River thaw will not release more pollutants: Experts
(AP)
Updated: 2006-03-11 16:54

BEIJING (AP) _ Experts from China and Russia have concluded that the spring thaw of the frozen Songhua River will not release more pollutants from a toxic spill in November, Beijing's top environmental official said Saturday.

Polluted water in Songhua River reaches Harbin, the capital of northeastern Heilongjiang province November 24, 2005. [Reuters]

"Last night I received a piece of most exciting news from the Russian side, that they had reached the same conclusion as ours: that there will be no second pollution of the Songhua River this spring," Zhou Shengxian, director of the State Environmental Protection Administration, said during a news conference during the annual session of China's parliament.

The November 13 chemical spill forced the northeastern city of Harbin, a major industrial center, to shut down running water to 3.8 million people for five days and strained relations with Russia, where the chemical flowed through the Far East city of Khabarovsk.

The chemicals released by the accident included benzene, nitrobenzene and aniline, a poisonous liquid used to make dyes, resins, rubber additives and agricultural products. All are thought to be potentially cancer-causing.

Despite initial alarms over the spill, which was caused by a chemical plant explosion, farm products from the region were found to be safe, Zhou said.

He said the government has completed a long term plan for management of the river that puts top priority on prevention and treatment of pollutants, Zhou said.