China has failed in its efforts to check the degeneration of its water quality, a top water official acknowledged on Tuesday, the World Water Day.

"China has taken many steps to control the water contamination, but its speed across the country has not been arrested," said Liu Hongzhi, deputy director of Department of Pollution Control of China State Environmental Protection Administration (SEPA).

More than 70 percent of the nation's rivers and lakes are polluted. China's third longest river, Huaihe, is dirtier than at any time in its history, and a 40 percent section of the Yellow River, the country's second's longest, is useless, according to SEPA.

Moreover, over 300 million people in rural areas do not have adequate clean drinking water. As a result, hundreds of thousands are afflicted with various diseases from drinking water that contains too much fluorine, arsenic, sodium sulfate or bitter salt, revealed Wang Shucheng, minister of Water Resources.

China has built approximate 86,000 reservoirs since its 1949, which over tapped more than 60,000 rivers in the past half century.

Liu blamed the crisis on the improper policies and lax administration of the government.

"China failed to list water conservation in its social and economist plan in the past several years," said Liu. He did not elaborate.

China ranks 82 in per capita water possession among 132 countries investigated by the World Bank. China has 2,300 cubic meters of water for each person, one fourth of the world's average.

(Xinhua News Agency March 23, 2005)