Seriously polluted waterways decreased more than 7 percent as of
the end of last year after years of cleanup projects, the Shanghai
Water Authority announced yesterday.
The authority also conducted a spot check on tap water yesterday
in response to concerns about quality. No problems were found.
Chen Guoguang, vice director of the local branch of the state
Water Quality Monitoring Network, said it might not taste good, but
tap water is definitely safe to drink.
Despite the improvement, bodies of water in the city have a long
way to go before they are pollution free. More than 40 percent of
all waterways in the city are still seriously polluted.
"The water environment downtown has greatly improved after three
years of improvement," said the authority in a statement.
"The major pollution index has dropped by more than 20 percent
within the Outer Ring Road."
The city rolled out an environmental protection plan on a
three-year basis starting in 2000. Between 2003 and 2005, water
improvement was at the top of its work list.
The assessment covers a total of 612.9 kilometers of 16
waterways in the city. The length of good waterways that can be
used for tap water treatment increased 0.9 percent and accounts for
14 percent of the total length.
Samples from a water plant, water distribution network and
residential area all met state drinking water standards.
The water from the city's 130-year-old Yangshupu Water Plant in
Yangpu District was tested to be far below the level of allowable
impurities, including the nephelometry turbidity unit, or NTU at
0.2.
The maximum amount is 1.
The NTU index increased to 0.33 at a residential area on Kunming
Road in the city's northeast, but was still within the normal
range, officials said yesterday.
(Shanghai Daily March 22, 2006)