Share

Chairperson apologises for cancer water pollutant

Beijing - The chairperson of the Chinese unit of French utility Veolia Environment has apologised to the public after a cancer-inducing chemical was found in tap water supplied by the company, the Xinhua news agency said.

Benzene was found in tap water supplied by the Lanzhou Veolia Water Company in the northwestern city of Lanzhou on 10 April, forcing the city of 3.6 million people to turn off supplies in one district. Other residents were warned not to drink tap water for a day.

Last week, China blamed Veolia for failing to maintain water quality. Veolia said it was not responsible for polluting the tap water with benzene.

Yao Xin, chairperson of Lanzhou Veolia Water Company "bowed and expressed his apology" at a news conference organised by the government of Lanzhou, the Xinhua state news agency said late on Tuesday.

Yao said the reason he had not apologised sooner "was that he and all his staff had been putting all their energy into identifying the cause of the contamination and building new water pipelines".

Justine Shui, a Hong Kong-based spokesperson for Veolia Water China, said by email it was "absolutely normal for the chairperson of [the] joint venture to apologise to the customers for the inconvenience caused".

She said the joint venture "does not manufacture or store benzene and fully trusts the Chinese authorities to find the origin of the benzene".

The government has blamed a crude oil leak from a pipeline owned by a unit of China National Petroleum for the benzene in the city's water. The city's water supply is now back to normal.

The government has not said whether it has opened an investigation into CNPC. PetroChina, the listed unit of CNPC, has denied media reports that it was to blame for the leak.

Lanzhou, a heavily industrialised city in Gansu province, ranks among China's most polluted population centres.

The Lanzhou government's complaints come amid increasing scrutiny of foreign companies by Chinese state media. The government and state media have taken a series of firms to task on issues ranging from pricing to complaints of poor quality products and shoddy customer service.

Lanzhou Veolia Water is majority-owned by the Lanzhou city government, with Veolia's China subsidiary holding a 45% stake.
We live in a world where facts and fiction get blurred
Who we choose to trust can have a profound impact on our lives. Join thousands of devoted South Africans who look to News24 to bring them news they can trust every day. As we celebrate 25 years, become a News24 subscriber as we strive to keep you informed, inspired and empowered.
Join News24 today
heading
description
username
Show Comments ()
Voting Booth
Do you think corruption-accused National Assembly Speaker Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula will survive a motion of no confidence against her?
Please select an option Oops! Something went wrong, please try again later.
Results
No, her days are numbered
42% - 394 votes
Yes, the ANC caucus will protect her
58% - 551 votes
Vote
Rand - Dollar
18.94
-0.2%
Rand - Pound
23.91
-0.1%
Rand - Euro
20.43
+0.2%
Rand - Aus dollar
12.34
+0.1%
Rand - Yen
0.13
-0.2%
Platinum
910.50
+1.5%
Palladium
1,011.50
+1.0%
Gold
2,221.35
+1.2%
Silver
24.87
+0.9%
Brent Crude
86.09
-0.2%
Top 40
68,346
+1.0%
All Share
74,536
+0.8%
Resource 10
57,251
+2.8%
Industrial 25
103,936
+0.6%
Financial 15
16,502
-0.1%
All JSE data delayed by at least 15 minutes Iress logo
Editorial feedback and complaints

Contact the public editor with feedback for our journalists, complaints, queries or suggestions about articles on News24.

LEARN MORE