The China Environment Yearbook, Volume 3 : Crises and Opportunities [1 ed.] 9789047426950, 9789004173491

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The China Environment Yearbook, Volume 3

The Chinese Academy of Social Sciences Yearbooks: Environment International Advisory Board

Judith Shapiro, American University Guobin Yang, Barnard College

Volume 3

BEIJING 2009

The China Environment Yearbook, Volume 3 Crises and Opportunities

Edited by

Yang Dongping Friends of Nature

LEIDEN • BOSTON 2009

This yearbook is the result of a co-publication agreement between Social Sciences Academic Press and Koninklijke Brill NV. These articles were translated into English from the original《环境绿皮书: 中国环境的危机与转机 (2008)》Huanjing lü pi shu: Zhongguo huanjing de weiji yu zhuanji (2008) with financial support from China Book International, supported by the General Administration of Press and Publication and the Information Office of the State Council of China. This book is printed on acid-free paper.

ISSN 1872-7212 ISBN 978 90 04 17349 1 Copyright 2009 by Koninklijke Brill NV, Leiden, The Netherlands, and by Social Sciences Academic Press, Beijing, China. Koninklijke Brill NV incorporates the imprints Brill, Hotei Publishing, IDC Publishers, Martinus Nijhoff Publishers and VSP. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, translated, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without prior written permission from the publisher. Authorization to photocopy items for internal or personal use is granted by Koninklijke Brill NV provided that the appropriate fees are paid directly to The Copyright Clearance Center, 222 Rosewood Drive, Suite 910, Danvers, MA 01923, USA. Fees are subject to change. printed in the netherlands

CONTENTS List of Figures and Tables ...........................................................

ix

Preface and Acknowledgements ..................................................

xiii

Contributors ................................................................................. xvii Introduction ................................................................................. Guobin Yang

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VOLUME OVERVIEW China’s Long Green March: Crises and Opportunities ............. Hu Kanping and Yang Dongping

3

PART I

WATER CRISIS Blue-Green Algae Bloom in Taihu Lake: Reflections on Pollution and Development ..................................................... Zhang Ke

39

Water Crisis in Chinese Cities in 2007 ....................................... Jiang Mingzhuo

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A Health Checkup on the Ecology of the Yangtze River ......... Wang Yongchen

63

PART II

CLIMATE CHANGE The Impact of Climate Change on China ................................ Liu Haiying

81

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Climate Change and Extreme Weather Events in China in 2007 ..................................................................................... Huang Lei

99

China and Climate Change from the Perspective of International Civil Society ....................................................... 113 Fu Tao Climate Change and Chinese Youth’s Attitudes towards Consumption ............................................................................ 125 Zhang Kejia

PART III

URBAN ENVIRONMENT Green Olympics and Environmental Improvements in Beijing ...................................................................................... 137 Li Jiao How Far is Beijing from Being an Eco-city? .............................. 153 Feng Yongfeng Progress in Energy Conservation and Emissions Reduction ...... 167 Zhao Wengeng Green Commuting and Public Participation .............................. 181 Kang Xue

PART IV

PUBLIC POLICY AND PUBLIC PARTICIPATION Progress and Problems in China’s Construction of an Environmental Legal System ................................................... 195 Xu Kezhu, Song Wanzhong and Zhu Fen

contents

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Green Credit Policy in China ..................................................... 211 Yu Xiaogang .

Challenges for Strategic Environmental Impact Assessments .... 223 Qie Jianrong Reflections on Environmental Mass Incidents in China ............ 235 Tong Zhifeng

PART V

APPENDIX Annual Indexes: Environmental Trends ..................................... 251 Terminological Glossary .............................................................. 271 Index ............................................................................................ 277

LIST OF FIGURES AND TABLES Figures Figure 4.1: Figure 4.2: Figure 4.3: Figure 4.4: Figure 11.1: Figure A.1: Figure A.2: Figure A.3: Figure A.4: Figure A.5: Figure A.6: Figure A.7: Figure A.8: Figure A.9: Figure A.10: Figure A.11: Figure A.12: Figure A.13: Figure Figure Figure Figure

A.14: A.15: A.16: A.17:

Ratio of deaths caused by major natural disasters .................................................................. Ratio of natural disasters that affected crops ....... Ratio of economic damage caused by natural disasters .................................................................. Sea level changes from 2004 to 2006 ................... Sticker for “Drive one day less every month” campaign ................................................................ Industrial dust emissions, 2004–2006 ................... Total dust emissions, 2004–2006 .......................... Total SO2 emissions, 2004–2006 and 11th Five-Year Plan target ............................................. Total wastewater discharge, 2004–2006 ............... National wastewater treatment, 2004–2006 ......... National ammonia nitrogen discharge in wastewater, 2004–2006 .......................................... Total Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD) discharge in wastewater, 2004–2006 ..................... Water quality in seven major river basins in 2006 ....................................................................... Water quality of 27 key state-monitored lakes (reservoirs), 2005–2006 .......................................... Water quality of coastal areas in 2006 ................. Industrial solid waste generation, utilization, and discharge 2004–2006 ...................................... Total energy consumption, 2004–2006 and 11th Five-Year Plan target ............................................. National energy consumption per unit of GDP 2005–2006 ............................................................. Energy consumption per unit of GDP ................. CO2 emissions of selected countries ..................... Investment in pollution control, 2004–2006 ......... Urban air quality, 2004–2006 ...............................

89 89 89 92 183 251 252 253 254 254 255 256 257 258 260 260 261 262 263 264 266 267

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list of figures and tables

Figure A.18: Air quality of major Chinese cities in 2005 ......... 268 Figure A.19: Number of days Beijing met air quality standards, 1998–2006 ............................................ 269 Figure A.20: SO2 content of the air in Beijing, 2000–2006 ..... 270 Tables Table 8.1: “Blue Sky Days” of Beijing from 1998 to 2007 .... Table 10.1: Results of SEPA’s environmental inspection in July 2007 ................................................................ Table 13.1: Summary of environmentally related conflicts since mid-1990s ...................................................... Table A.1: Industrial and household dust and soot emissions, 2004–2006 .............................................................. Table A.2: Total SO2 emissions and Five-Year Plan target ...................................................................... Table A.3: Total wastewater discharge, 2004–2006 ................ Table A.4: National wastewater treatment, 2004–2006 .......... Table A.5: National ammonia nitrogen discharge in wastewater, 2004–2006 .......................................... Table A.6: National Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD) discharge in wastewater, 2004–2006, and the 11th Five-Year Plan target ..................................... Table A.7: Water quality in seven major river basins in 2006 ........................................................................ Table A.8: Water quality of 27 key state-monitored lakes (reservoirs), 2005–2006 .......................................... Table A.9: Water quality of nine large lakes, 2005–2006 ...... Table A.10: Water quality of coastal areas in 2006 ................. Table A.11: Industrial solid waste generation, utilization, and discharge of 2004–2006 ................................. Table A.12: Energy consumption, 2004–2006 and 11th Five-Year Plan target ............................................. Table A.13: National energy consumption per unit of GDP 2005–2006 .............................................................. Table A.14: Energy consumption per unit of GDP ................. Table A.15: Energy consumption of seven industries during the Tenth Five-Year Plan period ........................... Table A.16: CO2 emissions of selected countries .....................

