Yellow River unaffected by factory explosion
By Ma Lie (China Daily)
Updated: 2006-05-31 05:52
XI'AN: The Yellow River and drinking water sources along its banks were not
polluted by Monday's explosion at a chemical factory in Lanzhou, capital of
Northwest China's Gansu Province, a spokesman said yesterday.
Visitors look at Hukou Waterfall
on the Yellow River at Yichuan County, northwest Chinas Shaanxi Province,
July 31, 2005. [Newsphoto] |
The accident took place at 3:32 pm on Monday, killing four workers and
injuring 11, after a fire at a waste acid unit in Lanzhou Petroleum and Chemical
Industry Company's organic chemical factory, company spokesman Zhao Mingquan
said at a press conference.
The factory, a State-owned enterprise mainly producing nitrobenzene, aniline,
cyclohexylamine, rubber accelerator and antioxidant, is located next to the
Yellow River, the main water source in northern China.
Normally, its waste water is discharged into the river after being processed.
Zhao said the 80 tons of water used to put out the fire did not go into the
Yellow River.
"The four dead and the 11 injured are all migrant workers. They were employed
by a construction company that was doing work on our factory. The clean-up
operations are going smoothly and the injured are in a stable condition in
hospital," he added.
Local media said Lanzhou's environment department inspected nearby sections
of the Yellow River and the factory's waste disposal system and found the water
met environmental standards and there was no pollution caused by the accident.
(China Daily 05/31/2006 page3)
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