The Three Gorges reservoir is under the threat of serious pollution as virtually all ships navigating in the area discharge wastes directly into water without treatment, a Xinhua report said.

According to state regulations and rules, all ships passing the Three Gorges area, located in the upper reaches of the Yangtze River, must treat their wastes and may discharge only when waste water and oily wastes are up to the set environmental standards, and are required to deposit solid wastes in certain places.

An investigation by reporters found that in the Three Gorges area, 99% of watercrafts directly discharge their sewage and oily water into the Yangtze River without any treatment measures.

About 100,000 watercrafts navigate through the Three Gorges area each year on average, these ships produce about 42,000 tons of rubbish from every day life, 7 million tons of human wastes, 15 million tons of sewage water and 100 million tons of oily waste water each, local environmental protection departments estimate. This amount of wastes poses a serious threat to the environment of the Three Gorges reservoir.

Experts urge relevant departments to take immediate and resolute measures to prevent environmental pollution at the Three Gorges area, and warned that it would be late if measures were taken after the Three Gorges project is completed in 2009.

The Lesser Three Gorges area near Chongqing, known for its beautiful landscapes and clear water, is one of the areas suffering from pollution generated by the passing ships. The Lesser Three Gorges area is an attractive sightseeing place for visitors from home and abroad. However, the sewage discharged by boats has caused great pollution. At present, over 170 simple boats operate in the area, accommodating about 100 million visitors a year. Because of the simple and crude structure of those boats, toilet sewage is directly discharged into the Daning River.

(China Daily April 6, 2004)