Water appears to be black near a water-gate in an irrigation area of Xiaoshan district in the city of Hangzhou, east China's Zhejiang province, on April 6, 2015. [Photo: weibo.com]

A government official in Haining, east China's Zhejiang province, has become vocal about what believes is water contamination originating from neighboring Hangzhou.

Jin Zhongyi, an official with Haining's Justice Bureau and Weibo activist, posted pictures of black water flowing into the Qiantang River, which is an important water source for the region, on his verified Sina Weibo account.

The official pointed out that many chemical factories sit on the banks of the river as it passes through Hangzhou's Xiaoshan district. Jin alleges that some of these chemical plants might be secretly emitting pollutants into the river.

He added that, since the area where the alleged contamination originated from is not residential, it would not be monitored closely.

A reporter with the China News Service went to verify Jin's allegations on April 7. However, the color of the water in the area was not as black as it was seen in the pictures taken by Jin Zhongyi; this was credited to lasting rains and the tide at that time. Nonetheless, the color of the river water at the area in question was a little bit darker than the waters some hundred meters away.

"The reason why the water appeared to be black [in Jin Zhongyi's photos] may be that the mud stocked near the water-gate was flushed up when the water-gates were all open to relieve the flood," said Chen Jun, an official with the irrigation area's management committee.

Another committee member, who was not named, said fish and shrimp were nearly extinct near the water-gate.

Chen Jun said that sewage lines are directly connected to a water disposal factory some 10 kilometres away from the area where Jin had taken the pictures, adding that evidence of illicit dumping has yet to be reported.

Local environmental protection authorities say further investigations are needed to determine what caused the water to turn black in Jin Zhongyi's photos.

Jin said he will take to Weibo to organize a tour of the spot to take photos and "expose" the situation to a wider audience.