Tail water wetlands at the sewage treatment plant in Huangyuan county, Xining on June 19, 2019. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

Banning livestock breeding

Livestock and poultry breeding is an important industry in Huzhu Tu autonomous county in Haidong city, and dozens of livestock and poultry farms are based near the Huangshui River — a tributary of the Yellow River, known as the "mother river" of Qinghai.

To reduce water pollution, local authorities banned all breeding activities within 400 meters of the Shatangchuan River (a tributary of the Huangshui River) in 2017. A total of 32 farms were relocated to places far from the water source, according to Kong Xiaoyu, a deputy to the National People's Congress.

"Water quality of the river improved significantly after the rectification," she said.