Toxins make second China city cut water
(AP)
Updated: 2005-12-01 07:16

The 50-mile-long slick is making its way toward Russia and is expected to reach the major border city of Khabarovsk on Dec. 10-12. The Songhua flows into the Heilong River, which becomes the Amur in Russia and runs through Khabarovsk, one of the largest cities in the sparsely populated Far East.

With a steady snow falling Wednesday, the Amur was iced over near Khabarovsk's river port, where summer vacationers and shuttle traders make trips in warmer months between China and Russia.

Residents have scooped up bottled water in stores, leaving many shops with only carbonated water. People in the city already are stocking up on water at homes, filling bathtubs and any container they can find.

Also, Health Minister Gao Qiang warned against complacency after the spill passed Harbin, saying it is still a "major problem."

"This matter has alerted us to the need for perfect contingency plans and the effective implementation of those plans when faced with an emergency," Gao said at a news conference.

In Yilan, the government notice promised to "safeguard market and social stability" — a warning to merchants not to raise prices for bottled water.

"Both the county government and residents have stored enough water for at least five days," said another employee of the county government headquarters, who would give only his surname, Ma.

Ma said the county had dug five wells and would be distributing water by truck.

Yilan closed riverfront parks to keep the public away from the poison-laced water. The city lies at the intersection of the Songhua and Mudan Rivers, a famous scenic spot.

Experts say the damage is likely to be long-lasting but the full effects will not be known until at least early next year with the thaw of river ice believed to contain benzene.

"The benzene will remain in the ice until spring, and the (situation) will be dragged out," said Ilya Mitasov, a Moscow-based spokesman for the World Wide Fund for Nature.

He told a Moscow news conference that a higher than normal level of benzene had been detected in the river, but it was not determined "whether it's ours or Chinese."

The river could take 10 years or more to flush out pollutants absorbed by mud and microorganisms, said Zhang Qingxiang, an environmental expert at Shanghai's East China University of Science and Technology.

"If the river floods its banks," said Yu Wenlong, a farmer who plans to plant corn, potatoes and soybeans on riverside land, "there could be contamination of the soil and that would be bad for us."