Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao highlighted the issue of water safety in the urban areas at a meeting of the State Council on Wednesday, pledging the government will work to ensure drinking water safety in both rural and urban areas.

There are still problems concerning water safety in cities, said a press release after the meeting, such as unsafe or polluted water sources, out-dated facilities and poor quality monitoring.

In the next three years, China will prioritize water safety in 205 cities and 350 counties.

The State Council called for redoubled efforts to protect water sources and renovate outdated water facilities in the cities.

China adopted in July a new national standard for drinking-water quality to ensure clean tap water supply to the country's urban and rural residents.

The new standard raised the quality of tap water in terms of organism, microorganism and disinfection by bringing 71 more quality indicators into monitoring in addition to the original 35 indicators, according to an official with the Health Ministry.

(Xinhua News Agency August 23, 2007)