China's Ministry of Water Resources (MWR) said Sunday the country will step up water conservation infrastructure construction to better cope with natural disasters.

The central government has allocated over 80 billion yuan ($11.7 billion) this year for water conservation projects. Total investment in the sector is expected to hit 200 billion yuan, MWR vice minister Jiao Yong said at a work conference Sunday in Hangzhou, capital city of the eastern Zhejiang Province.

Jiao said water conservation facilities in China would be expanded while insuring the quality of the projects.

Meanwhile, repair and maintenance work on reservoirs in poor condition will be boosted this year, said Sun Jichang, a senior MRW official.

China needed to reinforce a total of 6,240 faulty reservoirs in the three years to 2010. So far, only 2,000 of them have been reinforced as insufficient local funding or possible misuse of funds has delayed the work, Sun said.

Local water authorities will be rushed as the Ministry is requiring all reservoir repair work be finished by the end of the year.

(Xinhua News Agency March 28, 2010)