BLACK RIVERS, GREEN LAKES, RED TIDES: DRIVERS AND IMPACTS OF WATER POLLUTION IN CHINA Darrin Magee Environmental Studies Program, Hobart & William Smith.

BLACK RIVERS, GREEN LAKES, RED TIDES:

DRIVERS AND IMPACTS OF WATER POLLUTION IN CHINA

Darrin Magee

Environmental Studies Program, Hobart & William Smith Colleges

Water pollution in China is widespread and serious, resulting from agricultural, industrial, and municipal sources. Polluted water sources have created a “water, water all around and not a drop to drink” conundrum in China that presents serious challenges in terms of public and environmental health, management capacity, economic development, and technological capabilities to remedy pollution.

Punch Line

Water Quality: Overview

Basic Concepts

Quality and quantity are linked, but not always in obvious ways “The solution to pollution is dilution” – quantity helps

Groundwater and surface water resources are frequently conjunctive (i.e., linked) Pollution of one can lead to pollution of the other

Point-source vs non-point-source pollutants Type of pollution varies with phenomena such as

economic development and urbanization Water treatment is an energy-intensive process

Terminology

Nutrient Loading (of water bodies) Mainly N and P from sewage and agricultural runoff

Eutrophication: Overgrowth of (often toxic) algae; leads to death of lake through O2 deprivation

MCLs: Maximum Concentration Levels EDCs: Endocrine Disruption Compounds Indicators of water quality

BOD: Biological Oxygen Demand COD: Chemical Oxygen Demand pH, temperature, turbidity, dissolved ions, etc.

Current Situation

On average, China is not a water-poor country

Concerns Per capita precipitation low Regional and temporal variations extreme Upstream deforestation contributes to

flooding Arid northwest: <5% of total runoff Rainy southeast: >80% of total runoff Many areas with sufficient quantities

suffer in terms of quality

Comparative Perspective

China US

Population 1,300,000,000 300,000,000

GDP per capita $4,600 $44,000

Land area (ha) 959,809,000 963,203,000

Cultivated Area (ha) 152,831,000 173,158,000

Cultivated Area p/c (ha/p) 0.112 .577

Annual Precipitation (mm) 650 715

Water w/d: Agriculture (km^3) 427 192

Water w/d: Municipal (km^3) 42 65

Water w/d: Industry (km^3) 162 220

Total p/c energy consumption (M Btu)

56.2 300

Annual p/c precipitation (mm/p) 0.0000005 0.000002

Annual Precipitation (multi-year average)

Chongqing Education and Scientific Research Institute, Geography Department

Precip. (mm)

Coming Challenges (Quantity) Significant growth in water demand from

agriculture, industry, and electric power sectors 818 B m3 needed in 2030 50% from agriculture, 32% from industry

China and SE Asia use half the world’s nitrogen supply

Withdrawals will affect surface- and groundwater

Delays in South-North Water Transfer Project 44.8 B m3 of water from Yangtze to Yellow basin

Quality-adjusted supply gap

China’s Water Quality Standards

I: Source regions; national natural protected areas

II: Drinking water Grade 1; ecological needs III: Drinking water Grade 2; ecological needs IV: Industrial water; not fit for direct human

contact V: Agricultural water; “landscape” use >V: Worst quality, not suited even for

agriculture

Different standards apply for coastal areas/seas

China & US Drinking Water Standards

Constitutes

China MEP(mg/L)

US EPA(mg/L) Effects

Na+ -- 200 High blood pressure

Mg2+ -- 50 Diarrhea

Cl- 250 250 Salty taste

SO42- 250 250 Diarrhea, salty taste

NO3- 10-20 10 Blue-baby syndrome, shortness of breath

pH 6.5-8.5 6.5-8.5Low pH (acidic): corrosive, bitter taste. High pH (basic): soda taste, deposits may form

http://english.mep.gov.cn/SOE/soechina1997/water/standard.htm http://water.epa.gov/drink/contaminants/index.cfm Slide prepared by Maggie Stewart, WS

2012

Managing Quality

Water quality standards set and enforced by Ministry of Environmental Protection and Environmental Protection Bureaus locally EPBs face competing pressures:

