iAfrica.com: The factory of the world is choking

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The factory of the world is choking
Martin Parry
Wed, 17 Aug 2005
China, the factory of the world, is slowly being choked by the pollution brought on by its unrelenting economic transformation and the government is starting to realise it needs to do something about it.

Environmentalists describe the situation as extremely serious, but they say a window of opportunity still exists to reverse a worsening trend.

"The government is not just sitting idle but it is also clear they are not doing enough to cope with the current crisis," said Greenpeace China spokesperson Szeping Lo.

"There are reasons to be worried. It's all about whether the central government has the political will and executive power to implement its policies."

Parts of the Chinese apparatus acknowledge the problems that exist, although many provincial and local level governments continue to turn a blind eye to the environmental costs of development.

Acid rain falling more often

According to the State Environmental Protection Administration (SEPA), acid rain fell more often and on more cities last year, affecting 298 urban areas � more than half of all the cities monitored.

Most of China's large waterways � including its seven biggest rivers and 25 out of its 27 major lakes � were polluted, some seriously, it said.

Urban pollution is another fast-growing problem, as statistics show only one third of the sewage and about 57 percent of the garbage generated in cities is being treated.

Coal is the worst culprit. It is used to fire 80 percent of China's power stations which fuel the economic drive, but such a heavy polluting resource is damaging the environment and harming its people.

Pollution causing hundreds of thousands of deaths each year

The World Bank estimates 400�000 people in China die each year from air pollution-related illnesses, mainly lung and heart diseases. It says direct damage costs China an annual eight to 12 percent of its $1.4-trillion GDP.

The capital Beijing is one of the worst affected cities and is regularly engulfed in a thick gritty haze.

The conditions forced experts last week to warn the pea-soup smog could cause headaches and dizziness and even breathing difficulties and asthma attacks � all this just three years before it hosts the Olympics.

But after years of blind economic development, China is gradually waking up to the environmental costs, and is trying to do something about it as pressure builds from its citizens.

"China's urbanization process is now at a crucial juncture," admits Yang Weimin, director of the Development and Planning Department under the National Development and Reform Commission (NPRC), the country's top policy regulator.

"If the process continues in an unsustainable manner, it would result in serious consequences," he was cited as saying recently by Xinhua news agency.

Clean energy needed

Authorities are currently focusing efforts on developing clean energy by using wind and solar sources to generate power.

China's need for clean, non-fossil fuel based energy is also expected to make it the largest constructor of nuclear power plants in the coming decades.

Greenpeace's Szeping applauded the steps but urged still more.

"Right now we are facing a very serious situation and the government needs to take this opportunity," he said.

Need to act now

"It needs to invest hugely into the renewable energy sector. There is still far too much being invested in coal. The picture now is bad enough, we can't afford to wait another ten years to realise this."

China's citizens are also growing more environmentally aware with an official survey last month of four million people in 31 provinces and regions showing water and air quality were key concerns.

An overwhelming 98 percent were in favour of levying special taxes to help boost environmental protection and nearly three-quarters said legislation must be tightened to make sure environment protection laws are obeyed.

The results will be used by the government in the drafting of its next national five-year plan on environmental policies.

AFP