BEIJING — China will finish screening outfalls in seven major river and lake basins and water near the coastline for problems by the end of 2025, Vice-Minister of Ecology and Environment Qiu Qiwen said on April 2.

Treatment of outfalls in the seven basins including Yangtze River, Yellow River and Taihu Lake will also be basically completed by then, Qiu told a press briefing.

The announcement followed an earlier State Council guideline on tightening oversight and regulation on outfalls.

Since 2019, the country has successively launched screening and treatment of outfalls in the Yangtze River, Bohai Sea and Yellow River, and obtained a more accurate tally.

China will carry out differentiated treatment of the outfalls, removing, combining or rectifying problematic ones based on their types, said Qiu.