Massive water diversion project poses environmental dilemma

Zhu Guolin and his fellow villagers had to leave home and look for new jobs after they were ordered to stop growing lucrative yellow ginger.

Local firms that processed the ginger into medicine were closed down because they were polluting the Danjiangkou Reservoir.

In central China, the Danjiangkou Reservoir and its upper reaches are the headwaters of the world's largest water diversion project, designed to transfer relatively clean water from the Han River, a major tributary of the Yangtze River, to the country's parched northern regions, including the sprawling capital city of Beijing.

"We realize the project is a national priority," said Zhu, "but the closure of the factories and the restrictions on fish farming in the reservoir are a big blow to our quality of life."

The headwater regions span 43 counties and cities, 26 of which are among the poorest in China, with a total population of about 10 million.