Hebei water enters Beijing

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Source: CCTV.com | 10-19-2008 10:44

The Shijiazhuang to Beijing section of the massive South-North Water Diversion Project is finished. Currently, the project only supplies water from Hebei province, but eventually the water will come all the way from Hubei in central China.

The Shijiazhuang to Beijing section of the massive South- North Water Diversion Project is finished.

Water from here flows three hundred and seven kilometers to the capital. It's part of national efforts to ease Beijing's water shortage. The entire diversion project consists of three routes. This is the first phase of the Mid-Route.

Shi Chunxian, said, "We started working on the project about five years ago. It's a twenty-billion yuan investment. Now all the quality and technical standards have been met. There is a collection of all kinds of irrigation architecture along the route."

Wang Mangmang, Baoding, Hebei Province, said, "The only purpose of this bridge is to allow the water to flow through. It stretches about three kilometers. As the water passes by, it brings pressure to both sides of the banks, so the horizontal concrete beams are built to reinforce the banks. And here where I am standing used to be mountains. It took about two years to drill through the rocks so that the water can get through. This is one of Asia's largest water tunnels."

Hebei's role is only temporary. The final goal is to divert water from Danjiangkou in Hubei Province. The entire route will be fourteen hundred kilometers.

Shi Chunxian, Director of Mid-route Construction Management Bureau, said, "The completion of the first phase is just a start, but it's a great start. It's a test of our technical and coordination performances. So we can apply our experience to the remaining tasks. The mid-route will very much help ease Beijing's water shortage and optimize water resources in the north."

Wang Mangmang, Beijing "This where the water diverted from Hebei Province enters Beijing. It goes to a nearby reservoir to be purified. By next March, a total of three hundred million cubic meters of water will be sent to Beijing, ready for household use."

This is the only open canal of the mid-route in Beijing. The rest is all underground.

Editor:Yang Jie