Experts in battle to limit river pollution
Source: Xinhua |
February 1, 2012, Wednesday
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
A 300-KILOMETER section of the Liujiang River will be affected by a cadmium spill on the upstream Longjiang River in south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, experts said yesterday.
The affected section is near the Honghua hydropower station, downstream from the spill's source on the Longjiang River, said Xu Zhencheng, head of an expert panel from an emergency center set up to handle the incident. "The cadmium concentration in this section will see an obvious increase, but it will still be within the official limit," Xu said.
The Honghua hydropower station has stored 500 million cubic meters of water to help dilute the contaminants, allowing cadmium levels in areas downstream of the plant to return to normal, Xu said.
It is estimated that about 20 tons of cadmium leaked into the river. A cadmium spill of such a size was "unprecedented" among heavy-metals-related environmental pollution cases in China, experts from the emergency center said.
Concentrations of cadmium were more than five times the official limit of 0.005 milligrams per liter. Cleanup measures, including dumping neutralizers made from dissolved aluminum chloride, brought the cadmium concentration peak down from 80 times the official limit to 25 times the limit on Monday.
The greatest level of contamination is currently located near the Luodong hydropower station on the Longjiang River in the city of Yizhou, according to the center.
The Longjiang is an upstream tributary of the Liujiang River, which runs through Liuzhou, a city with 1.5 million permanent residents. As the pollutant belt moves downstream, there may be a risk to the safety of drinking water for the residents there.
As of 6am yesterday, drinking water produced by four major water plants in Liuzhou was up to standard, with cadmium concentrations no higher than 0.00065 milligrams per liter, according to the latest tests.
Heavy-metal production plants located upstream have suspended operations and seven executives detained.
Cadmium is a carcinogenic chemical mostly found in industrial effluents.
The affected section is near the Honghua hydropower station, downstream from the spill's source on the Longjiang River, said Xu Zhencheng, head of an expert panel from an emergency center set up to handle the incident. "The cadmium concentration in this section will see an obvious increase, but it will still be within the official limit," Xu said.
The Honghua hydropower station has stored 500 million cubic meters of water to help dilute the contaminants, allowing cadmium levels in areas downstream of the plant to return to normal, Xu said.
It is estimated that about 20 tons of cadmium leaked into the river. A cadmium spill of such a size was "unprecedented" among heavy-metals-related environmental pollution cases in China, experts from the emergency center said.
Concentrations of cadmium were more than five times the official limit of 0.005 milligrams per liter. Cleanup measures, including dumping neutralizers made from dissolved aluminum chloride, brought the cadmium concentration peak down from 80 times the official limit to 25 times the limit on Monday.
The greatest level of contamination is currently located near the Luodong hydropower station on the Longjiang River in the city of Yizhou, according to the center.
The Longjiang is an upstream tributary of the Liujiang River, which runs through Liuzhou, a city with 1.5 million permanent residents. As the pollutant belt moves downstream, there may be a risk to the safety of drinking water for the residents there.
As of 6am yesterday, drinking water produced by four major water plants in Liuzhou was up to standard, with cadmium concentrations no higher than 0.00065 milligrams per liter, according to the latest tests.
Heavy-metal production plants located upstream have suspended operations and seven executives detained.
Cadmium is a carcinogenic chemical mostly found in industrial effluents.
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