北京 [Quenching Beijing’s Thirst]

  At present, the average per- capita fresh water resources in Beijing are no more than 300 cubic meters, which is one eighth of the national average and one 30th of the world average. Per-capita water resources in Beijing are far below the internationally accepted alarm level of 1,000 cubic meters. Official statistics show that at the end of 2007, Beijing" s resident population was 16.3 million, 520,000 more than the previous year. During the two weeks of the summer Olympics 2.5 million more people will flock to Beijing, including 450,000 for-eign tourists, 25,000 athletes and coaches and 25,000 journalists from around the world, and about 2.05 million visitors from other parts of China.