142 205 237 252 252 253 255 255 256 257 258 258 259 261 262 262 263 263 264

list of figures and tables

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Table A.17: Investment in pollution control, 2004–2006 ......... 265 Table A.18: Urban air quality, 2004–2006 ............................... 266 Table A.19: Air quality of major Chinese cities in 2005 ......... 268

PREFACE AND ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS The Institute of Green Culture (also known as Friends of Nature 自然之友) has published three annual Green Books of China’s Environment《环境绿 皮书》, the first appearing in 2006. The first two volumes were labeled according to the year that was the subject of each “Green Book,” thus the volumes published in 2006 and 2007 in Chinese were titled as the 2005 and 2006 volumes. Beginning with the third volume of the Chinese version, the “Green Books” are labeled according to the year of publication rather than the year on which the articles are focused. Thus the third Chinese volume, which was published in March 2008 featuring research on 2007 events is the 2008 “Green Book” in Chinese. The English translation of the first “Green Book” was published in 2007 and entitled The China Environment Yearbook (2005). When the numbering system was changed for the Chinese version of the yearbooks, Brill and Social Sciences Academic Press (the publishing wing of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences) decided to title the English versions according to volume number to avoid confusion that may result over a missing “2007” volume. Thus the “2006 Green Book” becomes The China Environment Yearbook, Volume 2 in its English version, and the “2008 Green Book” becomes Volume 3. In each China Environment Yearbook, containing articles translated from each original “Green Book,” Friends of Nature observes and records critical events about China’s environment from the viewpoint of ordinary people, providing a perspective different from that of the government or academicians. These yearbooks offer civil society’s view on China’s historical transition to sustainable development, helping everyone understand the challenges, experiences, and lessons learned in working to protect the environment. The China Environment Yearbook, Volume 2 was praised for its creativity and unique perspective. This was both an inspiration and a challenge to our work. Like last year, the contributors to this volume are environmentalists, scholars, NGO leaders, and journalists who are at the forefront of environmental protection in China. All of the articles are especially written for this yearbook. They embody a deep concern for the environment, and a great deal of time and effort. Like last year, we provide an annual index that provides an overall picture of the environmental situation through useful tables and charts, this time regarding events occurring in 2007.

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We are grateful to our readers for the successful publication of the yearbook. They have offered many valuable opinions on the format and organization of the chapters. Their warm response inspired us to work harder and better. For the 2008 “Green Book” our thanks go to the people who provided data, including Li Dihua, Liu Jia, Liu Xiao’e, Liu Feng, Zhong Qiao, Li Ang, Liu Yongming, Cheng Xiaochun, and Liang Huan. They gave unreserved support to this project without considering personal gains as they deeply trust Friends of Nature and share the goal of protecting the environment. We would also like to thank Social Science Academic Press, the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, Brill, and all the colleagues of Friends of Nature for their selfless effort for the publication of the Chinese edition of this yearbook. In 2007, the English edition of the yearbook, The China Environment Yearbook (2005), was published and distributed by the prestigious academic press Brill, based in Holland. As a result, the influence of the “Green Books” has reached overseas. This would have been impossible without the hard work of many volunteer translators and polishers organized by Wang Lili, Zhai Zheng, Liang Hong, and Dr. Titus Levi. The English edition of The China Environment Yearbook, Volume 3 involved a great deal of translation and editing. The first draft of the translation was completed by a team of volunteers, most of whom are students from Beijing Foreign Studies University. Some of the translators participated in the work of the previous two environment yearbooks. The translators of the first draft include Bao Min, Cai Jindong, Chai Liang, Chen Ji, Chen Yingjie, Cheng Guichao, Feng Jiemin, Gao Qing, Guo Lei, Guo Song, Hao Mina, He Chao, He Rong, Hu Yi, Huang Shan, Jiang Xiaobo, Jiang Wanzhu, Kang Qianqian, Li Wenxuan, Liang Ke, Lin Yun, Liu Chuan, Liu Hongli, Liu Li, Liu Qiongge, Lu Dandan, Lu Jing, Ma Yanling, Mo Lingyi, Niu Xiaoming, Pang Xingyu, Pei Wei, Pu Yao, Tan Shenglan, Wang Fang, Wang Qian, Wang Yan, Wang Yinshan, Wang Yuanming, Wang Zhaoxia, Xia Meifang, Xie Hui, Xu Huanhuan, Xu Jin, Xu Xiao, Yang Xiaoli, Yang Xiaoyi, Ye Nan, Yu Jingjing, Zhai Lifang, Zhang Baoqin, Zhang Jing, Zhang Shufang, Zheng Yibing, and Zhou Weiwei. The draft was then revised by Chinese and foreign teachers. Their work greatly improved the quality of the translation. They are Dai Ning, Dou Wei, Jia Ning, Ke Ke’er, Liang Hao, Liang Hong, Qiu Feng, Qiu Jin, Song Ying, Wang Lili, William White, Zhai Zheng, Zhang Baiqing, Zhang Chunbo, Zhang Xiaoying, and Zhou Dujuan. Chad Futrell served as the final translator and polisher, providing “translator’s notes” which contextualize events and organizations within the larger processes

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affecting China’s environment. Chad also prepared the index and a glossary with translations of important concepts, laws, and organization names. While polishing the final draft, he clarified certain points but worked to preserve the authors’ distinctive voices. We are deeply grateful to all those involved in the translation, revision, and polishing of this yearbook. Without their hard work, the publication of the The China Environment Yearbook, Volume 3 would have been impossible. We are honored that Judith Shapiro and Guobin Yang have continued to serve on the International Advisory Board for the English edition of The China Environment Yearbook. We are grateful for their own work on China’s environment as well as giving their time and energy towards making the work of on-the-ground Chinese scholars, journalists, and NGOs more accessible to English-reading audiences. Our special thanks go to Delta Environmental and Educational Foundation for their generous support which makes the publication of the Chinese editions of these yearbooks possible. Finally we also want to thank all the people and organizations who have shown great concern for the environment yearbook. We are looking forward to receiving your comments and suggestions. At the same time, we hope you will get more actively involved in environmental protection, a cause belonging to every citizen who loves nature and cherishes his/her responsibility to protect the environment. The Green Book Project, Friends of Nature October, 2008 A Brief Introduction to Friends of Nature Established on March 31, 1994 Friends of Nature (FON) is the first officially registered environmental non-governmental organization (NGO) in China. The four founding members are Liang Congjie, Yang Dongping, Liang Xiaoyan and Wang Lixiong. Liang Congjie serves as its president. His is also a member of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) and a professor with the Institute of Green Culture of the International Academy of Chinese Culture. The Vice President, Yang Dongping, is a professor of education from Beijing Institute of Technology (BIT), which sets as its mission the diffusion of green culture and promotion of sustainable development. As an NGO, Friends of Nature complies with Chinese laws and plays a role in supervising the implementation of governmental policies. Over the past decade more than 8000 people have joined FON; currently

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FON has 3000 active members and 30 university student body groups. FON has won 15 national and international awards including the Asian Environmental Award, the Earth Award, the Giant Panda Award and the Ramon Magsaysay Award (one of the leading humanitarian awards granted in Asia). Chapters of FON have been established in Nanjing, Guangdong, Shenzhen and other major cities. More than ten new environmental NGOs have been set up by FON members. Friends of Nature has made great contributions to environmental conservation and has become an influential NGO in China. For more information, please visit our website at www.fon.org.cn. Be a volunteer for Friends of Nature Mere criticism and complaints cannot solve all problems. To make lasting change, we must take action. If you want to be a volunteer involved in activities organized by Friends of Nature, please write to [email protected]. Become a member of Friends of Nature Friends of Nature needs your help and participation. Please join us. The more members we have the more environmental work we can do. Please contact us at [email protected]. Donate to Friends of Nature Our various programs for environmental protection need financial support. Your donations to Friends of Nature will be highly appreciated. If you would like to make a donation, please contact [email protected]. Contact Friends of Nature Address: No. 53 Ganyu Street, Room 368 East District Beijing, China 100009 Tel: 0086-10-6523 2040/6512 0929/6512 0827/6512 0937 Fax: 0086-10-6528 6069 Email: [email protected] Website: www.fon.org.cn

