Mei Zhengning, a resident of a village in Guangde county, Anhui Province, has been drinking bottled water for several years because of the poor quality of the water in a nearby river.

But more than 70,000 others are not so lucky - they simply cannot afford the price of bottled water.

"There are still many poor families in the area who have to rely on water from the wells," Mei, a restaurant worker, told China Daily.

The Liudong River is seriously polluted by industrial wastewater from a chemical park in Yixing in neighboring Jiangsu province, China Comment magazine said yesterday.

The river, which serves as the primary water source for people in the area, is found to contain pollutants 28 times more than the national standard.

Mei said the river had turned black and was giving off a putrid smell that made him sick.

"It used to be so clear that we could see right through to the bottom of the riverbed," Mei said.

"I'm not sure whether other people still drink the water or not, but I've heard that those who use the water to wash themselves are suffering from red, itchy skins."

Ding Shimei of Jianchuan village committee said that his family had installed tap water since last year because of concerns that the water quality in the river may deteriorate further.

However, not many people can afford tap water, Wang Zhangxing, head of Jianchuang village, said.

Water in many wells in the village is undrinkable due to pollution, he said. "Villagers now have to carry water from faraway mountains."

Due to its geographical location, industrial wastewater from the chemical park in Yixing flows directly into the river. Companies in the park, which mainly manufacture paint and industrial lipin, have failed to treat their waste before dumping it into the river.

Lakes in Anhui province have also been severely polluted in recent months.

Chaohu Lake, China's fifth largest, was found to be suffering from blue-green algae a few days ago. The lake supplies drinking water to more than 300,000 people in the region.

Last May, the worst algae outbreak in Taihu Lake caused a water shortage for the city of Wuxi for a week. The lake had a new outbreak of algae early last month. But water supply to the nearby regions remains stable.

(China Daily May 9, 2008)