Water Quality Management of Beijing in China

TSINGHUA SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGYISSN 1007-0214 11/17 pp298 - 305Volume 5，Number 3，September 2000Water Quality Management of Beijing in ChinaAndy PittEntec UK Ltd, Northumbria House ，Manor Walks, Cramlington ,Northumberland, NE23 6UP, UKAbstract At present, Beijing's water resources are insufficient and will become the limiting factor forsustainable development for the city in the near future. Although efforts have been made to control pollution，water quality degradation has occurred in some of the important surface water supplies，aggravating the waterresource shortage. At present, approximately three quarters of the city's wastewater is discharged untreatedinto the urban river system ，resulting in serious pollution and negatively influencing the urban landscape andquality of daily life. To counteract these measures, the city has implemented a compr ehensive“Water QualityManagement Plan” for the region， encompassing water pollution control， prevention of water bodydegradation，and improved water quality.The construction of municipal wastewater treatment plants is recognised as fundamental to contr ollingwater pollution, and full secondary treatment is planned to be in place by the year 2015. Significant work isalso required to expand the service area of the municipal sewage system and to upgrade and renovate the oldersewer systems. The limitation on available water resources has also seen the emphasis shift to low water usingindustries and improved water conservation. Whilst industrial output has increased steadily over the past 1015 years at around 10% per annum, industrial water usage has remained relatively constant. Part of the city'swater quality management plan has been to introduce a strict discharge permit system, encour aging manyindustries to install on-site treatment facilities.Key words water quality; waste water treatment ; discharge permit systemFengtai，Haidian， Shijingshan). The rural areasIntroductioncontain 14 satellite cities surrounded by a total ofBeijing is the national capital of China， ancmore than 70 smaller towns.The region has athe capital of Beijing Municipality. The city istemperate climate; the summers are hot and humidlocated on the North China Plain， approximatelywith temperatures typically between 26 C to 30 C150 km Northwest of the Bohai Sea at a north-with abundant rainfall, and the winters are dry andlatitude of 40°. The municipality is approximatelycold with an average temperature of -5 C.16 000 km2 in size, of which 2/3 is mountainous1 Water Resourcesarea encircling the western, northern and easternsides of the city. From the 1990 census, the totalWater resources in the Beijing region consistpopulation was 12.9 million， with 6. 4 millionpri中国煤化工，reclaimed and re-usedliving in urban areas, 5. 2 million living in the city,wa'he region is consideredand a floating population of 1. 3 million. The cityolYHCNM HGring dry periods waterarea is 1048 km2 in size， and includes four centraldemand exceeds available supplies by up to 25%.urban districts (Dongcheng, Xicheng, Chongwen，Consequently，preservation of water quality is anXuanwu) and four suburban districts (Chaoyang ，important concern. With the steady growth of theurban population ( with increased standards CReceived，克7-02living) and the rapid development in industry andAndy Pitt: Water Quality Management of Beijing in China299agriculture, demand is continually increasing.However, these sources are deteriorating becauseThere is little possibility of developing newof pollution and increased abstraction upstream.water resources in the region except for furtherThe average available surface water resource forreclamation，re-use and conservation. Any majorthe municipality is about 2000 million m3/a.new water supply will involve regional importa-However，during ‘dry’ years this resource cantion. The favoured import scheme involves thedrop to as little as 9X108 m3/a.transportation of water from South China t(1. 2 Groundwater resourcesBeijing - a distance of 1235 km. It is estimated that1.2X10 m2/a will be imported by the year 2010.The Beijing area consists of two distinctgeomorphological regions， the mountains and the1. 