Algal Blooms May Affect China’s Water

Algal Blooms on the Huai River,a Major Tributary of the Yangtze,CouldDestroyAquaculture and Pollute Water Along the Controversial South-north Water Transfer Project

The Huai River is likely tosuffer an algal bloom this year, with disastrous consequences for aquaculture of Hongze Lake in central China, says Huo Daishan of environmental group Huai River Warriors.

Algal blooms, caused by pollution from agriculture and industry, destroy ecosystems and suffocate river life.

Early-warning systems that span provincial administrative boundaries are needed to break down bureaucratic barriers between the upstream and downstream sections of the river, Huoadds. The river flows through Hunan, Anhui and before joining the Yangtze in Jiangsu.

"The existing system is localised, with governments upstream and downstream managing their own patches. Those boundaries between need to be removed, with a more active approach taken to responding to potential algal blooms," he adds.

Hongze Lake plays an important role in regulating flow on the eastern route of China's massive south-north water transfer project. Algal pollution here would affect water quality along that entire section.

TheUS$80 billion scheme, which started delivering water to Beijing late last year, aims to bring water from the south of the country to the north in order to alleviate water shortages in arid provinces.

In 2014 an algal bloom spread over 200 kilometres along the Huai River, from Zhoukou in Henan to Fuyang in Anhui, but it didn't attract much attention from the government, Huo said. That algae has now flowed into Hongze Lake.

Source: The Third Pole

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Taxonomy

• Algae
• Pollution