The water authority in Taicang has stepped up efforts to clean rivers, as well as restore green bank revetments. This year's river clean-up projects involve many areas, including Fuqiao, Huangjing and Liuhe. They aim to restore 198 rivers stretching 185 km long and construct ecological bank revetments with a total length of 28.4 km. The projects are expected to be completed by the end of May to prepare for the flood season.

Dingjing village in Taicang has transformed the Dingjing River from a dirty river with too much silt into a clean river, along with improved flood-control and irrigation abilities.

Zhang Guohong, Party secretary of Dingjing village, said his village has organized about 30 people as a group to keep the river clean. However, several villagers still treat the river as a natural dump, dropping household waste and dead domestic animals into the river. The pollution is a serious problem, and it mainly comes from fertilizers, pesticides and animal droppings. Zhang suggested that towns, villages, the water authority and environmental protection authority shall work together to enhance education for villagers, promote ecological and circulatory agriculture, and strengthen the prevention of water source pollution.