1 Surface water resourcesplains，each having different hydrogeologicalThere are more than 200 streams and riversfeatures. Whilst the mountainous regions arewithin the municipal region associated with the fivegenerally lacking in groundwater， the Beijingmain river systems: Daqing， Yongding， Beiyun,plains have significant quantities of groundwaterChaobai and Miyun. There are 85 reservoirs with aavailable. The sustainable groundwater extractiontotal storage capacity of 7. 38 X 109 m，and 30rate is 2450 million m'/a. the long term averagelakes with a total water surface area of 9. 74 km',annual groundwater recharge is estimated atFig. 1.4950 m2/a，with an approximate sub-surface flowThe average annual rainfall is 626 mm，without of the basin of 1500 m3 /a.the annual run- off averaging 2.6X10* m'/a. LittleThe quality of the groundwater is generallysurface water flows out of the municipality exceptgood and is suitable for industrial, agricultural andduring severe storm events. Mountain water ismunicipal use. Most of the groundwater containsfully contained by the series of large reservoirs.calcium and magnesium. However, with the cityThe surface water supply is primarily drawn fromprimarily dependent upon groundwater for itsthe Miyun and Guanting reservoirs， which arewater supply， groundwater levels have dropped80 km to the north and west， respectively.significantly during the past 20 years because ofCity RiversLiangshui RiverTonghui RiverBahe RiverUpperQinghe RiverBejing-Miyun Irrigation CanalChaobai RiverYongding Irrigation C analBaihe RiverMIYUN> RESERVOIGUANTINGBEIJING、 RESERVOIRMUNICIPALITYHUAIROURESERVOIRJingmi DiversionC huaobaiCanalRiverVenYongdingnShiheRive中国煤化工MH.CNMHGFig.1 Water resources of Beijing municipality300Tsinghua Science and Technology ，September 2000, 5(3): 298 - 305overuse - when surface water supplies are limitedapproximately 1300 million m'/a whilst theduring' dry ’years， groundwater use exceedselectrical power industry re- uses approximatelysustainable levels. A consequence of this excessive1100 million m2/a. With water conservation aexploitation has been a noticeable reduction in thecritical component of Beijing' s future water supplywater yield per well.these figures are expected to rise further.1.3 Water reclamation2 Water UsageDue to the limitation on available surface andThe largest water consumer in the Beiingground water resources， water re-use in industrymunicipality is agriculture, followed by industry ，has increased steadily from about 45% in the 1980sand then domestic use (Table 1). The municipalto around 80% now for some large industries. It iswater supply system consists of three components :estimatedthatgeneralindustryre-usesTable 1 Comparison between typicat Wwater usage and available resourcesWater usageWater resource- normal rainfall year *Reclaimed wastewateragriculture domestic industrial total usagesurface groundwater totalelectrical total amountresourcepowerof reclaimedwaterFlow2400600900390020002450445013001100(10% m'/a(900)(3000)(3900)* (dry year in brackets)●The surface water supply system一consisting( approximately 75%) is discharged untreated intoof the Guanting， Miyun， Huairou Reservoirs,the urban river system， resulting in seriousseveral diversion canals and medium and small-pollution and negatively influencing the urbansized reservoirs.landscape and quality of daily life.●The groundwater supply system - which includes●With the development of village economies，municipal wells， privately owned wells， andindustrial and domestic wastewaters are increasingagricultural wells.in the rural areas, thereby becoming new pollutant●The potable water supply system-water issources for both surface and groundwater.supplied to the city via a multi- feeder distributionTo counteract these measures， the city hassystem. There are currently 10 water treatmentimplemented the comprehensive Water Qualityplants，with a total length of pipe of over 5200km,Management Plan for the region， encompassingserving a population of 5. 