Pollution Threatens Water Cutoff For 250,000 Near China Tourist Magnet

[hatrack]

(The) "Water supply for 250,000 people living near one of China's most famous tourist spots could be cut off if pollution in the area gets significantly worse.

Paper mills on the Qingyi River in Leshan of Southwest China's Sichuan Province, the site of the world's largest 1,202-metre sitting Buddha, are dumping waste into the waterway, which provides more than 80 per cent of the drinking water for locals in downstream Leshan. Water companies who are then unable to meet water safety requirements will be forced to shut operations.

The Sichuan Provincial Environmental Protection Bureau says the mills have waste treatment facilities but to save money, these are only operated when sites are inspected.


EDIT

The water produced by the Leshan Tap Water Co Ltd and Leshan Water Supply Company, which provide all the tap water for local residents, becomes as yellow as urine whenever the mills discharge excessive waste into the river."

EDIT

http://english.people.com.cn/200501/14/eng20050114_170619.html

[Warpy]

1. China is facing a huge crisis

They looted our jobs, and now they're discovering they've also looted the pollution we made it illegal to discharge into the environment. Not only are people getting sick, but large areas of rutal land are no longer able to grow the food that China's huge population depends so heavily upon.

It will be very intersting to see what the central government does in terms of preserving agricultural land, whether they start to institute pollution controls or they mandate new factories be placed in the western provinces, where the land is so poor that little food can be grown.

It's going to be fascinating to watch. No matter what they do, expect howls of indignation from the rich, both here and there.