On Wednesday there was a major pollution incident in China’s Grand Canal when a vessel carrying more than 200 tons of concentrated sulfuric acid ran aground. The waterway was built in the 10th century and provides a link between Beijing and Hangzhou. The incident caused water pollution.

 

According to local police, the incident occurred at 5:30 AM Wednesday in the canal's Yuhang Section running through Hangzhou, which is a former imperial capital and now the capital city of east China's Zhejiang Province.

 

Navigation through the Yuhang Section and the upper reaches of the canal was stopped until it reopened at 4:20 PM after pollution-control officials distributed 200 tons of liquid alkali into the polluted water. This broke up the polluting chemical.   

 

Later water tests showed that water within 500 meters of the incident was slightly polluted but out of that range it was normal.

 

The two-thirds submerged vessel is expected to be salvaged on Friday. It belongs to a shipping company in Zhejiang's neighboring Anhui Province.

 

Everyday an average 1,000 vessels use the Yuhang Section of the 900-year old canal which is still considered a highly functional waterway.  

 

(Xinhua News Agency August 4, 2006)