Work began last February on the eastern trough.

Boosting water levels in the Danjiakou reservoir to reach the central provinces of Hubei and Henan will require the relocation of some 300,000 people, Xinhua reported on its website.

It was previously expected that 320,000 people would be relocated for the entire massive project, which includes a westward trench that has yet to be started, Xinhua said.

Only 30,000 of the 150,000 Hubei residents to be displaced will remain within their home district, with the rest being sent elsewhere so as to preserve the quality of water in the reservoir designated to feed Beijing and Tianjin 1,000 kilometers (600 miles) north.

It has also become clear the 50-billion-dollar diversion enterprise was far more complicated than initially expected and could take up to 50 years to complete, Xinhua said.

Earlier this year, a project to divert water from the Yellow River to Beijing was abandoned over the poor quality of the highly polluted water.

TERRA.WIRE