300 Million Chinese Drink Polluted/Toxic Water - AFP

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"Some 300 million people are drinking unsafe or harmful water because more than 70 percent of China's rivers and lakes are polluted, a top government official said Wednesday.

Wang Shucheng, minister of water resources, issued the grim warning at a national conference for directors of water resources bureau in the eastern city of Suzhou, the Xinhua news agency said.

"Currently, 300 million Chinese people are drinking unsafe water, among which 190 million are drinking water with harmful substances above set standards," Wang said.

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"More than 63 million peasants living in north, northwest, northeast and east China plains are drinking water with fluorine above set standard," he said. Fluorine is a toxic chemical element. In addition, 60 million people in 110 counties of Hunan, Hubei, Jiangxi, Anhui, Jiangsu, Sichuan and Yunan provinces are threatened by schistosomiasis, a parasitic disease, Zhai said."

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http://www.terradaily.com/2004/041222140421.5dr8lx3d.html