Taipei  - Taiwan plans to allow one of its offshore islands to buy water from China to cope with a local water shortage, press reports said Tuesday.

The Economic Ministry's Water Resources Agency will form a special taskforce next week to study the feasibility of allowing Kinmen, a Taiwan-held islet 3 kilometres off China's south-east coast, to buy water from China's Fujian Province, the Liberty Times and Central News Agency (CNA) reported.

Chen Shen-hsien, head of the agency, made the promise while meeting with Kinmen County Commissioner Lee Chu-feng on the issue during a visit over the weekend to Kinmen to discuss Kinmen's request to buy water from China.

Lee urged the Taiwan government to give Kinmen the green light to import water from China's Fujian Province.

Taiwan, split from China since the end of the Chinese Civil War in 1949, has allowed indirect trade with China since the 1980s but still bans direct trade with China. Buying water - considered a strategic commodity - from China is a sensitive issue.

Kinmen, an island with some 50,000 residents plus some 50,000 troops, has long been troubled by water shortages and poor water quality in its reservoirs, as the island's groundwater has been over- exploited, the Liberty Times and CNA said.

Lee said that if Kinmen can buy water from China for irrigation and drinking, it will help improve Taiwan-China ties and prevent overconsumption of Kinmen's groundwater.

Since the 1990s, Kinmen and its nearby islet Matsu have been considering several options to solve their water shortages. Possible solutions include using tankers to ship water from Taiwan proper to Kinmen and Matsu, building desalination plants and buying water from China.

China, to win the hearts of Taiwan people, offered to supply water to Kinmen and Matsu.

China's official Xinhua News Agency quoted Ye Yinghui, manager of the Xiamen Tap Water Co, as saying that Xiamen was reiterating its offer to supply water to Kinmen.

Ye said that a pipeline could be laid between Xiamen and Kinmen, and that supplying 1,000 tons of water daily to Kinmen presented no problem for Xiamen. (dpa)