China News  
Chemical spill threatens drinking water for Chinese city: report

by Staff Writers
Beijing (AFP) June 9, 2008
A poisonous chemical spill was Monday threatening drinking water supplies for more than 200,000 people in a city in southwest China, state media reported.

A truck carrying 33.6 tonnes of crude phenol overturned on Saturday and spilled the caustic chemical into the Zhesang river, which feeds a dam serving Baise city in Guangxi province, Xinhua news agency said.

The chemicals entered the dam area on Monday morning, it said, quoting a municipal government official.

About 15 kilometres (10 miles) below the dam was a water intake for 200,000 people in Baise, but it had not been determined how much of the river was polluted, Xinhua said.

The city government had also ordered more than 1,000 households in Yangyu town not to use water in the upper reaches of the dam.

Workers were building a barricade on the river and adding lime and active carbon to neutralise and absorb the phenol, which is used in the production of plastics and pharmaceuticals, Xinhua said.

Phenol, also known as carbolic acid, can additionally be used as an antiseptic or disinfectant in diluted form.

Chemical spills with serious health consequences are common in China.

In 2005, a massive chemical plant spill into northeastern China's Songhua River resulted in drinking supply cuts affecting millions of residents in Heilongjiang province.

Community
Email This Article
Comment On This Article

Share This Article With Planet Earth
del.icio.usdel.icio.us DiggDigg RedditReddit
YahooMyWebYahooMyWeb GoogleGoogle FacebookFacebook



Related Links
Water News - Science, Technology and Politics



Memory Foam Mattress Review
Newsletters :: SpaceDaily :: SpaceWar :: TerraDaily :: Energy Daily
XML Feeds :: Space News :: Earth News :: War News :: Solar Energy News


Possible New Approach To Purifying Drinking Water
Durham NC (SPX) Jun 08, 2008
A genetic tool used by medical researchers may also be used in a novel approach to remove harmful microbes and viruses from drinking water.







  • Walker's World: Are the BRICs crumbling?
  • Analysis: Medvedev's trip to the West
  • Outside View: CFE battles -- Part 1
  • Outside View: Sino-Russia row -- Part 1

  • WTO members want more transparency in China trade policies
  • Era of cheap Chinese goods threatened by new worker power
  • DR Congo cautiously approves China deals
  • China slow in meeting WTO commitments: US study

  • Aftershocks threaten swollen China 'quake lake'
  • China tightens media controls in earthquake zone
  • China 'quake lake' still rising despite drainage: report
  • Outside View: The new China Syndrome

  • Suits For Shenzhou
  • China Launches New Space Tracking Ship To Serve Shenzhou VII
  • Three Rocketeers For Shenzhou
  • China's space development can pose military threat: Japan

  • Outside View: Congress and the gas agenda
  • Rebels warn Niger and China over oil deal
  • Helicopters With Fuel Cells
  • US Air Force Officials Look At Hydrogen As Potential Fuel Source

  • New bird flu dangers investigated
  • China in emergency vaccination drive in quake-hit areas
  • Japan PM pledges 560 million dollars to fight diseases
  • Lab breakthrough seen in lethal dengue fever

  • Slovenia nuclear plant back on after alert
  • World major economies see new nuclear dawn
  • Areva aiming to dominate British nuclear design: CEO
  • Researchers Developing New Technologies To Store And Recycle Nuclear Waste

  • China calls on mines to increase coal output: state media
  • NCC Study Calls For Greater Use Of Coal And Technology
  • 13 Miners Feared Dead In China After Alleged Cover-Up
  • China mines face safety dangers after cold snap: report

  • The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2007 - SpaceDaily.AFP and UPI Wire Stories are copyright Agence France-Presse and United Press International. ESA Portal Reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. Advertising does not imply endorsement,agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by SpaceDaily on any Web page published or hosted by SpaceDaily. Privacy Statement