Improving Urban Water Supply, Wastewater Management and Sewerage System in Jilin Province, PRC

MANILA, PHILIPPINES - ADB has approved a US$100 million loan to help improve the urban environment and, consequently, the public health and quality of life in the province of Jilin, the People's Republic of China (PRC), by increasing wastewater coverage and boosting the supply of potable water.

The Project would also result in improved management and utilization of water resources in the upper Songhua River Basin, bringing about positive and transjurisdictional benefits in the province of Heilongjiang.

The project will improve the environment, living conditions, and public health standards in the cities of Changchun, Liaoyuan, and Meihekou in Jilin Province by reducing water pollution, protecting water resources, and addressing water shortage through recycling effluent.

It will expand the currently inadequate wastewater treatment and sewerage system in Changchun, the capital of Jilin province, which would significantly reduce pollution in the Yitong, and Yongchun rivers which flow into the Songhua River. There will also be better control of floods from the Yongchun River.

A water treatment plant with a pumping station to extract water from the Shuanyuang reservoir will be constructed to improve and expand the water supply system of Shuangyang district, located 46 km southeast of Changchun. The district's current drinking water source is groundwater, which is depleting the aquifer beneath the city resulting in land subsidence.

In the Liaoyuan, where the aging water treatment and distribution system is suffering from persistent corrosion, two water treatment plants and the distribution network will be upgraded, along with the aging drainage/sewerage network.

And in Meihekou, where groundwater sources of drinking water are no longer sufficient, a water treatment plant and a raw water transmission pipeline from the Hailong reservoir will be constructed.

"About 3 million urban residents will benefit from the improved water supply and wastewater services in Jilin," says Sangay Penjor, an ADB Principal Financial Specialist.

"The provision of clean water will lessen household spending on buying water from private sources, and reduce the incidence of waterborne diseases, such as diarrhea and hepatitis A, resulting in greater productivity."

Aside from the direct benefits to urban households, the project will help control pollution in the rivers flowing into the Songhua River Basin.

The Songhua River Basin is the third largest river basin in the PRC and intersects Jilin and Heilongjiang provinces and the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region. The basin has a catchment area of 557,000 square km and a population of 62 million.

The Songhua River, however, is one of the most polluted of the 47 major rivers in the PRC. Contaminated with a number of organic chemicals, heavy metals, and other conventional pollutants, the river is considered unsuitable for municipal domestic water use.

The Yitong and Yongchun rivers in Changchun, which flow into the Songhua River Basin, are also highly polluted due to inadequate wastewater treatment in Changchun.

"This project would be the first major ADB intervention in directly addressing pollution control in the Songhua River Basin," said Mr. Penjor.

"Rapid economic growth and urbanization have led to water pollution and water scarcity becoming major problems."

ADB is developing an integrated plan and an immediate action plan for pollution control in the Songhua River basin through an ongoing technical assistance project.

ADB's loan, which will cover 43% of the project's total estimated cost of $232.2 million equivalent, comes from its ordinary capital resources. It carries a 25-year term, including a grace period of five years. Interest will be determined in accordance with ADB's LIBOR-based lending facility.

The municipal governments of Changchun, Liaoyuan, and Meihekou will finance $126.4 million equivalent, and the balance of $5.8 million will be financed with borrowing from the domestic Commercial Bank.

The Jilin Provincial Government is the executing agency for the project, which is due for completion in December 2009.

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