year-old Guo Shulian of Miyun County. Wang Jian is a Beijing-based water resources expert. Download the pdf here.
Oral History: Old Beijing’s Goldfish Ponds
Below is the seventh in a series of oral histories about Beijing water, as told to Wang Jian by Wang Zhidong, an 80-year-old physicist and lifelong resident of Beijing. Download the pdf here.
Prominent city lakes fail water safety test
(November 16, 2009) Three lakes in Beijing were seriously polluted in October, the Beijing municipal water resources bureau website said on Nov 12.
Beijing to spend US$22 mln to plant water-source forests
(July 29, 2009) Beijing has started to plant water-source forests in its neighboring Hebei Province to protect two of the city’s largest reservoirs, official said Wednesday.
Rainwater collection projects gather 24.5 million cubic meters of rainwater in Beijing
(August 17, 2009) One rainfall may create a new “Kunming Lake” in Beijing. Although rainfall for 2009 has been relatively less than that of prior years, rainwater collection projects across urban and rural areas have been playing a big role.
Beijing “borrows” water amid less precipitation
(August 13, 2009) Less rainfall has prompted Beijing to channel in more than 300 million cubic meters of water from the neighboring Hebei Province as of July, an official said here Wednesday.
Beijing’s water crisis
(March 15, 2007) In the short-term, the drought which lasted for most of the winter had surprisingly few effects on the lives of Beijingers bar a few newspaper headlines.
Beijing’s water crisis and economic collapse
(July 15, 2009) Beijing consumes more water than is deposited there by rainfall and snow and has been forced into major water mining projects. In the past, around 50 years ago, the city had numerous aquifers that could be tapped by relatively shallow wells of 2 to 3 meters. Now wells of 50 metres are required to access that water. Indeed of Beijing’s consumption of almost 4 billion cubic metres of water per annum, most still comes from the disappearing aquifers. The fear is that this source of water is rapidly drying up and that has the potential to plunge the capital into major water resource crisis.
Acute Water Shortage May Cause Beijing Exodus
(March 27, 2009) Chinese officials may be forced to resettle some of Beijing’s new arrivals over the next 5 to 10 years due to a population boom that accompanied both a rapid economic expansion and a decade-long stretch of yearly droughts.
Over 70% Beijing rivers in poor conditions
The Beijing Environmental Protection Bureau says the rivers and lakes in the capital’s downtown are generally in terrible condition.
Water Crisis in North China
(October 2, 2008) Beijing’s demand for water is putting pressure on upstream Hebei and Shanxi provinces to tap new supplies. South Wind Window reporter Tian Lei investigates north China’s devastating water crisis.
Green Games race against grime
(July 8, 2008) In response to a Probe International report, Beijing Water Authority’s Bi Xiaogang said that the city’s heavy reliance on shrinking groundwater reserves was not ideal.
Pekín se bebe toda el agua
(July 5, 2008) Spanish newspaper P√∫blico reports on Beijing’s water crisis.
Where will Beijing get its drinking water?
(August 2, 2007) An article by Science Times reporter Yi Yongyong based on a recent talk by Chinese environmentalist Wang Jian takes us through some of the water supply problems facing Beijing. Starting from the city’s pre-PRC history and moving through the half-century since, he brings us up to the present situation and speculates on the future. He focuses on two of the largest reservoirs that have until recently been among Beijing’s primary sources.
Patricia Adams
Dai Qing
Fan Xiao
Lawrence Solomon
Mu Lan
Probe International
Lisa Peryman
Probe Media
Other News Sources
Probe International 