CONTRIBUTORS Throughout this volume, Chinese names are always ordered according to standard practice in China, with surnames preceding given names. To clarify this ordering, surnames are in small capital letters in the following list of contributors. Feng Yongfeng, a member of Friends of Nature and a journalist with Guanming Daily. He has been concerned with China’s environmental protection for a long time and published a great number of articles on environmental protection. He co-launched the Nature Open University. Fu Tao, Editor-in-chief of China Development Brief. He has published many reports and articles about non-governmental organizations in China and abroad. Chad W. Futrell, is a Ph.D. candidate at Cornell University. He has previously worked in Beijing as a volunteer for Friends of Nature while writing his doctoral dissertation on international cooperation in environmental protection. Futrell studied Korean language and the environmental movement in South Korea and participated in the Inter-University Exchange Program between Cornell and Tsinghua University. Hu Kanping served as director of the editorial board of China Green Times, and editor-in-chief of Chinese Forestry magazine. Currently he is deputy editor-in-chief of Environmental Protection magazine published by the Ministry of Environmental Protection. As one of the oldest members of Friends of Nature, Hu is one of the first to show concern for environmental protection in China. He is a council member of Xinjiang Conservation Fund (XCF). Huang Lei holds a Ph.D. in Natural Science and an analyst in the Climate Change Office of the National Climate Center, working in the field of extreme weather and climate change. He is involved in several research projects financed by the State level funds.

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Jiang Mingzhuo is a journalist with China Newsweek. Over the years she has been concerned with China’s environmental and social issues. Kang Xue is a council member of Friends of Nature and a journalist with Radio Beijing Corporation. She has launched many activities on environmental protection. Li Jiao is a volunteer of Friends of Nature and a winner of the 2007 Faculty Award by the Chinese Academy of Science. Liu Haiying is a Ph.D. candidate of Renming University of China. Qie Jianrong is a senior journalist with Legal Daily on environmental issues, awarded one of the Best Journalists Reporting Environmental Issues for three consecutive years granted by Friends of Nature. Judith Shapiro is the Director of Global Environmental Politics programs at American University’s School of International Service in Washington, D.C. She has published extensively on modern and contemporary China, including Mao’s War against Nature (Cambridge, 2001), an account of China’s political campaigns to conquer the natural world. Song Wanzhong is a graduate student of the Department of Environmental Laws of China University of Political Science and Law. Tong Zhifeng is a Ph.D. candidate in sociology at Renmin University of China. He is also a lecturer with the Department of Social Work at Zhejiang University of Finance and Economics. The focus of his research is environmental pollution and environmental accidents. Wang Yongchen is a journalist with China National Radio. She is founder and head of Green Earth Volunteers, an NGO dedicated to environmental protection. She has participated in the “Ten Years Journey Rivers” program since 2006 and has paid continuous attention to the conditions of rivers and the communities living along them. She co-launched the www.greensos.cn (Green Reporter Salon) in 2007. Xu Kezhu is an associate professor from the Department of Environmental Laws of China University of Political Science and Law, and deputy director of the Center for Legal Assistance to Pollution Victims in China.

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Yang Dongping is president of Friends of Nature. A professor of education with Beijing Institute of Technology, Yang has published books and numerous articles on educational problems in China. He is also the master schemer of the Century Lyceum on the Phoenix Satellite TV where leading Chinese scholars have been invited to give speeches to the audience. His research also covers education and environmental culture. Guobin Yang is Associate Professor of Asian and Middle Eastern Cultures at Barnard College, Columbia University. He has published over twenty journal articles and book chapters on contemporary social issues in China, including environmental activism, voluntary associations, and the politics of the internet. Yu Xiaogang is an environmentalist and head of Green Watershed, based in Yunnan. Yu studied the social and environmental impacts of a dam at Lashi Lake for his Ph.D. thesis. He then brought together residents and government officials in the Lashi Lake area to help restore farmland and fisheries, devising programs that eased the desperation of local communities. Yu’s work also helped secure restitution for displaced communities, and establish national guidelines for the assessment of dams’ social impacts. He is one of the six winners of 2006 Goldman Environmental Prize. Zhang Ke is a senior journalist with First Financial Daily, council member of the Association of Environmental Journalists in China, the Capital Youth Journalists Association and the Media Committee in China Environment Culture Promotion Association. He has written a number of influential reports on environmental issues. Zhang Kejia is a media consultant of The Nature Conservancy, former senior journalist with China Youth Daily and editor of its environment page. She has been concerned with environmental issues for a long time and has published many reports and articles on environmental protection. She is also one of the founders of the Green Journalists Salon. Zhao Wengeng is a member of Friends of Nature and editor of Water & Wastewater Engineering journal. Zhu Fen is a graduate student of the Department of Environmental Laws of China University of Political Science and Law.

INTRODUCTION Now in its third volume, The China Environment Yearbook (known as the Green Book of China’s Environment in Chinese) has established itself as the standard source on civil society perspectives about environmental issues in China. This new volume brings readers up to date with the main issues and events in 2007. Some of these issues are long-standing, but were pushed to the forefront by new conditions. Other issues are relatively new and indicate some emerging trends. A brief overview of the main issues and their underlying conditions will contextualize the rich materials collected here. Water and air pollution have long plagued urban areas in reform-era China. They became issues of intense national debate in 2007. The severe algae crisis in Lake Tai caused pollution of drinking water in the neighboring city of Wuxi, long hailed as an exemplar of economic development. The crisis triggered critical reflections on alternative developmental pathways. In Beijing, the biggest challenge encountered in the preparations for the 2008 Olympics was air pollution. Years of heavy government investment brought about considerable improvement in air quality, yet as one chapter in this volume suggests, long-term prospects for clean air remain uncertain. Urban industrial construction has been a major source of environmental conflict in recent years. It gained enormous public attention in 2007. In the southern city of Xiamen, a project to build a chemical factory met with strong resistance from the residents, who organized a peaceful and successful demonstration against the project. The “PX incident,” as it has come to be called after the name of the chemical paraxylene, demonstrated both the power of the citizens and the real promise of conflict resolution if government authorities are attentive to citizen input and concerns. The “PX incident” and several other incidents discussed in this volume highlight a new institutional challenge in the implementation of environmental laws in China—the rise of interest group politics. Not that interest group politics is a new phenomenon in China, but it has rarely been publicly acknowledged as it is starting to be now. In 2007, top-level sources in China’s national environmental protection agency revealed the difficulty and frustration they encountered in implementing the Environmental Impact Assessment Law because of pressure from

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both local governments and powerful business interests. How interest group politics will influence environmental agendas may well prove an important issue in the long run. Perhaps the most important new issue that entered the public sphere in 2007 was climate change. Chinese media coverage of issues on global warming tripled in 2007 compared with the previous year. Several chapters in this volume document the consequences of climate change for agriculture, food security, water supplies, desertification, and natural resources. Special attention is given to the impact on the poor and disadvantaged. Once again demonstrating their initiative and energy, leading Chinese environmental NGOs defined and publicized civil society positions on climate change, urging both the Chinese government and the international community to take collective responsibility in tackling global climate change. Several factors underlie the main environmental issues in 2007. Natural disasters and emergencies, such as the Lake Tai crisis and the devastating flooding of the city of Jinan, propelled public debates. Floods and droughts are common all over China, but when rainstorms hit Jinan on July 18, 2007, people were shocked to learn that the flooding claimed more than twenty lives in a supposedly “modern” city. The international community, including the international media, played a significant role in generating attention to environmental issues. This was particularly true of the case of climate change. The salience of climate change in the Chinese public arena reflected global influences, not the least of which was the awarding of the 2007 Nobel Peace Prize to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and Al Gore. The most important domestic condition was a more assertive citizenry and its rising demand for public participation. Data presented in this volume reveal three main forms of citizen participation in environmental affairs. One was disruptive protest activities, often called “mass incidents” in China today. These activities tend to involve clashes between citizens and public security authorities. They happen most often in rural areas where environmental damage directly and severely threatens sources of livelihood. Another was non-disruptive protest activities, as represented by the “PX incident” in Xiamen. This form is most common in urban areas and has assumed features of the “NIMBY” (not in my backyard) phenomenon found in Western societies. The third form, as represented by the concerted action plan on climate change drafted by Chinese environmental NGOs, was civic action organized by civil society groups. This form is non-confrontational and even cooperative.

