The Taihu

 

  • is located in the Yangtze Delta (Jiangsu province) close to Shanghai
  • is the third-largest freshwater lake of China (2,200 km2, 2 m average depth)
  • represents a drastic example of water pollution with nutrients (nitrogen, phosphate), organic contaminants and heavy metals
  • has suffered from eutrophication and algal blooms since the late 1980s
  • has insufficient raw water quality which threatens the drinking water supply

The Taihu region is one of the most economically prospering regions of China. Furthermore, it belongs to the focus regions of the currently running Chinese National Major Science and Technology Program for Water Pollution Control and Treatment demonstrating its high political importance.

Taihu_NASA
Picture Credit: Jeff Schmaltz, MODIS Rapid Response Team, NASA/GSFC