Polluted, drought-stricken China eyes sea water

Beijing, June 13: China, where hundreds of millions lack regular access to drinking water due to drought and pollution, plans to build a huge sea water desalination plant south of Shanghai, state media said today.

Adding to widespread drought, factories have ignored pollution hazards and dumped toxic industrial waste into rivers and lakes in China, home to one-fifth of the world's population but only 7 percent of its water resources.

In late May and early June, the country's third-largest lake, Lake Taihu in the eastern province of Jiangsu, was struck by a foul-smelling canopy of algae. It made tap water undrinkable for more than 2.3 million residents of the city of Wuxi and prompted a run on bottled water.

The desalination plant, to be built in the neighbouring province of Zhejiang, awaits final approval from the National Development and Reform Commission.

It would be the country's biggest in terms of processing capacity. The largest by size is currently under construction in the northern city of Tianjin, which also lacks adequate supplies of drinking water.

China is also investing billions in a project to transfer water from its lush south, currently suffering devastating floods, to the arid north.

Reuters

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