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It depends considerably on the mobilization of the mass media and the use of the internet in achieving publicity and influence. In a sense, this Yearbook is itself a product of these Chinese civil society efforts to expand the public agenda for environmental protection. None of these three forms of public participation is new, but the year 2007 undoubtedly saw surges and milestones in this area. It is necessary, however, to keep in mind that these developments reflect a social trend that has been under way for more than a decade. Readers interested in tracing the sources of this trend are invited to use this volume together with the previous two volumes, which contain illuminating chapters about Chinese civic environmental activism in earlier years. Finally, a few remarks about practical matters. Two chapters in this volume discussed the challenges and achievements in making the Beijing Olympics a “green Olympics.” Readers interested in pursuing this topic further will find more detailed treatment of the topic in our next volume. This English edition differs slightly from the original Chinese version (环境绿皮书) in the number of chapters and in their arrangement. The editorial team at Brill, and English version advisory board members Judith Shapiro and myself, have limited our suggestions to the minimum. The English edition thus remains the original work of the Chinese editorial team and should be considered as a precious collection of primary source documents. Guobin Yang Barnard College, Columbia University

VOLUME OVERVIEW

CHINA’S LONG GREEN MARCH: CRISES AND OPPORTUNITIES Hu Kanping and Yang Dongping

The Taihu Lake algae bloom and disastrous weather events showed that pollution and environmental crises reached a critical point in China in 2007. At the same time, some progress was made in regards to “energy conservation and emissions reduction.” The total discharge of pollutants fell for the first time, which gave hope for future improvements. The Xiamen Haicang PX Project and Beijing Liulitun garbage incinerator incidents proved that public participation has intensified around particular projects while public campaigns to cope with global warming show that environmental protection has become more broad-based. China is working hard towards the construction of an ecological civilization. Key words: pollution, climate change, energy conservation and emissions reduction initiative, public participation

In 2007, China’s environment still faced myriad crises. Various kinds of deep-rooted contradictions emerged, and environmental protection in China was full of transformative and conflicting forces. The blue-green algae bloom in Taihu Lake (太湖) indicated that the pollution of rivers and lakes had reached a critical point, overturning the traditional development model of GDP growth at the expense of the environment. The ecological deterioration of the Yangtze River (长江) Valley aroused renewed anxiety and questions regarding the newly completed Three Gorges Dam (三峡大坝) and the ongoing South-toNorth Water Diversion Project (南水北调). Meanwhile, Green GDP accounting was suspended and the legislation of Strategic Environmental Impact Assessment Regulations (hereafter Strategic EIA Regulations) (规划环 评条例) met with difficulties. All of this revealed the strong habitual force of the traditional development model and the invisible influence imposed by local special interests in the process of environmental protection decision-making. At the same, there were remarkable improvements in China’s environmental protection. As the major theme of the year, the “energy conservation and emissions reduction” initiative gained initial progress as the total discharge of pollutants decreased for the first time. In 2007, a decisive year of preparation for the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games, the

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construction of green Olympic gyms, stadiums, and other sites fulfilled its goal. Public participation in environmental protection was pushed forward. Citizens in the city of Xiamen (厦门市) prevented a polluting project through rational expression of public opinion. Most significantly, the 17th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (中国 共产党第十七次全国代表大会) set the aim of building an ecological civilization that deepened and enriched the meaning of approaching development scientifically. This strongly manifested China’s resolution to abandon the traditional development model, which damages the environment and wastes resources, and its determination to embark on the road of sustainable development. Thus, this CPC Congress became a milestone in the modernization of Chinese society. I. Both Good and Bad Environmental News A. Taihu Lake’s Algae Bloom On May 29, 2007, a sudden drinking water crisis hit Wuxi (无锡), Jiangsu Province. Tap water in many urban households smelled and became unusable because of a blue-green algae bloom in Taihu Lake. The chapter by Zhang Ke details how Algae blooms in Taihu Lake, Dianchi Lake (滇池湖) and Chaohu Lake (巢湖) broke out in succession. This increase in water pollution incidents indicated that water pollution had reached a critical point. Research showed that in 2006, the chemical oxygen demand (COD) (化学需氧量) limit for Taihu Lake was 370,000 tons while the actual discharge amounted to as much as 510,000 tons. The eutrophication of Taihu Lake reached dangerous levels as the deterioration of lake water quality accelerated. During the Tenth Five-Year Plan period (2001–2005), Jiangsu Province (江苏) invested more than 8 billion RMB in building 176 water pollution control projects, including 77 sewage treatment plants. However, these efforts failed to solve the fundamental problem. According to the local environmental protection bureaus, total phosphorus in Taihu Lake fell to Level IV and total nitrogen was lower than Level V. Taihu Lake was at Level V-1 for most of the year. 1 China categorizes water quality into six groups: Level I for pure water; Level II for drinkable water; Level III for usable but non-drinkable water; Level IV for water

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Water is not only the lifeline of industrialization and urbanization, but also the lifeline of existence. The management of the “Three Lakes” (Taihu Lake, Chaohu Lake (巢湖), and Dianchi Lake (滇池湖) was one of the key pollution control projects during China’s Ninth Five-Year Plan period (1996–2000). As early as 1998, the amount of discharge into the “Three Lakes” (三湖) had almost reached the limit set for industrial pollution sources. Although the state spent years of work and huge amounts of money to control water pollution in the “Three Rivers (Huai (淮河), Hai (海河), and Liao (遼河) Rivers) and Three Lakes,” (三河三湖) the speed of damage exceeded the speed of control, and thus some improved river basins became polluted again. In 2006, the quality of 26% of China’s seven water systems stood at Level V. The overall water quality in seven out of the nine great lakes under state monitoring was at Level V or even below Level V. Virtually 80% of the lakes were “dead,”2 as fish, shrimp and some plants could not live in them. A disastrous environmental crisis will occur before the goal of industrialization and urbanization is achieved if water pollution is not brought under control. The blue-green algae bloom in Taihu Lake showed that the ecosystems around Taihu Lake could no longer support the area’s dense population and rapid industrial and urban development. Li Yuanchao, Secretary of the CPC Jiangsu Provincial Committee, held that this incident caused unprecedented losses to Jiangsu Province (江苏). People began to doubt the current development model, and the purported achievements of building a prosperous society in the three cities of Suzhou (苏州), Wuxi (无锡), and Changzhou (常州). He further noted that none of the three cities could be regarded as being well off in a comprehensive way, emphasizing the need for immediate remedial actions.3

only suitable for certain industrial uses; Level V for unusable water and Level V– for toxic water. 2 Ye Jing, “Four-Round strategic EIA ‘Storms’ Barely Solve the Problems of Environmental Protection,” China Economic Weekly, July 23, 2007. 3 Zhang Ke, “Li Yuanchao: Taihu Lake Algae Bloom Incident Overturned Achievements of Building an All-around Well-off Society in Suzhou (苏州), Wuxi (无锡) and Changzhou (常州),” First Financial Daily, July 11, 2007.

