BEIJING — China’s capital Beijing is constructing separate pipelines for sewage and rain to improve water quality, according to Beijing Evening News on Aug 6.

The Beijing Municipal Commission of Development and Reform has approved three projects to separate rain and wastewater by upgrading current pipelines, said the newspaper. The projects will take place in Pinggu, Daxing, and Fangshan districts.

The current pipelines drain both rain and wastewater together into the city’s water treatment facilities. This often causes flooding during the rainy season, as well as polluted rivers caused by untreated water.

In 2017, Beijing issued a plan to improve its sewage and drainage systems. The city is scheduled to upgrade 409 km of drainage pipelines and build 1,094 km of sewage collection pipelines within two years, said the newspaper.

So far, Beijing has completed more than 900 km of new sewage pipelines.

The projects will remarkably improve the city’s sewage disposal efficiency and save money in the long-run, said the newspaper.