80% of water from underground sources not safe to drink, China report shows

More than 80% of China’s underground water drawn from relatively shallow wells used by farms, factories and mostly rural households is unsafe for drinking because of pollution, a government report shows. The Water Resources Ministry study analysed samples drawn in January from 2,103 wells used for monitoring in the country’s major eastern flatland watersheds. The ministry said that of those samples, 32.9% were classed as suitable only for industrial and agricultural use, while 47.3 % were unfit for human consumption of any type.

Water pollution in China is every bit as serious an issue as air pollution.

Greenpeace’s Ada Kong

Following the report’s release on Monday, officials sought to reassure the public that most household water used by urban Chinese households is safe because it comes from reservoirs, deep aquifers or rivers that are treated to ensure safety. "The quality of drinking water is good overall,“ Chen Mingzhong, director of the ministry’s Department of Water Resources, said. Environmental group Greenpeace called the ministry’s report "another stark warning of the extent of groundwater pollution in China.”

China water