China to tap mineral water resources from Tibet

Mineral water from the pristine Qinghai-Tibet plateau is likely to become the first resource to be commercially tapped following the recent opening of the rail link to Lhasa.

A group of scientists and experts who researched the region’s development prospects estimated that bottled water from springs in the plateau could generate more than one billion yuan (USD 125 million) annually.

Dubbed Asia’s Water Tower, Qinghai-Tibet forms the source of the major rivers in China and is home to the country’s largest lake resources.

“Development of Tibet’s mineral water resources will not only contribute to cargo transportation on the railway, it will also increase the value of local mineral water resources,” said Dorji, a Tibetan academician who made the suggestion to the geological and mineral exploitation bureau of the Tibet Autonomous Region.

The bureau has located over 100 drinking water springs in the area, the biggest of them in Damxung County which can produce 3,000 tonnes of drinking water a day.

The daily output of the lake in Damxung could fill 50 train cars or two trains, a senior engineer with the bureau, Lu Yan was quoted as saying by Xinhua news agency.

“Bottling the Damxung mineral water could generate an annual output value of one billion yuan (USD 125 million),” Lu said.

The 1,956-km-long railway connecting Tibet with other parts of China was opened for commercial traffic on July 1, reducing transport costs for resources in the virgin land.