China's new national standard for drinking water takes effect

Abstract

On July 1, 2012, China's new national standards for drinking-water quality officially took effect. All 106 items included were adopted from the WHO guidelines for drinking-water quality.1WHOGuidelines for drinking water quality. 4th edn. World Health Organization, Geneva2011Google Scholar China's number of regulated items exceeds those in developed countries and regions (table).1WHOGuidelines for drinking water quality. 4th edn. World Health Organization, Geneva2011Google Scholar, 2US Environmental Protection AgencyNational primary drinking water regulations, EPA 816-F-02-013. US Environmental Protection Agency, Washington, DC2002Google Scholar This is the first time a developing country has implemented strict regulations on drinking-water quality, and, in China, the first time the same standards have been applied in rural and urban areas. This is a milestone in Chinese environmental legislation, signalling a vigorous national effort to improve drinking-water quality and public health.TableInternational and country standards for drinking-water qualityChinaWHOUS EPAEUJapanItems106155103*Contains 15 non-enforceable items.4850†Another 27 as complementary items.Release year20062011200119982002Effective date20122011200220032004EPA=Environmental Protection Agency.* Contains 15 non-enforceable items.† Another 27 as complementary items. Open table in a new tab EPA=Environmental Protection Agency. However, the new standards will be challenging to meet—severely polluted water sources, outdated water-processing facilities and techniques, and low buy-in to improve water plants by provincial and municipal governments will be substantial obstacles. Developing areas, especially some rural areas, have additional challenges. Here water pollution issues are more complex because these areas lack sufficient sanitation infrastructure to handle waste disposal, sewage collection, and water treatment. The rapid development of Chinese industry and agriculture, as well as the relocation of factories from urban to rural areas, exacerbates the situation and is undoubtedly at odds with regulation efforts. Additionally, a shortage of staff and technology for monitoring mean that only the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention at the provincial level can properly monitor all 106 items listed in the standards. These obstacles together will limit the implementation of the standards throughout the country. Although China's new water standard will improve drinking-water quality, an important issue is how well the regulations fit China's situation. In a spectrum analysis of drinking water originating from the Huangpu River in Shanghai,3Chen L Zhou Y Wu YL et al.Status of trace organic pollution in the network water came from Huangpu River.J Hygiene Res. 2008; 37 ([in Chinese].): 137-143Google Scholar we detected more than 200 pollutants. However, 50% of the items specified in the standards were not detected in drinking water, yet some samples contained high-risk compounds, such as β-naphthamide, which are not included in the standards. Thus, it is crucial for China to reassess the new standards carefully and monitor their implementation to ensure the values and items specified are appropriate for the nation, rather than simply matching international standards. To ensure safe drinking water in China, it is essential to increase investment in improving water purification and sanitation infrastructure, exert tighter controls over the disposal of waste and pollutants, and protect water sources. These are long-term, work-intensive projects, and the enactment of a new national standard is just the first step. This project was supported by the National Key Technology R&D Program of the 11th Five Year Plan ( No 2006BAI19B02 ) and the National Natural Science Foundation of China ( 30771770 ). We declare that we have no conflicts of interest.