China resists drought by sea

China, where hundreds of millions of people have no water due to drought, is turning to desalinated seawater to resolve the crisis.

The China Development and Reform Commission (SDRC) yesterday said the country intends to desalinate about 800,000 to 1 million cubic meters of seawater / day and use 55 billion m3 / year by 2010. The committee said Enterprises will be encouraged to use seawater and desalinated water will be fed into the water supply pipes in cities.

SDRC's plan predicts that desalinated water will account for 16% to 24% of the water supply in coastal areas lacking clean water. Last year, China desalinated 120,000 m3 of seawater / day to meet the daily needs of people.

Chinese people still have to line up to get clean water (Photo: AP)