China will launch a gigantic project Friday morning to divert water from the mighty Yangtze River to the country's thirsty north.
The project will be the biggest of its kind in the world and the biggest engineering program in China. It actually consists of three canals running about 1,300 km through the country's eastern, middle and western parts.
Involving US$59 billion, the unrivaled project will pump up to 44.8 billion cubic meters of water each year into the north upon completion, bringing benefits to Beijing and Tianjin cities and Jiangsu and Shandong provinces.
Ceremonies to start the project are scheduled for Friday respectively in Beijing and Jiangsu and Shandong provinces, where the three water diversion channels will run through.
The huge project will cost twice as much as the Three Gorges project under way.
(Xinhua News Agency December 27, 2002)
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