The Chinese capital Beijing is planning to double its sewage
treatment capacity by the year 2005 as part of its efforts to
become a clean and environmentally-friendly host of the 2008
Olympics.
"By 2005 Beijing will develop a sewage treatment capacity of 2.62
million tons every day, almost the same as world metropolises like
New York and Tokyo. This capacity will improve further by 2008,"
official sources within the Beijing Municipal Government
predicted.
Despite four new sewage treatment plants put into use last year,
Beijing currently has a daily sewage treatment capacity of only
1.28 million tons, some 42 percent of the total sewage generated in
the city every day.
To
achieve its ambitious goal, the Beijing government this year will
launch or continue the construction of 7 more large sewage
treatment plants involving a total investment of 7 billion yuan
(US$870 million), official sources say.
The city will also spend 6.27 billion yuan (US$780 million) on 15
smaller projects to clean up more than 30 local rivers and 26 lakes
covering some 600 hectares.
"In the next five years, the ancient rivers and lakes across the
capital city will be restored to their old looks during the Ming
and Qing dynasties (1368-1911) and will add unique scenery to the
capital," said one official.
To
overcome a funds shortage, the Beijing Municipal Government is
trying to seek foreign capital to participate in all sewage
treatment projects.
"Beijing welcomes overseas businesses to join its sewage treatment
projects in various ways. All forms of investment, from sole
funding or joint venture to BOT (build, operate and transfer), are
acceptable to us," Liu Qi, mayor of Beijing, said last month while
receiving a foreign business delegation.
Senior officials with China's Ministry of Water Resources also
pointed out the need to commercialize the sewage treatment
sector.
China should learn from some foreign countries and collect water
pollution treatment fees from water users, they suggested.
( June 20, 2002)