A worker takes samples for testing at a water plant in Beijing. A survey has found that more than 75 percent of Chinese urban residents are willing to pay more for safer water. GAN NAN/CHINA DAILY

There is growing public concern over the quality of water in China, with more than 75 percent of urban residents now saying they are willing to pay more for safe water, according to a report published on Monday.

The Value of Water Index, conducted by US-based Xylem Inc, a global water technology provider, and Beijing-headquartered E20 Environment Platform, shows that 96 percent of urban Chinese believe the country faces serious water supply issues.

The biggest concerns are pollution, industrial discharge and overconsumption.

A report released by the Ministry of Environmental Protection revealed the majority of China's groundwater is polluted, Xinhua reported.

The ministry described the water quality in an estimated 60 percent of the 4,778 groundwater monitoring sites across the country as "bad" or "very bad" in the report, a further indication of China's deepening water woes.

"The Value of Water Index survey tells us that China's consumers, industrial associations and companies are all willing to help improve the water conditions; but it also shows they think the country lacks a coordinated mechanism to allow governments, water industry companies and end users to work together to solve the problems," said Lyu Shuping, president of Xylem China.

The reports suggested that residents would accept higher water charges if they were needed to pay for more advanced clean water technology and services.

Fu Tao, director of the Environmental Protection Industry Research Center at Tsinghua University, said there were no technological obstacles in the way of providing a clean drinking water supply in Beijing. At present, residential water charges in the capital are around 4 yuan ($0.65) per metric ton.

"A total investment of 10 billion yuan would be enough for upgrading the water infrastructure to provide safe drinking water in Beijing, which means a monthly water price rise of about 10 yuan to 15 yuan for each family," Fu said.

The government plans to spend 2 trillion yuan to address water supply challenges, specifically improving water quality through the upgrade of infrastructure and technology. The government will also encourage private investment in future water treatment projects.

Dai Weizhao, senior partner at E20 Environment Platform, said that improving drinking water quality is an urgent task for the country.

"The government's welcoming of more private companies will help maximize the effect of that 2 trillion yuan investment," he said.

Liu Wenjun, a professor with the School of Environment at Tsinghua University, warned, however, that many local governments do not provide accurate data on water quality.

Wang Zhansheng, an expert with Tsinghua University, said the consumers also now spent a lot more on bottled water, which leads to higher production and environmental costs.