recycled water

By the end of the year the amount of recycled water used in Beijing should surpass that taken from the Miyun Reservoir, according to this report by Zhang Nan on 京报网:

北京再生水利用量首超密云水库

Amount of recycled water used by Beijing surpasses Miyun Reservoir for the first time

记者从市发改委了解到，截止到今年年底，北京再生水利用量预计达到6亿立方米，首次超过密云水库供水量。

This reporter learned from the Municipal Development and Reform Commission that Beijing’s usage of recycled water is estimated to reach 600 million cubic metres by the end of this year, surpassing the amount supplied by the Miyun Reservoir for the first time.

今天上午，总投资1.8亿元的门头沟和延庆两大再生水厂同时开工建设。据了解，两座再生水厂总规模7万立方米/日，年产高品质再生水2500万 立方米。生产出来的再生水将主要用于城市河湖环境、城市绿化等生态用水和市政杂用。比如，其中门头沟再生水厂生产出来的再生水就将在未来注入门头沟区域内 建设的湿地公园湖泊内。

This morning, construction of the water recycling plants with a total investment of 180 million yuan in Mentougou and Yanqing began. According to reports, the total scale of the two water recycling plants is 70 thousand cubic metres/day, with an annual production of high quality recycled water of 25 million cubic metres. The recycled water produced with mainly be used in ecological purposes such as the city’s greening and the city’s river and lake environment and for miscellaneous uses by the city government. For example, some of the recycled water produced by the Mentougou water recycling plant will in the future be poured into the lakes of the wetland park built in the Mentougou area.

继今天门头沟、延庆再生水厂工程开工建设后，昌平再生水厂也将于近期开工。项目建成后，7座水源地新城都将拥有一座再生水厂。2008年，北京 再生水利用量预计将可以达到6亿立方米，首次超过了密云水库的供水量，成为北京的重要水源。到2010年，实现每座新城至少建成一座骨干高品质再生水厂的 目标，同时中心城区则将全面启动现有污水处理厂的升级改造。

Following the start of construction of the Mentougou and Yanqing water recycling plant projects, construction of the Changping water recycling plant will soon begin. Following the establishment of the project, 7 water head site new towns will all have a a water recycling plant. Beijing’s use of recycled water is estimated to reach 600 million cubic metres in 2008, surpassing the amount of water supplied by the Miyun Reservoir for the first time and becoming Beijing’s important water source. By 2010 the goal of having at least one core high-quality water recylcing plant in each new town will be realised. At the same time the central city districts will have comprehensively begun the upgrading and renovation of their current wastewater treatment plants.

I know there’s a lot of ugliness in my translation, as usual (and as always, constructive criticism is most welcome), but the one that really has me stumped is “7座水源地新城”. A cursory google-ing and baidu-ing doesn’t help clear things up.

Anyways, the latest issue of China Heritage Quarterly had me pondering Beijing’s water resources- let’s face it, Damocles had his sword, Beijing has the ever-advancing desert- and one immediate- well, solution is hardly the word, ummm- measure that leapt out at me was water recycling. I mean, recycled water doesn’t need to be put directly into the mains water supply for people to drink and bathe in, because no matter how clean it may be, people will still find that just icky, but it can be put back into the system where it will naturally filter back into the mains water supply. And that natural filtering back through the system will remove any potential ick, real or imagined.

So, excellent news, indeed.