The unhealthy smog that settled over Beijing earlier this year, capturing international media attention, is not the only visible sign of China's rapid economic growth and the resulting environmental hazards.
Countless rivers and lakes have also been contaminated by nearby factories, and sometimes, dumping by local residents.
See China's water pollution >
This March, more than 2,000 dead pigs were found floating in a Shanghai river, a main water source for the city's 23 million residents.
Polluted water sources have been linked to a rise in "cancer villages," or areas where cancer rates are high among people who live along tainted waterways.
Time's Gu Yongqiang contends that China's failure to address environmental problems isn't a product of technical or financial constraints, but rather an overwhelming lack of motivation by authorities.
Mounting public outrage, largely aided by the power of social media, is starting to push officials to take action.
Last week, the state-run China Daily newspaper announced the country's plan to spend $16 billion over the next three years to deal with Beijing's pollution, Reuters reported.
Looking at the current state of China's water systems — some turned bright green by algae blooms or blood red from chemicals — suggests that infusion of cash is only the very start of a massive and much-needed cleanup effort.
Over 2,200 pigs were found dead in a Shanghai river, one of the city's main water sources, in early March.
A boy swims in the algae-filled coastline of Qingdao, Shandong province.
Two illegal chemical plants that were discharging their production waste water into the rain sewer pipes allegedly caused the Jianhe River in Luoyang, Henan province to turn red in December 2011.
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