EP line to enforce quality standards (incl. fines, shutdowns)

Local pressures to bring outside investment, ignore violations

Ministry of Water Resources, Basin Commissions, and local water bureaus also have monitoring and enforcement duties

Gaps and overlaps resulting from Water Law

Water Quality Situation

~70% of monitored reaches in cities polluted (>III)

Sources of pollution vary over space and time Example: Shanghai. As many factories have

relocated inland, Shanghai’s water quality profile has shifted to reflect more domestic pollution (i.e., sewage)

Quality-induced shortage (水质性缺水 ) very real for many urban and peri-urban regions

Over-extraction of groundwater quality declines Increased salinity, especially near coastal

areas

Water Quality of Major Rivers (2007)

IIIIIIIVV>V

Source: 2007 Shuiziyuanzhiliang nianbao, China Hydrology Information Net, www.hydroinfo.gov.cn

2008 Water Quality by Source

I4%

II32%

III26%

IV11%

V7%

>V21%

Rivers (150,000 km)

I-III44%

IV-V33%

>V23%

Lakes (44, by area)

I-II2%

III24%

IV-V74%

Groundwater (641 wells)

I-III80%

IV-V20%

Reservoirs (378)BJ, LN, JL, SH, JS, HN, NX, GD

水利部， 2008年中国水资源公报

Trophic Status of Lakes

http://english.mep.gov.cn/standards_reports/soe/soe2009/201104/t20110411_208976.htm http://people.hws.edu/halfman/Data/2005-2008%20FL-WQ-Report.pdf http://www.fingerlakes.org/about-the-region/lake-information

Trophic Status Secchi Depth (m)

Total Nitrogen (N, mg/L, ppm)

Total Phosphate (P, μg/L, ppb)

Chlorophyll-a (μg/L, ppb)

Oxygen (% saturation)

Oligotrophic >4 <2 <10 <4 >80Mesotrophic 2-4 2-5 10-20 4-10 10-80Eutrophic <2 >5 >20 >10 <10

Eutrophic Mesotrophic Oligotrophic0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

Trophic Status of 26 Major Lakes in China

and 11 NY Finger Lakes

ChinaFinger Lakes

Slide prepared by Maggie Stewart, WS 2012

Eutrophication and Algal Toxicity

Illness Toxin and causative species Symptoms

Amnesic Shellfish poisoning Domoic acid from the diatom Pseudo-nitzschia sp. in shellfish

Short-term memory loss; vomiting, cramps

Diarrheic shellfish poisoning Okadaic acid from the dinoflagellate Dinophysis sp. in shellfish

Diarrhea, vomiting, cramping

Neurotoxic shellfish poisoning Brevetoxin from the dinoflagellate Karenia sp. in shellfish, aerosolized toxins

Nausea, diarrhea, Eye irritationRespiratory distress, Death

Paralytic shellfish poisoning Saxitoxin from the dinoflagellate Alexandrium sp. and other species in shellfish

Numbness around lips and mouth, extremities; Respiratory paralysis; Death

Cyanotoxin poisoning Microcystins and other toxins from cyanobacteria in water

Skin irritation;Respiratory irritation;Tumor-promotion;Liver cancer, failureNeurological diseases such as Parkinson’s, ALS and dementia

Source: Glibert (2008)

Eutrophication and 2008 Olympics Major algal bloom in summer 2008 off

Qingdao at Olympic sailing venue 15,000 Army members helped remove

over a million tons of algae from the waters No studies of resultant chemical exposure

so far Estimated cost: USD $100M-$200M

Investment in Water Treatment

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Sich

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Sha

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Qin

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0

100000

200000

300000

400000

500000

600000

Sources of Funds for Investment in Treatment of Polluted Water

Loans

Self-raising Funds

Other Govern-ment Subsidies

Pollution Charges Sub-sidies

Region

10,0

00 Y

uan

CSY 12-48 Sources of Investment in the Treatment of Industrial Pollution (2009)