2 million people.water pollution control, prevention of water bodydegradation，and improved water quality. The3 Water Quality Managementconstruction of municipal wastewater treatmentBeiing's water quality management and waterplants is recognised as fundamental to controllingpollution control efforts were initiated over 3(water pollution - with emphasis placed on the reyears ago. Whilst some effective pollution controluse of the treated wastewater. A permit systemmeasures have been implemented and several waterlimiting discharge flows and quality has beenpollution problems have to a limited extent beeninitiatedocOntrolindustrialwastewatercontrolled, many problems remain. The principalpolution. Industrial wastewater pre- treatment,areas of concern are:recycle and reuse programs have been encouraged●Beijing's water resources are insufficient and willan中国煤化Terprises have been shutbecome the limiting factor for sustainabledoYHCNMH Gdevelopment for the city. Although efforts have3.1Impact of wastewater discharges on surfacebeen made to control pollution， water qualitywater qualitydegradation has occurred in some of the importantsurface water supplies， aggravating the waterBy 1990， more than 40 river sections in theresourcemunicipality, totalling 670km， had been polluted●A large proportion of the city's wastewater(out of 82 river sections having a total length ofAndy Pitt: Water Quality Management of Beijing in China3012100km). Of the two key surface water suppliesAll the rivers flowing through the urban areafor Beijing ( the Miyun and Guanting waterof Beijing form part of the Beiyun River system. .systems)，the Miyun system is considered to beAt present their main functions are to transportgood quality water which meets the class Imunicipal wastewater and irrigate the farmland.standard and is the primary source of surface waterThese rivers receive approximately 70% of thefor Beijing's potable water supply. The Guantingtotal wastewater generated in the urban area- asystem is considered to be of lower quality andsignificant proportion (75%) is untreated. Thus, .supplies water to the urban area to be mostly usedthey are the most seriously polluted water bodiesby industry. The COD and ammonia levels exceedin Beijing Municipality. The water quality of thethe class M standard and the water is consideredmain rivers in the urban area is shown in Table 3.slightly polluted.Table 3 Water quality of the main rivers in the3.2 Environmental quality standards for surfaceBeijing urban area, 199 1(mg/L)water (GB3838- 88)RiverDO BOD NH-N PhenolUpper reaches of the Qinghe River1.7 415 0.010Five surface water quality classifications forLower reaches of the Qinghe River0.20 0.09waters with different uses have been established asUpper reaches of the Bahe River13 0. 009protectiontargetsbystateregulationsLower reaches of the Bahe River2.8( Environmental Quality Standard for SurfaceSouth Moat2.0. 004Water，GB3838-88 ).The uses according tcUpper reaches of the Tonghui River0.011classification are:Lower reaches of the Tonghui River .1.0.147Class I Applicable to resource pristine headLianbua Riverwaters and national nature protection areas ;Upper reaches of the Liangshui RiverClass I Applicable to first grade protectionMiddle reaches of the Liangshui River0.4 76230. 03of central life drinking water source areas， rareLower reaches of the Liangshui River0.04fish protection areas， fish and shrimp spawningClass V surface water quality standard≥2.0 ≤10 s ≤2≤0. 1areas, etc;Class M Applicable to second grade protec -Theestimatedquantity ofmunicipaltion of central life drinking water resource areas,wastewater discharged to the urban river systemgeneral fish protection areas, and swimming areas;for the year 1992 is provided in Table 4. The majorClass IVApplicable to general industrialsources of the wastewater are considered to bewater areas and entertainment water bodies that dofrom:●separate sanitary sewer systems which dischargenot have human contact;Class V Applicable to agricultural waterdirectly into the river courses.●combined sewer systems which discharge directlyareas and general sighting water areas.Standard values for some of the main .to the river courses.●direct individual building discharges to the river .parameters are as shown in Table 2.courses without entering the sewer system.Table 2 Main parameters of environmental quality●overflows from municipal wastewater treatmentstandards for surface waterplants and pumping stations.11IV●the sewered municipal wastewater which pumpsSulphate250 250250into the river courses.Nitrate102025Free ammoniaTable 4 Municipal wastewater discharges to theTKN0.512urban river systems, 1992COD!5中国煤化工ndustrialTotalBOD .30MHCNMHGdm3/d%Total cyanide0. 0050. 050.2Qinghe 368. 735. 797.011.4 465. 7 24.6Phenol0.002 0. 0020.005 0.01 0. 1Bahe .22.52.233.23.955. 73.0Note: All water bodies should not have any of the following fonnon-natural reasons: ( a ) offensive sediments and floatingTonghui 319.0 30. 8270.031.7 589.0 31. 