China launches new project on Huaihe River control

East China's Anhui Province on Friday started construction of a floodway to harness the flood-prone Huaihe River, China's third-longest waterway.

The floodway, with a total cost of 5.5 billion yuan (902.6 million US dollars), will be the most heavily invested water conservancy project in the province, said Ji Bing, head of the provincial water resources department.

The project, which stretches from the river section of Bengbu City to Fushan Mountain, a lake resort in Zongyang County, will save nearby residents from being relocated during flood water discharge in the future, according to Ji.

Construction of the project is expected to be completed in 2017.

The 1,000-km-long Huaihe River originates in Henan Province and traverses Hubei, Anhui, Shandong and Jiangsu provinces. Known as the most untamed river in China, it floods every three to four years on average, including 17 intense floods over the past century.

By 2009, Chinese government had earmarked 44.7 billion yuan for 19 Huaihe River control projects. This June, the National Development and Reform Commission and the Ministry of Water Resources jointly released a program to further control the Huaihe River, with plans to invest a total of 37.4 billion yuan in five to 10 years for relevant projects.