China Drought Threatens City Water Supplies

For more news visit ☛ http://english.ntdtv.com Follow us on Twitter ☛ http://twitter.com/NTDTelevision Add us on Facebook ☛ http://facebook.com/NTDTelevision China's worst drought in half a century in is reaching Shanghi. It's leaving millions without enough drinking water and affecting vast areas of farmland. There's little rain forecast for the next month. China has been hit by the worst drought in half a century and there are no signs of a let-up. A parched Yangtze River has left millions without enough drinking water, dwindling food supplies and rising inflation. Shanghai has also been affected. Authorities might order some factories and major businesses to close in the peak of summer to prevent power outages. The Yangtze River is heavily polluted and seawater is invading areas where fresh water is depleted underground. According to state media, fresh water will be provided starting in June by the newly built Qingcaosha Reservoir. [Zhao Pingwei, Vice-director of Shanghai Water Supply Coordination and Monitoring Center]: "We are coordinating the whole city's water supply, and are trying our best to transfer water from various sources so that more water can be brought to the areas with a shortage of supply." Food prices are rising. It's a major threat to the ruling regime's popularity as it battles to keep inflation under control. Local media reported farmers in Hubei and Hunan provinces of Central China were unable to keep fish ponds stocked or plant summer crops. Millions of acres of rice crops have also been affected. Large flows of water have been released from the Three Gorges Dam as falling river levels downstream hamper inland shipping.