3substances; (b)、 offensive colour, odour，taste of turbidity; (3)Liangshui 323. 8 .31.3450.553. 0774.3element dangeaoa 数据xic to humans, animals or plantlife; (d)condition that encourage breeding of offensive aquatic organisms.Total 1034. 0100850.71884. 700302Tsinghua Science and Technology ，September 2000, 5(3): 298 - 305present there are four municipal .wastewater4 Municipal Wastewater Treatmenttreatment plants in Beijing with a combinedThe domestic sewage (51%) and industrialtreatment capacity of 590 000 m3/d (or 28% of thewastewater ( 49%) in the Beijing urban areatotal produced). One plant (Jiuxianqiao) providescombine to make up the municipal wastewater. Iprimary treatment， whilst three ( Gaobeidian，is the major source of water for many of the urbanBeixiaohe，and Fangzhuang ) provide secondaryrivers during dry seasons and the source oftreatment. There will eventually be 14 municipalirrigation water for downstream farmland.Awastewater treatment plants within the city ofpresent，approximately 25% of the municipalBeiing.Currently 25% of themunicipalwastewater receives secondary treatment. Withwastewater is treated. It is expected that by themost of the municipal wastewater discharged intoyear 2000 the rate will be 65%，and by the yearthe rivers without treatment, it is the major cause2010 it will be 90%， with complete 100 %of severe pollution in many of the urban rivers.treatment by the year 2015. Further details areprovided in Table 5.4.1 Wastewater collectionTable 5 Major parameters relating to waterSewage has historically been discharged toquality managementdesignatedrivers/canals in Beijing. A basicParameter1996 2000 2015network of sewers for the central region wasPopulation in municipality (10*)10.9 11.9 13. 0constructed in the 1 950s.As the city hasWater resource demand (108 m*/d)11.1 13.2 16. .expanded，there has been an obvious need tcexpand the sewer system network. By 1988， 55%Municipal wastewater produced (105 m'/d) 2.1 2. 6of the urban area was served by sewers. Today ，Percent treated (% )255100around 50- 80km of new sewers are being installedIndustrial wastewater produced (108 m2/d) 1. 11.2 2.6annually. There are now 21 sewer systems in thePercent treated <%)1775city area with an estimated total length of drainagePercent industrial wastewater recycled (% )8085piping of 2200km. In addition to expanding theservice area，I significant amount of work is nowThe planned schedule for the construction ofrequired to repair or renovate the older sewerthe municipal wastewater treatmentplantssystem. In addition, a large proportion of these(MWTP) is given in Table 6. The location of thesewers have low inclines and are inadequately sizedplants and layout of the main sewers and urban .for good drainage.rivers is provided in Fig. 2.Factories are located throughout the city ，Table 6 Schedule for complection of municipalincluding the residential areas, and as such there iswastewater treatment plantsno central industrial wastewater collection andName of plantTime (year)treatment system.Consequently，industrialGaobeidian (Stage 2)1996 - 1998wastewater is discharged into the municipal sewer .Qinghe (440 ML/d), Jiuxianqiao (310 ML/d)，1996 - 2000system，rivers or canals with or without in-plantZhengwangfen (435 ML/d), Wujiacuntreatment. A separate system is however used for(80 ML/d)stormwater collection， which primarily includesXiaojiahe (40 ML./d)，Beiyuan (60 ML./d)2001 - 2005the Tonghui River, Liangshui River, Qinghe RiverLugouqiao (260 ML/d), Nanyuan (390 ML/d)，2006 - 2010and Bahe River drainage systems. StormwaterBeixiaohe (60 ML/d)collection and discharge facilities do not fully coverFatou (295 ML/d)，Dongba (60 ML/d)2010 - 2015the city area. Low coverage and low capacity resultin accumulation of water in certain areas during .中国煤化工disposalperiods of heavy rainfall. It is anticipated that byMYH_CNMHGat the MwTP will bethe year 2000 coverage will be 70% complete, withstabilised by anaerobic digestion, with the biogasfull coverage aimed for by the year 2015.generatd being used to offset energy demands at4.2 W astewater treatment facilitiesthe plants. A number of disposal alternatives wereThe万呐数据flow of the total municipalevaluated before agricultural land application wEwastewater in 1996 was 2 080 000 m*/d. Atselected. Incineration was discounted on the basisAndy Pitt: Water Quality Management of Beijing in China03Wenyu向QingheBeiyuanRiverBejing MiywnIrrgation CanalXiacojiaheBeix iaoheBahe R.Yongdinghe IriationCanalJiuxianqiaoDongba47 ongheWujiacurGaobeidian一尚FatouZhengwangfenLugouqiaoLiangshuiT-NaryuanFig.2 Layout plan of the planned wastewater treatment plants，main sewers and urban riversof cost, unfavourable air emissions and the loss ofTable 7 Limits for pollutants in agricultural soiluse as soil conditioner. Sanitary landfill wasMax. concentration (mg/kg)excluded on the basis of the potential forPollutantIn acidic soilIn alkalinegroundwater contamination， increased landill(pH<6.5)soil (pH>6. 