Inland City Explores Drinking Water SourcesThe inland city of Xi'an, capital of northwest China's Shaanxi Province, recently decided to build four more drinking water projects in the near future, to meet its long-term demand for drinking water, sources with the local government said.The four projects include the Wangchuan River water diversion project, which can provide more than 100 million cubic meters of water annually, the Liyuanping Reservoir, with a water supply capacity of 36.5 million cubic meters on yearly basis, a water project in suburban Xi'an, and a project to explore under water sources in the Zhouzhi, Huxian and Chang'an counties. The last two projects have a water capacity of 72 million and 90 million cubic meters, respectively. Xi'an is one of Chinese cities threatened by serious water shortages. The per capita quota of surface water is only 325 cubic meters, seventeen percent of the national average and only four percent the world's per capita quota. The city was hit by a water crisis in 1995, when in some parts of the city, there was no water for more than a month. The situation eased in the end of 1996 when projects to divert water from the Haihe River and Shitouhe Reservoir into Xi'an were completed. Sources said that upon the completion of the four projects, the city's water supply capacity will be close to 300 million cubic meters annually. These projects, plus the south-north water diversion project, a major water transmission project of China, will guarantee the water supply for the city in the coming decades. |
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