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B. Global Climate Change Becomes a Hot Topic Global warming has become a hot topic. The Nobel Peace Prize for 2007 was shared by former US Vice President Al Gore and the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) (联合国政府间气候 变化专家小组) for their efforts to publicize global warming. The IPCC issued its third assessment report, bringing unprecedented attention to climate change throughout the world. China is one of the nations with the most distinct features of global warming. In late 2006, the Ministry of Science and Technology (科学 技术部), China Meteorological Administration (中国气象局), Chinese Academy of Sciences (中国科学院), and other ministries published National Assessment Report on Climate Change (气候变化国家评估报告), which demonstrated that the Chinese government was very concerned about this international issue. On June 4, 2007, China’s National Climate Change Program (中国应对气候变化国家方案) was officially issued. It was China’s first policy paper on climate change, as well as the first such scheme among developing countries. China’s National Climate Change Program points out that in the last 100 years or so, China has seen a rise of 0.5 to 0.8°C in the annual average temperature, slightly higher than global warming rate. It says that the phenomenon is especially noticeable over the most recent 50 years. From 1986 to 2005, China experienced 20 consecutive warm winters. Since 1990, there has been higher than average annual rainfalls, but this rainfall is unevenly distributed, with floods in the south and droughts in the north. China’s coastal waters have risen by an annual average of 2.5 mm over the last 50 years, also higher than the world average. According to scientists, the problem of global warming will become even more acute in the future. Compared with the year 2000, the annual average temperature of China will rise by 1.3 to 2.1°C by 2020, and by 2050, it will rise by 2.3 to 3.3°C. In the coming 100 years, China may experience extreme weather events more frequently. Within China, arid regions will expand and desertification will worsen. The sea level of the coastal waters will continue to rise, and the glaciers on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau (青藏高原) will recede at an accelerated rate with some of the smaller ones disappearing altogether.4

4 National Development and Reform Commission, “Abstract of the State Scheme for Climate Change,” People’s Daily, June 5, 2007.

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The melting of glaciers is just one of the various disasters resulting from global warming. The “Research on China Glacier Resources and Their Changes” project led by Qin Dahe, a member of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (中国科学院), shows that 82% of China’s glaciers are receding. At present, approximately 20,000 km2 glaciers without moraine are receding at the rate of 7.4%, based on research from the 1950s to 1980s.5 Shi Yafeng, a member of the Chinese Academy of Science (中国科学院) and a pioneer in glacier research in China, stated: The Qinghai-Tibet Plateau and surrounding mountains contain 80% of China’s glaciers. There are currently 46,377 glaciers, covering a total area of 59,425 km2. Moreover, because the greenhouse gases emitted by human beings are increasing greatly, China’s glaciers are now receding at a rate of 131 km2 yearly, so it is anticipated that one third of the glaciers will have melted by 2050.6

The extreme weather events of 2007 added greatly to people’s concern about climate change. The top ten extreme weather events rated by China Meteorological Administration (中国气象局) included the torrential rainstorm and flood in the Huai River valley, the unusual snowstorms hitting Liaoning (辽寜) and Shandong (山东) Provinces, the severe drought in Anhui, Jiangsu (江苏), Zhejiang (浙江) provinces and in South China, and widespread damage caused by typhoons Sepat and Krosa in the southern part of China. In July 2007, areas in Chongqing, Sichuan Province (四川省) experienced the most rainfall in the past 115 years. In Shapingba, one storm alone produced 26.66 cm of precipitation. In Jinan (济南 市), Shangdong Province (山东省), a heavy rainstorm took at least 34 lives, with rainfall reaching 15.1 cm per hour. In the summer of 2007, an unusual drought hit the western part of Northeast China and the eastern part of Inner Mongolia. Provinces south of the Yangtze River were plagued by high temperatures and severe drought. In July, many areas experienced 15 to 21 days with temperatures higher than 35°C. Taizhou City of Zhejiang Province (浙江省) witnessed 24 days with the temperature over 35°C, a new record. Similarly, Fuzhou, Fujian Province (福建省) experienced 32 consecutive days with high temperatures, “Research Shows that 82% of China’s Glaciers Are Retreating,” People’s Daily Overseas Edition, Dec. 24, 2007. 6 “Global Warming Accelerates the Retreating of the Glaciers on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau and Might Revive Ancient Virus,” Southern Weekend, Oct. 26, 2007. 5

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the most since Fuzhou began keeping meteorological records in 1880. Thunderstorms, cyclones, hailstorms, and other severe weather events occurred frequently, causing great damage. Meteorological experts predict that in the coming 100 years extreme weather events will occur even more frequently as arid areas expand and the glaciers in the Qinghai-Tibet and Tianshan Mountain ranges recede more quickly. They predict that by 2050, the glaciers in northwestern China may shrink by 27%. In the coming four to six years, the Yangtze River Basin will likely experience severe droughts, and the severity and duration of droughts will increase.7 In a report to the 17th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, Secretary-general Hu Jintao stated that “strengthening the economy of energy resources, protecting the environment, and enhancing sustainable development,” requires “strengthening our ability to combat climate change and should make contributions to the protecting of global climate,” showing that climate change has aroused China’s concern and attention. C. Concerns about the Ecology of the Yangtze River The protection as well as the exploitation of the Yangtze River’s water resources not only influences a drainage area of 1.8 million km2 and the 400 million people living around, but also effects the survival and the development of the whole nation. Due to ever-increasing over-exploitation, the exacerbated condition of the Yangtze River has already drawn great attention. On January 3, 2007, the water lever of Shashi, Hubei Province (湖北省) fell to merely 0.77 meters, breaking an historical record that dates back 140 years. At the second Yangtze Forum held in June 2007, the Yangtze Water Resources Commission delivered a 272–page report titled Protection and Development of the Yangtze River in 2007 (长江保护与发展报告 2007). Wang Yongchen analyzes this report in her chapter on the health of the Yangtze River. This report discussed the changes in the ecology of the Yangtze River by covering 10 issues: the pollution of the river and soil erosion; protection of biodiversity within the drainage area; exploitation of the “golden waterway”; climate change and floods; exploitation of

