Beijing is stepping up efforts to improve its water environment for the aquatic sports venues of the 2008 Olympic Games, the capital's water authority has announced.

Water input channels and routes are being designed for the aquatic sports stadiums and parks, along with the related clean-up of rivers.

"All the key moves to tackle the water environment pollution in this city will start this year, to build on work that has already been carried out in previous years," said Yu Yaping, an official with Beijing Water Authority.

Comprehensive pollution reduction and control measures will be stepped up in the first half of this year in Chaobai River, Qinghe River and Yangshan Channel, where aquatic sports venues and parks are located.

Shunyi Olympic Rowing-Canoeing Park in northeastern Beijing will use the water supply from Chaobai River, and water used by the Olympic Park is to be piped from Qinghe River and Yangshan Channel.

The improvement measures will concentrate on the drainage service and waste water disposal system, as well as water supplies and will also benefit the city after the Olympics.

Inadequate water supplies could be solved by water-saving technology and policies, from repaired reservoirs and assistance from other places, Yu told China Daily.

He added drainage management and control was a major problem to be tackled.

"What we aim to build is an ecological water system to provide a pleasant environment to people not just simple clean-up work for only a section of a river," he said.

All the rivers suffering with pollution problems within the Sixth Ring Road are expected to flow with clean water by 2008 because of the measures.

Last year, the new Xiaohongmen Waste Water Treatment Plant sent Beijing's daily disposal capacity to 2.5 million tons of waste water in urban areas, providing 260 million cubic meters of recycled water.

Another urban water plant, Beixiaohe Plant, will open later this year along with six others in suburban areas.

By 2007, the capital is expected to be home to 14 major waste water treatment plants to satisfy agricultural and industrial needs.

Last year, Beijing consumed 3 billion cubic meters of water, covering residential, construction, farming and industrial uses.

The supply came mainly from underground water, Miyun and Guanting reservoirs and recycled water.

Beijing water supply allocated from neighboring Hebei and Shanxi provinces in north China totaled no more than 100 million tons.

(China Daily February 10, 2006)