• China wants to build a 1,000-kilometer water pipeline from Lake Baikal to Lanzhou.

China wants to build a 1,000-kilometer water pipeline from Lake Baikal to Lanzhou. (Photo : Getty Images)

The pipeline aims to solve the water crisis in China, especially in Beijing. The lack of water supply has worsened because of urbanization, overuse, wastage and pollution.

The water source will be the deepest freshwater lake in the world, Lake Baikal. The pipeline will run from Russia and through Mongolia and create the Lanzhou water diversion.

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The most populous country in the world is desperately in need of fresh water. Only 7 percent of the country enjoys a fresh water source.

Li Luoli, vice president of the China Society of Economic Reform, said, "Once the technical issues are resolved, diplomats should sit down and talk to each other about how each party would benefit from such international cooperation."

"The government should attach great importance to water resources of which there is a severe scarcity and for which there are no alternatives," he added.

The pipeline will be especially beneficial to Lanzhou which experienced only 380 millimeters of rain last year.

Stepan Svartsev, an academic from Tomsk State University, said, "Water is the same resource as oil, gas, gold, and sooner or later we will start to sell it."

He added, "Our country has very large reserves and certain volumes could be sold."

Skepticism came from an expert who said, "Technology is not a problem. Diplomatic negotiations will depend on the local government."

Apart from convincing other countries to participate in the project, experts also question the cooperation of the local governments involved.

The lake is also deemed polluted and is rapidly drying up. A report was released in 2015 that revealed that rotten algae are covering the shores of the lake.

The algae manifest that the water is impure and might not be good for human consumption. The algae are called Spirogyra and are not a natural part of the lake's ecosystem. Spirogyra thrives in ecosystems that are full of waste from sewage facilities.