Introduction Development and population growth have adverse effects on the environment, and thus they are the major causes of water contamination in China. Water is essential for human livelihood and a basic requirement for industrial and economic growth. However, with the government focusing on economic growth, little attention is given to water conservation, thus leading to increased pollution in the country. High population density implies escalated domestic effluents, which need high mass treatment plants, as illustrated in figure 1. However, if the treatment plants are mismanaged, there is a high risk of water contamination in the country. Industries must adhere to the set of government policies in order to reduce water and environmental pollution. However, little has been done in ensuring that the policies are followed. Figure1: Increase in population causing an increase in the contamination of water in China (Hu, Tan & Lazareva, 2014) Contamination of water in China The high population density in urban areas and intense industrial activities pose great challenges to the environment. China is rated as the fastest growing economy in the world, and it has numerous industries that create numerous employment opportunities (Zheng & Kahn, 2013). China has a low water supply with regard to its population density, and thus people are forced to share the available amount with the industries. Hence, there is a challenge in water conservation and wastewater management issues. The three major causes of water contamination in China include industrial and agricultural pollution among other human activities. China has a high population density of industries and the majority of them are located in major cities across the country. Most industries use large volumes of water in their operations and they end up emitting wastes into the environment, as illustrated in figure 2. Figure2. Contaminated water trench in an industrialized area (Ivanova, 2013) China has the highest number of coal power plants in the world. The high population of people exerts intense pressure on the available electrical energy, which forces the country to produce energy from coal because it is cheap and capable of meeting the demand. However, coal energy production has adverse effects on the environment whereby there is the usage of huge volumes of water for cooling the plants and high volumes of carbon gases emitted into the air, thus causing pollution. In addition, the emitted water contains carbon, and thus it is not safe for animal and human use (Liangliang, Chen & Ping, 2014). Water contamination is active in the atmosphere. In this case, polluted air contaminates water while in its cycle process. The Chinese cities have the most polluted air in the world as evidenced by the smog in the atmosphere, which often hinders visibility. This aspect comes from air pollution and industries contribute the highest pollutant elements in the atmosphere. The dense population of industries in the cities causes a high risk of air pollution due to the high mass of air pollutant concentration in a small area. This aspect often causes the atmospheric air circulation to take a long time to clear off the polluted gases in the air. Consequently, the air becomes