7 Qin Dahe, “The Change of Climate and Environment in China and Its Influence,” Jiefang Daily, April 3, 2006.

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the water and hydropower resources in the upper-stream area; impact of the Three Gorges Dam on flood prevention; environmental problems of the Three Gorges reservoir area; protection of water quality on the Central Line of the South-to-North Water Diversion Project; and siltation in the middle and the lower parts of the River. Finally, the report declared, “The protection and the exploitation of the Yangtze River resources now are at a critical moment in terms of transformation and reform.” The report came to the conclusion that, “The protection and utilization policy of the Yangtze River is now changing from utilization-first to giving equal attention to the utilization and the protection of the river resources.” 1. Over-Exploitation of Water and Hydropower Resources As Jiang Minzhuo and Wang Yongchen point out in their respective chapters, the deteriorating ecology of the Yangtze River is partly caused by changes in natural conditions, but mainly by human beings’ over-exploitation. China enjoys very rich hydropower resources. However, compared to developed counties, the degree to which hydropower is utilized is not high at all. It is estimated that the amount of water resources available for economic utilization is 400 million kW in China. Only 110 million kW are currently being produced, far behind developed counties. When it was decided to construct the Three Gorges Dam in the 1990s, the total national installed hydropower capacity was merely 40 million to 50 million kW. The capacity of the Three Gorges Dam alone is 22.4 million kW, which makes it the largest project in the world in terms of single installed capacity, total installed capacity, and annual power generation. However, whether this project should be put into operation or not had been debated on for over half a century, and the construction cycle has lasted 17 years. In the utilization of the Yangtze River, a strategy of building cascade dams was put into practice. In 2004, total installed hydropower capacity reached 100 million kW. After that, hydropower development took a great leap forward. Each year, hydropower plants whose total installed capacity is equal to half of the Three Gorge installed capacity are put into operation. In 2007, China Three Gorges Project Corporation bought 32 large water and hydropower turbines (700 million kW for each) through public bidding, equaling the installed capacity of the Three Gorges Dam. In the following 10 years, China Three Gorges Project Corporation and other companies will build more than 10 gigantic hydropower stations that will generate more than 3 million kW of power. Some power stations on the Jinsha

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River (金沙江), Yalong River (雅砻江), and Dadu River (大渡河) could generate 10 million kW of power. The total capacity of these projects will be equal to that of five Three Gorges Dams. According to the Eleventh Five-Year Plan (2006–2010) (十一五) and the 2015 long term plan, the national installed hydropower capacity will reach 125 million kW in 2010, accounting for 28% of the total national power capacity, and will surpass 150 million kW by 2015. Protection and Development of the Yangtze River in 2007 states, “It is internationally recognized that less than 40% of water resources should be exploited. However, the general designed capability of the reservoirs on the Jinsha River has already arrived at 83%. As these planned hydropower stations become operational, the total capacity of upper Yangtze River reservoirs will reach 61%.” Obviously, it has exceeded the reasonable limit. Wang Nuchen, former minister of the Ministry of Water Resources of China (中华人民共和国水利部) said: “Fully exploiting the Yangtze water resources must not be allowed. We should leave room for ecosystem.”8 He suggested exploiting 60% of the resources and leaving 40% of the resources to maintain the original ecological condition and biodiversity. He argued that sustainable development should be the healthy standard for the utilization of the Yangtze River’s water resources. 2. Decline of Biodiversity As the exploitation of the Yangtze River area continues, sewage discharge also increases. The total amount of sewage discharged from the Yangtze River area is approximately 23 billion tons a year, which makes up 37% of the whole country’s discharge.9 The decline of fishing resources and species are mainly due to pollution. Over-exploitation and severe pollution have already affected biodiversity in the Yangtze River. In 2006, an international group consisting of scientists and observers from China, Japan, the United States, Great Britain, Germany, and Switzerland tried in vain to find a single freshwater dolphin in the historical distribution areas of the Yangtze River. They could not find any dolphins after searching for 38 days.

8 Guo Xiaojun, “The Minister of Water Resources of China: It is appropriate to use 60% of the Yangtze River’s water resources, leaving room for ecology,” Beijing News, April 16, 2007. 9 Lin Junhui, “Experts Think Four Elements Lead to the Sub-healthy Condition of Changjiang River,” Xinhua Net, July 4, 2007.

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The most obvious influence of a cascade of dams and reservoirs is that they destroy the rivers’ natural flow and cause great damage to migratory fish species. With the construction of the Gezhou Dam (葛洲坝) on the major tributary of the Yangtze River and the Three Gorges Dam, many floodgates are being built. As a result, the number of valuable and rare fish species, such as sturgeon and hilsa herring, which migrate between the Yangtze River and the sea, has declined dramatically. The spawning grounds of the most populous four varieties of fish in the Yangtze River, namely, the grass carp, herring, bighead carp, and silver carp have been badly flooded. According to recent statistics, “The spawn of the four most famous fish species have dropped by 97%! Such is the fate of the four fish species most familiar to us human beings. The living conditions of other aquatic species are even more unimaginable.”10 As one of the most important life-form indices in the aquatic ecosystem, the disappearance of migratory fish will definitely affect the composition and integrity of the whole ecosystem. 3. Environmental Impacts of the Three Gorges Dam The water storage of the Three Gorges Project has led to a series of changes in the ecology of the Yangtze River Basin, complicating the relationships between the river system and connecting lakes. Protection and Development of the Yangtze River in 2007 demonstrates that the number of small earthquakes has increased after the main reservoir was filled. Cave-ins and landslides of various kinds have occurred at 4,719 different locations. Of them, 627 landslides were directly caused by the storage of water, with 863 landslides occurring in resettlement areas. Furthermore, loosely piled construction materials on the banks threaten the safety of local habitants.11 The landslides and cave-ins caused by the fragile environment will in turn threaten the safety of the Three Gorges Dam. After the completion of the Three Gorges Dam, the normal storage level of the Three Gorge reservoir will be 175 meters deep in winter in order to generate enough power. In summer, the water level will drop to 145 meters in order to prevent floods, thus exposing 30 meters of land. The exposed land will be the most fragile area along the Yangtze Liu Jing, “The Uncertain Future of the Aquatic Biology in the Yangtze River,” National Geographic of China 2007 No. 4. 11 Xie Liangbin, “Three Gorges Project, the Endless Hidden Trouble,” Chinese Newsweek, Nov. 19, 2007. 10

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River and therefore will need great attention. The geological disasters that occur frequently will threaten the safety of the local people. In addition, when landslides fall into the Yangtze River, they will cause swells that could rise as high as several dozens of meters, potentially affecting large areas. When water is released from the Three Gorge reservoir, the embankments of the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River will be tested. In fact, this has caused the collapse of embankments in Hubei Province. Li Chunming, Vice-Governor of Hubei Province, pointed out that during the past few years, the number of collapses along the Jingjiang section increased dramatically and the total length of collapsing sections has notably surged. Therefore, the water conservation departments should gradually adjust the original plan and build a harmonious flood-proof system considering the relationship between local residents and the lakes. 4. The Rehabilitation of Rivers and Lakes The chapters by Zhang Ke, Jiang Minzhuo, and Wang Yongchen describe in great detail the challenges facing China’s rivers and lakes. Concerning the issue of environmental protection and exploitation, a new concept has emerged based on the capability of the water environment: “allow rivers and lakes to rehabilitate.” Zhou Shengxian (周生贤), Minister of State Environmental Protection Administration (SEPA) (国家环保总局) said, “In order to let rivers and lakes rehabilitate, we will carry out the most strict pollutants discharge control system, base the development plan on the capacity of the actual water environment, observe rules of nature, fully explore the self-healing functions of the aquatic ecosystem, combine projects, technology and ecology to further strengthen management and let the aquatic ecosystem establish a healthy, circular system as soon as possible.”12 D. Progress in Energy Conservation and Emissions Reduction 1. A Turning Point The Chinese government was determined to reduce the amount of energy consumed per unit GDP by 20%, and to reduce the total pollution discharge by 10% during the Eleventh Five-Year Plan 12 “Let rivers and lakes rehabilitate, a dialogue with Zhou Shenxiang,” People’s Daily, July 14, 2007.