5)requirements and transportation costs.TheCadmium20location of the MWTP close to agricultural landMercuryl5and the beneficial use of sludge as a soil conditionerChromium6001000and valuable source of nitrogen and phosphorusLead300were the deciding factors. .Arsenic75Concerns surrounding the use of sludge onland have been examined, specifically with respectBoron150Mineral oil3000to the accumulation of toxic metals in the soilBenzo (a) pyrene3which could be assimilated by food crops. LimitsCopper250500for the metals in soil are presented in Table 7. ToZincachieve the metal concentrations quoted, industrialNickel100200wastewater source control and pre-treatment isconsidered necessary and more cost-effective thanadditional advanced treatment at the MWTP. It is4.4 Urban nightsoil productionconsidered that an application rate of 26t/ha (dryNightsoil production in Beijing principallysolids basis ) would allow at least 20 years ofsludge application without exceeding statearises from public toilets and toilets in buildings.agricultural standards. For long term planning，aBe中国煤化工r usully constructedhan linked to a sewerfactor of safety is assumed and an application rateof 8. 3t/(ha●a-1) is recommended by the BeijingSMYHC N M H Gximately 11800 publieMunicipal Research Institute of Environmentaltoilets in Beijing of which 6800 belong to thesanitary system. Production of nightsoil in 1991Protection.Withfuturesludge productionestimated at 180 000 t(dry solids)/a，by the yearwas estimated at 5. 1 million tons, of which 2. 12015，the灰亦数据i necessary for sludge disposal ismillion tons was collected by sanitary trucks and3.0 million tons discharged to the sewer system.projected at 22 500 ha.304Tsinghua Science and Technology, September 2000, 5(3): 298 - 305With increased wastewater treatment capacity andindustrial adjustment with a strengthening ofa more comprehensive sewerage system， thequality management and an improvement in thenightsoil volume will gradually decrease. Drylevel of applied technology.Significantly，thetoilets will be upgraded into flush toilets anclimitation on available water resources has seen theconnected into the sewage system.emphasis shift to low water- using industries andThe volume of nightsoil currently dischargedimprovedwater conservation.A number ofinto the sewer system, although low in comparisonenterprises with high energy and water demandso the total flow of wastewater, is a major sourceand high pollution output have closed during thisof COD and ammonia because of its high strength.period.' W hilst industrial output has increasedThe nightsoil transferred outside of the urban areasteadily over the past 10- 15 years at around 10%by sanitary trucks is predominantly landfilled, andper annum，industrial water usage has remainedas such is considered a potential source of pollutionrelatively constant at around 860 million m3 /a.for surface and ground waters due to rainfall5.2 Industrial wastewater dischargeflushing and leaching effects.The limitation on industrial water usage has5 Industrial W astewater Treatmentprevented the normal increase in wastewaterBeijing is the second largest industrial city indischarge that would typically accompany increasedChina. Its gross industrial output is second only toeconomic development. The amount of industrialthat of Shanghai. In 1990， there were over 6000wastewater discharged in 1996 was held just belowindustrial enterprisesemploying 1.8 million365 million m'/a or 1. 0 million m2/d (49% of theworkers. Fixed industrial assets were valued at 40total municipal wastewater)- an actual reduction ofbillion yuan (4. 4 billion US $ ) with gross20% from the 1. 25 million m*/d discharged inindustrial output value at 69 billion yuan (7. 