Local governments in Guangdong along the Xijiang River are preparing to reserve fresh water as a man-made flood advances downstream this week, boosting hopes there will be enough drinkable water for Macao in coming weeks.

The added flow in Xijiang is part of the central government's efforts to push back a salt tide that has been ravaging the Pearl River Delta (PRD) this winter. Xijiang is a major tributary of the Pearl River and the leading source of fresh water for Macao.
While salt tides are not new to the region, the current salinity crisis is more serious than previous ones because it has been exacerbated by a combination of drought in the upper reaches of Xijiang in Guangxi and by the lunar tide.

Many cities in the PRD, particularly Macao and neighbouring Zhuhai, have been suffering from the salt tide since it worsened last month, prompting the Guangdong provincial government to ask for emergency assistance from the central government, which gave the go-ahead to an urgent flooding of Xijiang earlier this month.

As the man-made flood rushes downstream from its sources in Guangxi, local authorities in Guangdong along the way are monitoring the water level closely for the best time to fill up their reservoirs.

The cities of Zhongshan and Zhuhai, where Macao's water supply is stored, are expected to fill up the key reservoirs for Macao today through Thursday, the best time to do so before the flow enters the South China Sea, experts said.

Once that is done, Macao residents should be able to celebrate the upcoming Spring Festival without having to worry about their drinking water supply or diluting tap water with expensive distilled water to make it drinkable, as they have been doing for the past two weeks.

Editor: Yan