Monday, April 1, 2013

China: Lanzhou officials claim floating human corpses do not affect water quality

April 1, 2013
By Erik Crouch

This week's 'dead things floating in drinking water' special guest: people! If ducks and hogs aren't enough for you, Lanzhou officials have reported that more than 100 human bodies are found in the Yellow River each year, with 417 recovered between 2008 and 2012. Environmental bureau chief Li Lei says that, "Based on our overall measuring results in past years, water quality not only remained normal, but in some cases has even improved," so by all means, keep dumping bodies.
SCMP reports:
Lanzhou police bureau spokesman Huang Xiaoping said most of the bodies in the river were people who died from accidents and suicides. Out the 417 bodies retrieved, only two were involved in criminal activities, he told the agency. In 2005, Xiaosanxia Power, which owns two hydropower stations in the region, issued a report on the water quality.
"The bodies would generate much more pollutants than daily disposals if they remain in water and decompose," the company said. It said it had found dozens of bodies floating with household rubbish every year.
Continued:  http://shanghaiist.com/2013/04/01/lanzhou_officials_floating_bodies_dont_affect_water_quality.php

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