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(2006–2010). However, according to government statistics, national SO2 emissions in 2006 were 2.588 million tons, an increase of 1.5% over 2005. Furthermore, Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD) was 1.4282 million tons, an increase of 1%.13 It is also reported that, the energy consumption per unit GDP only decreased by 1.2% in 2006, which indicated a complete failure of the “energy conservation and emissions reduction” initiative. Zhao Wengang’s chapter shows how 2007 was a turning point of the “energy conservation and emissions reduction” initiative, which became a central issue in terms of China’s environmental protection. The central government made a series of plans to enhance the implementation of environmental laws and the construction of an environmental protection system aimed at monitoring the activities of heavy energy consuming and polluting enterprises. The central government distributed 23.5 billion RMB to support this plan, improving energy conservation and emissions reduction. In December 2007, the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) (国家发展和改革委员会) declared that the amount of energy consumed per unit of GDP had decreased by approximately 3% compared to the previous year. The emissions of SO2 and COD, rather than continuing their upward trend, instead decreased by 1.8% and 0.28%, respectively.14 This means that 2007 was the first year that energy consumption was reduced. SEPA Minister Zhou Shengxian said that this reduction signified that environmental protection in China had evolved from “passive coping” into “active controlling,” and that China had achieved significant progress in the construction of a resource conserving and environmentally friendly society. 2. “Regional Restrictive Approval” (区域限批) From the very beginning of 2007’ in accordance with the State Council’s Implementation of the Scientific Development and Strengthening of Environmental Protection (国务院 关于落实科学发展观加强环境保护的决定) the State Environmental Protection Administration launched “regional restrictive approval” in order to check the rapid expansion of those energy intensive and heavy

13 According to other government statistics, in 2006, the emissions of SO2 was 25,944,000 tons, which increased by 1.8% compared to 2005, and the emissions of the Chemical Oxygen Demand is 14,313,000 tons, which increased by 1.2%. 14 Zhu Jianhong, “The Unit GDP Reduced in the Last 3 Quarters, and the Situation Turned for the Better,” People Daily, Dec. 9, 2007.

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polluting enterprises. Regional restrictive approval is discussed in a number of the chapters in this volume. Wang Yonchen, Zhang Ke, and Jiang Minzhuo discuss regional restrictive approvals in regards to water pollution. The chapter by Zhao Wengeng connects regional restrictive approval with energy conservation and emissions reduction, while Qie Jianrong shows how they connect with strategic environmental impact assessments. Finally, Xu Kezhu, Song Wanzhong, and Zhu Fen discuss the policy in relation to the larger environmental legal system. The first four districts to implement “regional restrictive approval” are Tangshan City of Hebei Province (河北省), Luliang City of Shanxi Province (山西省), Liupanshui City of Guizhou Province (贵州省), and Laiwu City of Shandong Province (山东省). The first four enterprises affected are Datang International Power Generation Corporation (大唐国际发電股份),15 China Huaneng Corporation (中国华能集团 公司),16 China HuaDian Corporation ( 中国华电集团公司),17 and the Guodian Power Development Corporation(国电电力发展股份). The detailed policy holds that “restricted” cities and enterprises will no longer gain approval for new projects unless they completely correct current projects which violate the law, with the exception of new projects that promote a circular economy. The environmental protection bureau will lift the ban after the company or city rectifies the problem and complies with relevant standards for 3 months. SEPA began enforcing “regional restrictive approval” from July 2007 because of severe water pollution. SEPA cited six cities, two counties, and five industrial parks located along the Yangtze, Yellow, Huaihe, and Hai (海河) Rivers for breaking the law and severely polluting the waterways. Hundreds of projects and companies received warnings or fines. “Regional restrictive approval” controls pollution by increasing the cost of violating environmental laws. Therefore, law enforcement was successfully strengthened and illegal actions effectively checked. In addition, it has changed popular thinking among local government officials of “polluting first and treating later.” At the same time, irrational invest15 Translator’s note: Datang International Power Generation Corporation is one of the five largest power companies in China, and is especially prominent in Northern China. Homepage: http://www.dtpower.com/en/index.jsp. 16 Translator’s note: China Huaneng Corporation website: www.chng.com.cn. 17 Translator’s note: China Huadian Group Corporation is a state-owned enterprise established on December 29, 2002 approved by the State Council and established to conduct state-authorized investment, its registered capital totaled 12 billion RMB at its founding. Homepage: www.chd.com.cn.

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ing was checked as well. In short, this policy upgraded the structure of regional enterprises and optimized the distribution of companies. Some people commented that regional restrictive approval deals with two powerful special interests: local governments and big enterprises. 3. Curbing the Growth of Energy Intensive and High Emissions Industries As Zhao Wengeng shows, curbing the growth of energy intensive consumption and high emissions industries is the key goal of energy conservation and emissions reduction. In May 2007, the State Council promulgated “the Comprehensive Work Plan on Energy Conservation and Emissions Reduction,” which will effectively shut down non-compliant facilities in the electricity, steel, cement, coal, and flat glass industries. The Ministry of Finance (财政部) and the National Development and Reform Commission established a mechanism to close facilities with inefficient production capability. Besides, the central government has also developed policies that encourage technical innovation to save energy. To promote a circular economy an index system for assessing circular economy has been created in China. The ten key energy conservation projects of will proceed at a faster pace. 4. Strengthening the Implementation of Environmental Protection Laws and Infrastructure Construction Strengthening the implementation of environmental protection laws and infrastructure construction is one of the most creative and practical strategic measures developed during the Eleventh Five-Year Plan. The chapters by Xu Kezhu, Song Wanzhong, Zhu Fen, Qie Zhanrong, and Tong Zhifeng provide insight into the promulgation of new environmental rules, regulations, and laws, as well as the challenges in implementing them. At the beginning of June 2007, the central government issued the Comprehensive Work Plan on Energy Conservation and Emissions Reduction (节能减排综合性工作方 案) and the China’s National Climate Change Program. At the G8 Summit, President Hu Jintao delivered a keynote speech on measures against global warming. In addition, in October, the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress (NPC) (全国人民代表大会) passed a revised version of the Energy Conservation Law (revised draft) (节约能源 法) and began drafting the Circular Economy Law (循环经济法), both of which should be powerful weapons against pollution. In November, the State Council approved related measures about using a statistical survey about energy conservation and emissions reduction as one of the performance evaluation standards for local

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governments and officials. The purpose is to incorporate energy conservation and emissions reduction activities into the comprehensive evaluation system for local economic and social development, and to implement a strict accountability and “one veto” system. More economic measures and innovative systems are needed to control the worsening pollution condition. Yu Xiaogang shows in his chapter that by supervising and monitoring companies’ environmental impact, “green credit” can put severely polluting companies on a “black list” of banks to restrict them from qualifying for loans. In mid July, the State Environmental Protection Administration of China, the Bank of China (中国人民银行), and China Banking Regulatory Commission (中国银监会) co-issued the Opinions on Implementing Environmental Protection Policies and Regulations, and Preventing Credit Risks (关于落实环境保 护政策法规防范信贷风险的意见), which aimed to check the blind expansion of high-energy consuming and polluting enterprises by not giving loans to companies that break environmental laws. By November, twelve severely polluting companies were denied bank loans. E. “Green Olympics” ( 绿色奥运) Fulfilled Requirements Set for Different Stages The year 2007 was critical for Olympic preparations, as Li Jiao and Feng Yongfeng show in their chapters. One of Beijing’s goals was to lessen the environmental impact of the 2008 Olympics by using “green” practices. To reach this goal, many efforts were made in various fields such as the construction of gyms and stadiums, air quality, the management of transportation, and the general greening of the city. Achievements in all these aspects have been made. 1. Reducing Construction Costs of Gyms and Stadiums Since the second half of 2004, in accordance with the notion of holding economic Olympics, the Beijing government made some adjustments to reduce the construction costs of gyms and stadiums. This move gained support from the IOC. For the 2008 Olympics, thirty-one gyms and stadiums were needed. Twelve new gyms and stadiums were built, eleven were renovated, and eight temporary units were created. The optimized Bird’s Nest had an enlarged opening in the roof instead of a retractable roof. The number of seats was reduced from 100,000 to 91,000. The budget of the optimized construction was 3.5 billion RMB. The optimization

