Uni checks for poisoned wells
- Source: Global Times
- [08:33 April 12 2011]
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By Wei Na
The drinking water supplied by wells at Tsinghua University has been subjected to heightened inspections by the Beijing Water Authority in preparation for the school's upcoming 100-year anniversary, according to the authority's official website.
Authority official Yu Yaping told the Global Times that they strengthened water quality monitoring specifically for the occasion of the anniversary.
"Since there will be 50,000 alumni on campus to commemorate the 100th anniversary, we need to make sure the supply from the wells is efficient and also prevent poisoning of the water," Yu said.
Tsinghua has 13 wells that serve as the campus' main drinking water supply, and submits their water quality reports to the Haidian Health Inspection, according to the office's director, surnamed Chen.
"We have their water monitoring report checked once a year, and actually the most recent one was just completed a few days ago. Water from the 13 wells met the national drinking water standards," Chen said.
Zhang Yi, director of the Tsinghua University Century Celebration's organizing committee, acknowledged during a press conference on April 8 that there would be State-level leaders present on the April 24 anniversary, but the attendance of famous and powerful Tsinghua alumni like President Hu Jintao and Vice President Xi Jinping could not yet be confirmed.
However, according to Yu, because of heightened concerns over security and supply adequacy, the school has still designated people to watch each well and report on their hydraulic pressure and water quality on a daily basis.
Over 10,000 wells still provide one-fifth of Beijing's water supply, according to the most recent statistics from a March 24 Beijing Times report.
To address concerns over water quality and the dropping levels of Beijing's water table, the Beijing Water Authority promised two years ago to replace all the well-supplied water with water from the Beijing Waterworks Group by 2014. The group supplies the remaining four-fifths of Beijing's water.
