China figures out how to wash a car with 0.3 liter of water

Link : http://uk.news.yahoo.com/041006/323/f3zup.html

BEIJING (AFP) - China has developed a method to wash an entire car with just 0.3 liter of water, apparently aimed at solving the problem of an economy that combines booming auto sales with severe water shortage, state media said.

The new method, which uses about 1,000 times less water than the traditional bucket-and-broom procedure, requires the car to be only slightly moisturized and then sprayed with a cleaning solution, the Xinhua news agency said.

At 12 yuan (1.5 dollars), the "waterless" service is a bit more expensive than the standard 10-yuan car-washing charge, but more worryingly some car owners fear it may harm their car polish in the long run, the agency reported.

The new service has so far been introduced in the southern city of Guangzhou, where it is strongly encouraged by the Municipal Water-Saving Office.

But officials also caution that the longer-term effects on the environment of the solution -- not described in detail by Xinhua -- must be monitored carefully.

Car numbers are growing while water levels are sinking throughout China, facing policy makers with yet another headache.

The National Bureau of Statistics expects automobile production to reach 2.39 million units this year, marking a growth rate of 18 percent from 2003.

At the same time, China expects water shortages to go on worsening all the way until 2030, when the population peaks at 1.6 million.