Desalinated seawater to be 30 percent of Beijing's supply by 2019

Desalinated seawater will be around 30 percent of Beijing's total water supply from 2019, a large-scale water company in the capital announced Monday. 

Beijing Enterprises Water Group (BEWG) first started desalinating seawater in the Caofeidian area of Heibei province in March 2012, due to the region's superior water quality compared with neighbouring areas.

The water will cost 8 yuan ($1.29) per ton, double the price of the city's current domestic tap water supply, the Beijing Times reported.

BEWG will use its own reverse osmosis membrane technique to desalinate seawater at its chemical plant in Caofeidian, the project's Deputy General Manager Liu Fushun explained. They plan to spend seven billion yuan ($1.12bn) on the desalination works and 10 billion yuan ($1.6bn) on 270km of pipeline. 

The move will be a welcome development in the capital, which some experts say has technically been experiencing a drought for the last 15 years. 

Beijing's per capita water consumption is 100 cubic meters per year, far below the the international water-shortage level of 500 cubic meters, China Economic Weekly reports.

However, despite relieving water shortage, experts have warned that desalination can contribute to pollution, something that Beijing could certainly do without.

[Image via Flickr]