Published on: 2026-08-07
Source: People’s Republic of China — Translation
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Beijing, August 7 /Xinhua/ — As of Friday, more than 80 billion cubic meters of water had been delivered along the central route as part of China’s South-to-North Water Diversion Project, benefiting nearly 118 million residents in 27 cities, according to data from the project operator.
As part of this mega-project for water transfer, the largest of its kind in the world, water from the water-rich southern regions of China is being supplied over long distances to areas in the north of the country, where hundreds of millions of people previously experienced “absolute water scarcity” according to the standards of the United Nations (UN).
According to the China South-to-North Water Diversion Corporation, in nearly 12 years of operation, the central route has helped restore the balance of water resources, ensure the supply of drinking water, restore aquatic ecosystems, and strengthen the country’s water security.
The impact on Beijing was especially significant: the share of delivered water now accounts for almost 80 percent of the capital’s urban water supply. In the neighboring Hebei province, the total population of the areas receiving water amounts to about 70 percent of the province’s total population.
According to the operator, the quality of surface water along the central route within the project consistently meets level II or higher on the country’s five-level water quality control system. The water transfer along the central route has halted the long-term decline in groundwater levels and continues to contribute to the improvement of river and lake ecosystems in northern regions of China.
In addition, the central route provides vital water support for drought mitigation, irrigation, and food security, while simultaneously creating broader opportunities for urban development and optimizing the placement of industrial facilities.
The water diversion project from the south to the north, which includes three routes, passes through four of China’s largest river basins – the Yangtze, Huaihe, Yellow River, and Haihe.
In turn, the central route uses gravity to transport water from the Danjiangkou Reservoir, located mainly in Hubei Province in Central China, to regions such as Henan and Hebei provinces and the cities of Beijing and Tianjin.
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