Negligence blamed for pollution of river

City government failed to ensure that rectification plans were carried out

China's top environmental watchdog severely criticized the bureaucracy and officials in Qujing, Yunnan province, on Wednesday for failing to correct problems involving the disposal of heavy metal waste that polluted the Pearl River upstream.

The first round of environmental inspections nationwide in 2016 found some 328,000 metric tons of industrial heavy metals had been improperly handled in Qujing.