Rivers bring livelihood to workers in central China

"It's like a battle every day, especially in winter, when the still river water is prone to pollution as the dam starts catching water for storage," she said.

The number of station workers surged to 24 from 10 in 2010 because of pollution threats from industry as well as government efforts to improve water quality.

In late February, China announced a plan to improve the Yangtze's water quality as part of wider measures to balance economic activity and environmental protection.

China classifies water quality into six levels, ranging from level I, which is suitable for drinking after minimal treatment, to level VI, for water that is severely contaminated.

In the years leading up to 2020, local authorities will work to ensure that more than 75 percent of the water in the Yangtze economic belt meets at least the Level III standard, according to the National Development and Reform Commission, the nation's top economic regulator.

Helping with that goal, tea farmer Zhou Gonghu has taken a seasonal job collecting garbage from the river surface by boat.

Zhou, 54, was among 1.3 million people relocated to make way for construction of the Three Gorges project. Zhou was resettled in the village of Songshuao in 1996, and was later hired by the local government as a garbage collector during flood season from June to October.

His family earns 30,000 to 50,000 yuan per year, including income from tea farming and garbage collection－much better than in the past.