Small county in NE China becomes hub for bottled water companies thanks to high-quality resources

With 47 spring sites having been discovered so far, from which a total of 151,000 tons of water flows out each day, Jingyu, a county known for its high-quality mineral water located in northeast China’s Jilin Province, has attracted 13 bottled water companies to set up businesses there.

Photo shows the county seat of Jingyu in northeast China’s Jilin Province. (Photo courtesy of the Publicity Department of the CPC Jingyu County Committee)

Situated at the foot of the Changbai Mountains, Jingyu has a forest coverage rate of more than 80 percent. In 2001, Jilin Province established the country’s first protection area focusing on the protection of mineral water resources and the environment, reserves from which the water has been generated. In 2012, the protected area was upgraded to become a national nature reserve, the only one of this kind in the nation.

To ramp up protection and restoration efforts, Jingyu invested more than 56 million yuan to carry out projects such as the relocation of residents living in the core area in the reserve along with another area inside its boundaries, having planting 15,400 mu (1,026.7 hectares) of forests, and setting up a patrol mechanism that put key areas under round-the-clock monitoring.

Photo shows water coming out of the ground at a spring located in Jingyu county, northeast China’s Jilin Province. (Photo courtesy of the Publicity Department of the CPC Jingyu County Committee)

Jingyu has also built a mineral water industrial park and connected the park with water sources located in the forests in an effort to strengthen the monitoring and protection of water sources. It also set a maximum amount of water that can be exploited for use at any given time, setting the limit at 45 percent of the total amount of mineral water resources within the reserve’s boundaries. Currently, 13 bottled water companies have established businesses in the industrial park, as well as seven support enterprises.

By September 2021, Jingyu has produced 1.17 million tons of bottled water, which has contributed to a production value of 1.08 billion yuan. Nearly 3,000 people are currently engaged in the industry thanks to the industrial park. 

Photo shows a lake located in Jingyu county, northeast China’s Jilin Province. (Photo courtesy of the Publicity Department of the CPC Jingyu County Committee)

Photo shows a lake inside a scenic area in Jingyu county, northeast China’s Jilin Province. (Photo courtesy of the Publicity Department of the CPC Jingyu County Committee)

Photo shows a bottled water production line located at a factory inside a bottled water industrial park in Jingyu county, northeast China’s Jilin Province. (Photo courtesy of the Publicity Department of the CPC Jingyu County Committee)