Publication: Improving the Performance of China’s Urban Water Utilities
Date
2008-06
ISSN
Published
2008-06
Author(s)
Browder, Greg J.
Xie, Shiqing
Kim, Yoonhee
Gu, Lixin
Fan, Mingyuan
Ehrhardt, David
Abstract
In the 1990s, China's water supply
infrastructure was in a very poor state. Municipal
wastewater treatment was almost nonexistent. Public
utilities were inefficient. Prices for water were
unsustainably low. Since then, large investments have been
made in water supply and wastewater infrastructure, and
tariffs for water and wastewater have increased.
China's national ministries and agencies have issued
directives on water pricing, utility regulation, wastewater
treatment, private sector participation, and other reforms.
Chinese and international companies are now active in the
sector. However, many complex financial, institutional, and
technical challenges lie ahead. China's water supplies
are limited, its rivers are among the most polluted in the
world, and its coastal waters are on the brink of ecological collapse.
Citation
“Browder, Greg J.; Xie, Shiqing; Kim, Yoonhee; Gu, Lixin; Fan, Mingyuan; Ehrhardt, David. 2008. Improving the Performance of China’s Urban Water Utilities. Water P-Notes; No. 11. © World Bank, Washington, DC. http://openknowledge.worldbank.org/entities/publication/b2d7c707-8a6a-56cb-a774-5741ea626079 License: CC BY 3.0 IGO.”