Major Chinese lake sees drastic shrinkage

(Xinhua)
Updated: 2009-11-04 22:39

Lake rehabilitation

People used to just focus pollution treatment on the lake itself rather than pursuing the root causes, that's why the results were not satisfactory, Wang Hao, an academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering, told Xinhua at the ongoing World Lake Conference held in Wuhan, capital of Hubei.

"For a long time, China has not paid enough attention to land pollution sources while curing lake contamination," he said. "Lakes don't produce pollutants themselves, they receive everything left by human activities on land and drainage areas."

Lakes were vulnerable to pollution from activities such as fish breeding, the release of sediment contaminants, and the growth of invasive species in lake waters. They also faced pollution from domestic sewage and industrial waste water discharges, agricultural fertilizers, soil erosion and over-extraction, he said.

To allow lakes to rehabilitate, he proposed an integrated lake-land treatment mechanism, which combined comprehensive land pollution control measures, including higher waste discharge standards, stringent punishments by economic and administrative means, and greater public awareness through education.

"You should make sure pollutants don't go to the sewage system. you can assist by reducing litter, replanting bankside vegetation and help with wetland restoration. And there are just so many things that people can do at local level," said Garman.

"Tackling lake contamination needs a long-term plan which can span as long as 20 years and needs consistent efforts," said Jin Xiangcan, a leading expert on water environment at the Chinese Research Academy of Environmental Science.

Chen Zhili, vice chairwoman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress, China's top legislature, called for greater legislative powers to stop lake water pollution and prevent lakes from disappearing.

She urged establishment of special lake protection laws and regulations and implementation of strict judicial and administrative means in the management and supervision of industrial, agricultural and household waste, especially that of highly-contaminating facilities such as paper mills and chemical plants.

Chen Lei, Chinese Minister of Water Resources, proposed to clean and renew the lakes by ways including waste prevention and treatment, connecting lakes with rivers, clearing silt, bio-tech management and comprehensive treatment of estuaries.

The minister also urged tougher management of industrial development, while maintaining strict supervision and punishment over illegal activities.

Raising the awareness of reducing waste discharge in daily life among children and local residents is also a pressing task for the government, said Jeffrey A. Thornton, managing director of the International Environmental Management Services Limited based in the United States.

"Cleaning up the lake is not the sole responsibility of researchers and scientists. The local residents' participation is the key to tackle lake contamination. The less water they produce and fewer energies they consume, the cleaner the lakes will be," Dr. Vishwas Yerale, a representative from Mumbai, India, said at the conference.

Governments of those countries suffering from similar lake problems should impose systematic pollution control measures based on the situation of each lake basin while taking into consideration the factors of climate change, the emergence of new types of pollutants amid expanding human activities, and establish effective risk assessment and prevention mechanisms, Jin Xiangcan said.

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