China says water supplies exploited by 2030

By Chris Buckley

BEIJING (Reuters) - China will have exploited all available water supplies to the limit by 2030, the government has warned, ordering officials to prepare for worse to come as global warming and economic expansion drain lakes and rivers.

As well, a state newspaper warned on Friday that drought next year could hit crops and stoke already heady inflation.

China's surface and underground water supplies are under strain from feverish economic growth and a population passing 1.3 billion. And scarcity will worsen with global warming, the central government warned in a directive.

"In recent years economic and social development has led to increasing water demand, and with the impact of global warming, drought and water scarcity are increasingly grave," said a directive issued by the office of the State Council, or cabinet, late on Thursday.

"Taking into full account water-saving, by 2030 our country's water use will reach or approach the total volume of exploitable water resources, and the drought-fighting situation will be increasingly serious."

The document on the government Web site (www.gov.cn) urges officials to make emergency plans for coping with drought and promises more spending on water-saving technology and artificial rain-making. Local governments must also develop policies to aid and compensate drought-hit farmers.

China has about 7 percent of the planet's water resources to nourish a fifth of the global population, the government has estimated. Scientists have said that by 2030, China's potential grain output could fall by 10 percent, unless crop varieties and practices adapt to climate change.

China is at the centre of international talks in Bali struggling to agree on a framework for future negotiations on an international pact to fight global warming.