Significant change in rural living environment

China has made significant strides in improving the rural living environment by eliminating large-scale black and odorous water bodies, according to the Ministry of Ecology and Environment.

As of the end of July, over 3,400 polluted water bodies have been cleaned up in rural China, accomplishing 80 percent of the task set for the 14th Five-Year Plan period (2021-25), Zhao Shixin, head of the ministry's department of soil ecology and environment, said at a news conference on Monday.

According to a 2021-25 action plan for rural pollution control, which was jointly published by the ministry and another four national government bodies in early 2022, China aims to essentially eradicate all of the large-scale black and odorous water bodies by 2025.

The achievement happened thanks to a series of measures the ministry rolled out, which prioritize cleansing of these heavily polluted water bodies at people's doorsteps, he noted.

The ministry compiled a detailed list of all black and odorous water bodies in rural areas. To ensure they can be adequately treated as scheduled, the ministry brought about 4,000 of them, which are big and are sources of public concerns, under its priority supervision, he said.

Another almost 10,000 ones were brought under priority supervision of provincial level authorities, he added.

He said the ministry also organizes dynamic inspections of black and odorous water bodies that local governments reported to have cleaned up to make sure that they have been adequately treated as reported.

Satellite remote sensing has been applied to facilitate the inspection, and water quality monitoring was also carried out regularly, he added.

Water quality monitoring carried out in 2,612 water bodies since 2022 shows that 97 percent of them have been adequately treated, he said.

"In addition to analyzing the factors to blame for the reoccurrence of heavy pollution, the ministry will also urge and guide local authorities to rectify problems in a timely manner and establish long-term mechanisms to keep them clean," he said.