Eighty percent of water used by Henan comes from the Yellow River. Before the 1980's, water from the Yellow River was basically free, but as the water resources gradually became scarce due to overdrawing and blockages, a supply shortage emerged. In 2000 the National Development and Reform Commission published article 2055, mandating the paid use of the river water for the first time; water for agricultural use was 0.012 yuan per cubic meter, while water for non-agricultural use was 0.046 yuan per cubic meter. The idea of making money from the river was not accepted by the people.

In 2002, the Yellow River Conservation Committee established a water resource management body to supervise all river areas that were being drawn from. Although the Committee had been entrusted with this task, it had been difficult for them to carry out alone.

This is because before 1990, most water gates and locks were constructed, and water drawing volumes allocated, by locals. A dearth of its own measuring equipment and stations made it difficult for the Committee to become involved. As a result, it completely relied on outside parties for this data, and accuracy and impartiality was hard to guarantee.

In a lawsuit filed in 2006, the Henan Yellow River Water Supply Bureau sued Zhengzhou Tap Water Company for 1.25 million yuan in arrears and 1.27 million yuan in overdue fines. The suit claims that since the National Development and Reform Commission published a water price adjustment in 2005, the defendant has refused to pay the required 1.25 million yuan in payments.

After so many years of improper measuring, the end of 2006 finally saw the Yellow River Water Supply Bureau install the first measurement station in Zhengzhou at the Huayuankou Yellow River sluice gate. This journalist saw three water meters that provide water management personnel with round-the-clock data.

As far as the accuracy of the measurements are concerned, director Zhao of the Yellow River Service Bureau says that they personally installed the water meters at the waterworks. The bureau has already deployed dedicated cables to ensure that the power to the meters is constant and cannot be tampered with.

But Wang Hongqian says that if someone does want to tamper with the equipment, it's still possible. "Someone will always find a way," says Wang, director of the Yellow River Water Conservation Committee's Water Supply Bureau.