Court rejects residents' lawsuits over water contamination

Citizens load bottles of water at a supermarket in Lanzhou, capital of northwest China's Gansu Province, April 11, 2014. Tap water in downtown Lanzhou has been found to contain excessive levels of benzene, provincial authorities said on Friday. [Photo/Xinhua]

Lanzhou Intermediate People's Court in northwest China has rejected five local residents' lawsuits related to a major water contamination incident in the city last week.

The court on Monday turned down the residents' lawsuit against Veolia Water, a joint Sino-French venture and the sole water supplier for urban Lanzhou, saying that the five residents did not qualify as litigants.

The 55th article of China's civil law states that only institutions and organizations recognized by the state can sue entities that have infringed upon public interest or safety, such as environmental pollution and actions that affect the majority of consumers.

However, Duan Yi, who works for the Guangdong-based Laowei Law Firm, argued that the 55th article should not deprive the five residents of the ability to litigate on the pretext of public interest. The lawyer believes that the residents' interests were directly involved in the water crisis and their demand for individual compensation is reasonable.

Excessive levels of benzene, which were more than ten times higher than national standards, were reported in Lanzhou last Friday morning. Local authorities warned citizens not to drink the tap water for 24 hours, with locals snapping up bottled water in many shops.

Investigators later found crude oil in soil along a duct between two water plants owned by Veolia Water.

The spill was initially believed to have leaked from a pipeline owned by Lanzhou Petrochemical, a subsidiary of China National Petroleum Corporation, the country's largest oil company, according to investigators.

Before Sunday evening, Lanzhou canceled emergency water supply delivery to local residents, as the water in the area was declared safe to consume by authorities.