Middle route of water diversion project transforms China's northern regions

The middle route of China's South-to-North Water Diversion Project had transferred more than 80 billion cubic meters of water to northern regions as of Aug 7, according to China South-to-North Water Diversion Corporation.

The middle route has benefited nearly 118 million people in Henan and Hebei provinces and the municipalities of Tianjin and Beijing, supplying high-quality water to 27 large and medium-sized cities and 243 county-level areas along the route, the company said.

Since it began operation nearly 12 years ago, the middle route has played an important role in optimizing water resource allocation, safeguarding drinking water security, restoring the ecological environment of rivers and lakes, and facilitating economic exchanges between northern and southern China.

The South-to-North Water Diversion Project follows three routes: eastern, middle and western.

The middle route, which starts at the Danjiangkou Reservoir in Hubei province and runs across Henan and Hebei provinces before reaching Beijing and Tianjin, started operation on Dec 12, 2014.

The eastern route transfers water from Jiangsu province to areas including Tianjin and Shandong province. Its first phase, which serves Jiangsu and Shandong provinces, went into operation in November 2013.

The western route is still in the planning stage.