Slide prepared by Austen Anderson, H 2012

Coming Challenges

Point-source pollutants Extensification and intensification of industry Lax enforcement of wastewater discharge regulations Inadequate treatment and pre-treatment technologies Increasing prevalence of CAFOs for meat production Landfill leachate into urban groundwater sources

Non-point-source pollutants Continued heavy reliance on fertilizers Runoff from impervious surfaces (urban areas)

Eutrophication and resultant toxicity from algae

Climate Change Uncertainty

Western China more sensitive, changing more rapidly

Medium term Increased runoff in upper reaches Increased evaporation More sporadic precipitation events in lower reaches

Long term Decreased runoff Further increase in evaporation rates Possible withering of oasis-based settlements in NW

Vulnerable areas likely to become more vulnerable

Engineering Fix: Move the River South-North Water Diversion aims to bring 44.8

cubic km of water from water-rich south (Yangtze basin) to north (Yellow/Huai/Hai basins)

Annual energy demand (eastern route): 200K metric tons of coal for pumping alone

Eastern route will require >100 new wastewater treatment plants, highly energy intensive

Western Route, if built, traverses areas of extreme biological and cultural diversity, potentially raises transboundary concerns

Map of SNWD

Energy and Water Pollution

Energy Impacts on Water Quality Water is key for coal from mine to power

plant Coal-washing: removal of impurities from

coal via grinding and flotation in slurry Contaminants of different densities float or

settle and are removed Countless coal-washing plants around the

country, most discharging untreated water Thermal impacts at power plant discharge

sites Hydropower impacts (thermal, dissolved

N, CH4)

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Primary Energy Production

Coal77%

Crude10%

Gas4%

HNW9%

Primary Energy Production - 2008

Coal72%

Crude18%

Gas3%

HNW7%

Primary Energy Pro-duction - 2000

Coal74%

Crude19%

Gas2%

HNW5%

Primary Energy Pro-duction - 1990

Source: G0601E

HNW = Hydropower, nuclear power, and wind power

Closing Old & Inefficient Power Plants

Original goal of 50 GW small/inefficient plants to be retired during 11th FYP (2006-2010) 2

As of July 15, 2010, ~71 GW (~500 units) retired

As of April 25, 2011, 76.825 GW retired (53.6% more than original goal)

Big Five power companies affected, but pushing for more and larger plants

China now leads in ultra-efficient coal-fired generation and long-distance transmission

Two 125-MW units at Huaneng’s Changxing Power Plant in Zhejiang Province were taken offline in September 2010. The photos show the cooling towers being imploded.

Photo: “长兴电厂爆破 90米高冷却塔 ,” News, 90-m high Cooling Towers Imploded at Changxing Power Plant, September 17, 2010, http://yz.2118.com.cn/news/Html/2010-09-17/64692_1.htm.

27

Efficiency Power Plants

Same as “negawatts” concept, i.e., reduce inefficient end-uses of energy rather than build new supply E.g., 100 MW of wasted energy saved =

100 MW of new generation capacity built Challenge: EPPs can’t yet compete (bid)

with supply, though this may change by 2015

Light bulbs vs Three Gorges?

85 B kWh per year

Conclusions & Implications

Concluding Thoughts

Central leadership “gets it” 50,000-100,000 mass incidents annually,

many related to environmental harms Water- and energy efficient “new builds” in

industry & power generation could drastically reduce demand growth in water and energy

Addressing CO2, water, and energy at same time is a non-negligible challenge

As often, local innovation may be key to successfully addressing localized problems

Bright Spot? Payments for Eco Services

MEP pilot program in Hohhot to use market mechanisms to incentivize water pollution control

Consider two districts of a city District A (Upstream), District B

(Downstream) Districts agree on minimum quality (Q)

threshold (X) If Q>X, then B pays A a predetermined

bonus If Q<X, then A pays B a fine

Regular monitoring and transparency are key

Resources for Teaching

Asian Environmental Studies website Part of an AES initiative at Hobart and

William Smith Colleges, funded by The Henry Luce Foundation

http://www.asianenvironmentalstudies.net Zotero Library

Freely available shared library of AES resources

Institute for Public and Environmental Policy (Ma Jun)

China Statistical Bureau These and others accessible through AES

site above