The pollution of the Harbin stretch of Songhua River in northeast China by nitrobenzene and benzene is below the set national standard, according to local government sources.

 

A team of experts have said that most of the pollutants which went into the river had either volatilized or degraded and very little remained in ice and the river bed itself. When treated the water was safe, said a circular. 

 

Major pollution affected the Songhua River in November last year when around 100 tons of pollutants containing potentially hazardous pollutants entered the water after an explosion at the plant in Jilin Province.

 

The incident forced cities along the river, including Harbin, capital of Heilongjiang Province with a population of more than three million to suspend water supplies temporarily.

 

Harbin officials have said the city’s tap water is safe to drink.

 

"We must learn lessons from the pollution in Songhua River,” said Du Yuxin, Harbin Party secretary. “We’ll fully assess the environmental damage and make every effort to prevent such accidents from happening again.”  

 

(Xinhua News Agency April 17, 2006)