中国南水北调官方网站公布，南水北调北京段应急调水已开始，第一批河北水源正在奔向北京，预计9月下旬正式到京。目前，北京已做好迎接南水北调京石段应急水源准备，并将出台河北应急来水的水量配置计划，主要保证城市生活用水。

请看新华社的报道：

According to the South-to-North water diversion office, when part of the project is completed in 2010, about 1 billion cubic meters of water will be diverted to Beijing annually.

据南水北调办公室称，到2010年该工程部分项目完工时，每年将会有大约十亿立方米的水源输往北京。

上述报道中，South-to-North water diversion 就是“南水北调”的英文表达，South-to-North Water Diversion Project 是“南水北调工程”，The South-to-North Water Diversion Project, consisting of eastern, middle and western routes, is designed to divert water from the water-rich south of the country, mainly the Yangtze River, the country's longest, to the dry north.（南水北调工程包括东线、中线、西线三条调水线路，主要从水资源丰富的长江流域往干旱的北方地区输送水源）。