71986. Significantly, for those industries employingbillion US$ ). The major industries， ranked inon-site treatment， the amount of treatedterms of industrial output value, are as follows :wastewater recycled for re-use is now in excess ofMachinery 20%， Elctronic10%，0.6 million m2/d. Most industrial wastewaterAutomobile7%Chemical17%，discharged in the city region is collected in theMetallurgy 9%， Construction materials 6%，municipalsewer system， combined with theTextile12%，Food processing8%，domestic wastewater, and discharged to the BeiyunOther12%.River System via the rivers and canals within the5. 1Industrial water usagecity area. A summary of theseindustrialThe last 10 years have seen a period ofdischarges is presented in Table 8.Table 8 Summary of industrial discharges for each of the main sewer systemsMunicipal sewerPercent industrial wastewaterMain types of industry dischargingsystemin the municipal wastewater(% )into the sewer systemGaobeidianchemical, paper mill, medicine. textileZhengwangfen35iron &. steel, mechanical &. electricalQinghe25wood, paper mill, mechanical &. electricalJiuxianqiaol0mechanical &. electricalXiaohongmen30chemical, food, slaughter, paper millLugouqiao中国煤化工W ulituo .l5MHCNMH GDongbabuilding materials, mechanical &. electricalDingfuzhuang> 50medicine，mechanical &. electricalFatouchemicalFangh方数据<10textileAndy Pitt: Water Quality Management of Beijing in China3055.3Standards for the discharge of industrial6 Conclusions and RecommendationswastewaterAlthough the first major steps have beenAt present only 25% of the municipaltaken towards controlling water pollution in thewastewater is treated. Not surprisingly, the largeBeijing area, further significant efforts are requiredproportion of untreated discharged wastewater hasbefore the situation can be considered to be underseverely contaminated the urban rivers, several ofcontrol. The lack of water resources in Beijingwhich do not meet the water quality standards formakes the protection of the quality of potableagricultural irrigation. To address the problem ，water sources a top priority. This includes thepart of the city's water quality management hasprotection of reservoirs downstream of Beijing andbeen to introduce a strict discharge permit system.groundwater sources. The lack of water resourcesThe permit incorporates two sets of standards ，makes: (a) the transfer of water from the south,Class A and B (Table 9)，dependent upon whether( b) improved water saving and (c ) increasedthe municipal wastewater is treated or untreated.re-use，the three major counter-Table 9 Standards for the discharge ofmeasures for solving the water shortage. T he focalindustrial wastewaterpoints of water pollution control in the future are:●Thetreatment of municipalMax. conc. (mg/L)Parameter(domestic and industrial) in the urban areas;Class AClass B●The control of pollution from livestock, chemicalpH6.0- 9.06.0-9.0fertilisers, pesticides and industrial wastewater.Susp. solids160500. The countermeasures and recommendationsBOD100adopted by the Beijing authorities for pollutionCOD150 .control are as follows:sulphide1. 010●Promoting cleaner production methods withinPhenol1.0industry.Controllingamounts of pollutantsCyanide0.52discharged and introduction of a discharge permitTDS15002000system.Oil and fat5●Improving stormwater and wastewater collectionClass A. without municipal wastewater treatment ;systems，and constructing municipal wastewaterClass B. with municipal wastewater treatment.treatmentfacilities onschedule.Treatedwastewater should be re-used， and the sludge5. 4 On-site industrial wastewater treatmentshould be used as an organic fertiliser inThe introduction of the permit system hasagriculture.encouraged many enterprises to install their ownReferenceson-site treatment facilities. A summary of theextent of this on-site treatment is presented in[1] Beijing Municipal Enviromental Protection Bureau.Table 10. .Beiing environmental master plan studies 1992 - 1996[R]. Beijing Municipal Environmental ProtectionTable 10 On- site industrial wastewaterBureau, Beijing. 1996. (in Chinese)treatment, Beijing (1986 &. 1991)[2] Hang Shijun. Beijng Municipal Engineering DesignYearand Research Institute,Beijing. (Personal1986 1991Communication )No. of industrial wastewater treatment plants594 783Combined treatment capacity (1000 m3/d)716 1278Total treated flow * (1000 m*/d)630 866中国煤化工Flow of treated industrial wastewater321 353MYHCNMHG(1000 m*/d)Total flow of industrial wastewater1249 1112Percentage of flow treated on-site32* Includgs方数据ter treated for in-plant re-use.