Yangzonghai Lake () (given on some maps as Yangzong Sea, though it is fresh water) is located between Yiliang County,

Chenggong District Chenggong District () is one of seven districts of the prefecture-level city of Kunming, the capital of Yunnan Province, Southwest China. The district was approved to build from the dissolution of the former ''Chenggong County'' () by the State C ...

and Chengjiang County, 45 kilometers east of

Kunming City Kunming (; ), also known as Yunnan-Fu, is the capital and largest city of Yunnan province, China. It is the political, economic, communications and cultural centre of the province as well as the seat of the provincial government. The headquar ...

Yunnan Province Yunnan , () is a landlocked province in the southwest of the People's Republic of China. The province spans approximately and has a population of 48.3 million (as of 2018). The capital of the province is Kunming. The province borders the ...

, China. About 30,000 people rely on the Lake as their

drinking water Drinking water is water that is used in drink or food preparation; potable water is water that is safe to be used as drinking water. The amount of drinking water required to maintain good health varies, and depends on physical activity level, ...

. Yangzonghai Lake is noted for its underwater springs and is one of several scenic areas in Yunnan province, which is known for its biodiversity. The lake is a popular resort destination for people living in the nearby provincial capital of Kunming, which itself borders

Dianchi Lake Dianchi Lake (), also known as Lake Dian and Kunming Lake (), is a large lake located on the Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau close to Kunming, Yunnan, China. Its nickname is the "Sparkling Pearl Embedded in a Highland" () and it was the model for the Ku ...

, one of China's biggest

freshwater Fresh water or freshwater is any naturally occurring liquid or frozen water containing low concentrations of dissolved salts and other total dissolved solids. Although the term specifically excludes seawater and brackish water, it does incl ...

lakes but also one of its most polluted.

Pollution

As recently as 2002, Yangzonghai had been noted for having water clean enough for drinking and swimming. But as of September 2008, it was officially considered unfit for drinking, swimming in or fishing in, when the provincial government announced high levels of

arsenic Arsenic is a chemical element with the symbol As and atomic number 33. Arsenic occurs in many minerals, usually in combination with sulfur and metals, but also as a pure elemental crystal. Arsenic is a metalloid. It has various allotropes, b ...

in its waters. The arsenic contamination was discovered (in June 2008) when an inspection was made of enterprises operating in the Yangzonghai basin. Eight companies were found to have been engaged in illegal polluting practices. Yunnan Chengjiang Jinye Industrial and Trade Co Ltd (云南澄江锦业工贸有限公司) was named as the main polluter. The company allegedly failed to build the legally required treatment facility for its wastewater, with years of accumulated arsenic seeping into the local water table. It had been fined multiple times in the past, but the relatively small fines were viewed by the company as an extra cost of doing business. Yunnan Communist Party Secretary

Bai Enpei Bai Enpei (; born 8 September 1946) is a former Chinese politician convicted of corruption. Bai served as the Chinese Communist Party Deputy Committee Secretary of Inner Mongolia between 1993 and 1997, Governor and later Party Secretary of Qingha ...

(白恩培) and Yunnan Governor Qin Guangrong (秦光荣) have pledged to take "decisive action" to remedy the situation. In February 2008, Kunming Communist Party Secretary

Qiu He Qiu He (; born January 1957) is a former Chinese politician who spent his career in Jiangsu and Yunnan provinces. He most recently held the post of the Deputy Communist Party Secretary of Yunnan. He was investigated by the Chinese Communist Party ...

(仇和) visited Yangzonghai, warning local enterprises that the lake must not become a "second

Dianchi Dianchi Lake (), also known as Lake Dian and Kunming Lake (), is a large lake located on the Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau close to Kunming, Yunnan, China. Its nickname is the "Sparkling Pearl Embedded in a Highland" () and it was the model for the Ku ...

". An article posted on xinhuanet.com, October 22, 2008 said: "Three executives of a company were arrested and 12 government officials fired in connection with polluting a lake in southwest China's Yunnan Province, according to a provincial inspection department spokesman on Wednesday. The executives were Li Dahong, chairman of the board of directors with Jinye Industry and Trade Co., Ltd., and Jin Dadong, director in charge of production in the company. The spokesman did not disclose the identity of the third executive. The 12 fired officials included Chen Zhifen, a vice mayor of Yuxi City, Yang Zhenqiang, assistant to the mayor, Fang Jianhua, director of the city environmental protection bureau, and two unnamed officials with the provincial water resources department. The others were removed from county-level government departments."

Cleanup project

The Yunnan provincial government has initiated the "China Yunnan Yangzonghai Lake Water Pollution Reduction, Arsenic Removal and Water Quality Restoration" project in a bid to clean up the lake via the Yunnan Provincial Scientific and Technological Development Research Institute. The main objective of the project will be to reduce the amount of arsenic in Yangzonghai's waters from the current 0.128 grams/liter to 0.050 grams/liter within a three-year period.

References

Officials claim ignorance of arsenic pollution in Yangzonghai Lake
(China.org.cn by Wang Wei September 22, 2008)
Kunming's Arsenic Lake
{{Yunnan Lakes of Yunnan Geography of Kunming Geography of Yuxi