Beijing is using micro sewage treatment system to ensure clean water in the artificial Olympic rowing and canoeing lake, Zhang Xiangdong, vice director of the Shunyi Management Committe of Olympic Venues, said on Thursday.

"The system can treat 72,000 cubic meters per day, and it takes 35 to 40 days to treat all the water," Zhang told a news briefing at the Main Press Center.

He dismissed concerns that the Shunyi Olympic Rowing-Canoeing Park would have difficulty in getting water supplies after the Games because of the dry weather in Beijing.

"There is plenty of water in the nearby Chaobai River, so the supply won't be a problem," said the official. "With the sewage treatment in place, we only need to empty the lake to fill it with fresh water two to three times a year."

Zhang noted that the water quality and water level in the park had met the standards of the International Olympic Committee for the racing which will start on August 9 and end on August 23.

The barrier-free passages and toilets were built in the venue to meet the demand of the Paralympics in September, he added.

Zhang added that the venue would be turned into the largest aquatic sports and recreation resort in northeast Bejing after the Games to help residents get more taste of the Olympic legacy.

The Shunyi Olympic Rowing-Canoeing Park, which has 1,200 permanent and 25,800 temporary seats, will also host the first Olympic marathon swimming event on August 20 and 21. Construction on the venue started in the first half of 2005 and finished in late July 2007.

"It's the first time for Beijing to hold marathon swimming event since the founding of the People's Republic of China in 1949, so it's of high historic significance for us," Xin Qunying, the venue's deputy director, told reporters.

(Xinhua News Agency August 7, 2008)