The recycled water supplied to the Olympic Village will go through one of the most stringent procedures in the world, Beijing's drainage experts said yesterday.

"The water reclamation system we use is more advanced than those used in previous Games," Wang Hongchen, chief engineer of the Qinghe Water Reclamation Plant, said.

The plant will supply 60,000 tons of recycled water per day for the lake in the Olympic Park.

By the end of the year, a second water treatment plant will open to provide additional supplies to the Olympic Village, which according to officials, will be as clean as tap water.

The Olympic city, which covers 85 locations and comprises 550 km of sewers, also keeps track of pollutants in its sewerage system using special detectors and robots.

Beijing's nine sewage plants and five reclamation plants currently treat more than 2 million tons of waste produced by factories and residents every day.

Most of the reclaimed water is used for industrial purposes, while the rest feeds farms and lakes throughout the province.

"We will do our best to maintain the safety and efficiency of the water system," Qi Jingjun, a senior official from the city water authority, said.

(China Daily 07/19/2007 page5)