China consumed an average of 465 cubic meters of water for each 10,000 yuan (US$1,205) of gross domestic product (GDP) it achieved last year, about four times the world average level, according to latest figures from the Ministry of Water Resources.

China used five to ten times more water than developed countries to achieve the 10,000-yuan industrial output, and only 50 percent of water was recycled in China, the figures show. In developed countries, 85 percent of water is used again.

At a high-level seminar on water conservation held in Beijing Tuesday, Vice Minister of Water Resources Suo Lisheng said that in recent years, northern China was hit by consecutive severe droughts.

"Beijing is facing the most severe situation concerning water supply since the founding of the People's Republic of China," Suo said, noting that traditional water-saving measures no longer meet the demand of the new situation.

According to a proposed scheme, the price for tap water in Beijing will be raised by 28 percent, or 0.8 yuan (nearly 10 US cents) from today's 2.9 yuan per ton to 3.7 yuan this year.

Beijing has planned a total investment of 21.2 billion yuan (US$2.56 billion) for developing the water saving industry, exploring emergency water resources and recycling waste water in the first several decades of this century.

(Xinhua News Agency June 9, 2004)