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reduced the amount of steel by 12,000 tons, and at simultaneously increased safety. Another example is the national swimming center, the “Water Cube.” The revised design saved 90 million RMB by making it 7,800 m2 smaller. The Five Pines Gym also underwent modification. According to the original design, the fifth floor was intended for commercial use. Later, this floor was removed from the construction plans, thus reducing the size of the building from the original 119,000 m2 to 63,000 m2. In addition, the plan to line the walls of the gym with television screen projectors was abandoned, the entrance of the audience hall was elevated to the ground level, and the tunnels leading to the playing area were simplified. After the optimization, the amount of steel was reduced from the original 40,000 tons to 5,000 tons, and the budget was reduced by 500 million RMB while the safety of the construction was strengthened. 2. “Blue Sky Plan” (蓝天工程) to Improve Air Quality The air quality has been a long-standing problem in Beijing and in recent years has attracted worldwide attention. With the Olympics on the way, 2007 afforded Beijing the opportunity to fulfill its’ commitment to the implementation of programs directed at the betterment of air quality. In fact, from 1998 when the city administration resolved to protect the blue sky until the year 2007, the number of blue-sky days has increased from 100 to 245 a year. Since 1998, 120 billion RMB has been spent in reducing air pollution. Thirteen stages, including more than two hundred measures, have been put into practice, and the emphasis has been on the control of coal burning, motor vehicles, particulate matter, and industrial pollution. In order to reduce the total emissions, the city administration accelerated economic restructuring, and transformed the modes of economic growth. Enterprises causing severe pollution have been moved out of the city or have been adjusted. Up to the end of 2006, more than one hundred and ninety businesses have moved or been adjusted. Coking plants in Beijing, for example, have all stopped production. As planned, the Capital Iron and Steel Company shut down Number 2 coking furnace and Number 5 blast furnace. In an effort to control soot pollution, the city administration heightened their focus on improving the energy infrastructure and on reducing pollution caused by coal burning. For example, in the central districts of the city, gas is used instead of coal and in hutong (small streets and lanes), electricity has replaced coal. Considering the rapid growth of motor vehicles,

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the city administration has strengthened control of emissions from car exhaust by strictly applying emissions standards on new vehicles, and replacing high emissions vehicles with more energy efficient ones. The implementation of standards of different stages began two years ahead of the schedule.18 3. Measures for Traffic Congestion The chapters by Feng Yongfeng and Kang Xue show that traffic congestion has become a serious problem in China. On May 26, 2007, the total number of motor vehicles in Beijing reached 3 million, with an average of 0.68 vehicles per household. To encourage the use of public transportation, which is considered a green means of transportation, the city administration made every effort to develop public transportation by building subway lines, promoting public transportation, and reducing fees. From the beginning of 2007, all buses in Beijing (except air-conditioned buses) had a one-Yuan base fee. Adult citizens can enjoy a 40 percent discount by using a public transportation card, while students are afforded a 20 percent discount if they present a valid student ID. On October 7, the day when the Number 5 subway line went into service, all of the subway lines in Beijing began to use an identical fee system, with the fee being reduced from the original three RMB to the current two RMB. Hence, a subway ticket in Beijing has become the cheapest in the country. 4. Water Diversion Initiative to Cope with Water Resource Crisis We must admit that, although great efforts have been made to improve the environment for the 2008 Olympic Games, the ecological conditions around Beijing have not improved much. The city has been hit by droughts for several years running, with 2007 witnessing a severe drought when summer precipitation was 30% less than average. Guanting Reservoir (官厅水库) and Miyun Reservoir (密云水库), Beijing’s two main water sources have shrunk considerably, exacerbating Beijing’s already inadequate water supply situation. To ensure a sufficient water supply during the Olympic Games, Shanxi and Hebei provinces began diverting water to the capital at the end of September and in mid October 2007, respectively. Shanxi and Hebei sent a total of 25 and 20 million

18 Zhang Miaomiao, “Beijing’s ‘Blue Sky Project’ in 2007: Questioned but Unwavering,” Xinhua Net, Dec. 15, 2007.

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cubic meters of water and Hebei 20 million cubic meters of water to Beijing, respectively. In order to resolve the difficult situation, a project was launched to divert water from Shanxi and Hebei provinces to Beijing beginning in 2003. By 2007, the two provinces had already sent water to Beijing on four other occasions, sending a total of 300 million cubic meters of water. However, the water resources in these two provinces are by no means abundant. Take Hebei for example. It has suffered droughts for eleven successive years. Prior to 2007, the area affected by droughts was over ten million mu (1 acre = 6.07 mu or 1/15 of a hectare). This embarrassing situation reflects the gravity of the ecological crisis in North China and Beijing. As the chapter by Jiang Minzhuo shows, China faces real challenges in handling the water shortage and reversing ecological deterioration in this area. II. Public Participation Becoming More In-Depth and Widespread When addressing the issue of “developing socialist democracy” at the 17th National Congress of the Communist Party of China in October 2007, Hu Jintao emphasized “developing primary-level democracy and ensuring that the people enjoy democratic rights in a more extensive and practical way.” He also stressed “encouraging social organizations to help expand public participation and file petitions to improve the self-governance capability of society.” This showed the determination of the government and the Party to attach importance to public participation. To breathe fresh air and to drink clean water is a basic human right. When this basic right is compromised, environmental protection becomes the people’s first demand. It is estimated that, from the Songhua River (松花江) Toxic Spill Incident in 2005 until June 30 2007, there were 126 water pollution incidents, which translates to one incident occurring every four or five days. The chapters by Qie Jianrong and especially Tong Zhifeng provide both details and insights into the causes of environmental mass incidents, including the failure of local officials to listen to people’s concerns. The Sixth National Petitions and Visits Congress in 2007 published statistics showing that the total amount of petitions and visits decreased by 15.5 percent, but petitions concerning the environment and group incidents have increased by 30 percent each year and have become one of the “five focal points” of the petitions

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and visits.19 This phenomenon reveals that serious pollution problems are in contrast to rising public awareness and concern for the environment. It also shows that public participation has become an increasingly important force in the improvement of the environment. A. Two Cases of Public Participation Aroused Wide Attention: The Xiamen Haicang PX Project Incident and the Beijing Liulitun Garbage Incineration Incident To a certain degree, the Xiamen Haicang PX Project (厦门海沧PX项 目) and Beijing Liulitun Garbage Incineration mass incidents in 2007 were landmarks in public participation in terms of environmental protection. Many of the chapters in this volume deal with these two cases, with Feng Yongfeng describing the Liulitun case in relation to Beijing becoming an eco-city, Tong Zhifeng analyzing the cases in relation environmental mass incidents, and Qie Jianrong discussing the problems with their strategic EIAs. During the two national congresses of the NPC and National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) (中国人民政治协商会议全国委 员会, shortened as 全国政协) held in March 2007, 105 members of the CPPCC signed a motion concerning the construction of the Xiamen Haicang PX Project (厦门海沧PX项目), planned by Tenglong Aromatic PX Limited Corporation (腾龙芒烃(厦门)有限公司). 20 Investment in the project was estimated to be as high as 10.8 billion RMB. When completed it would bring 80 billion RMB to the City of Xiamen. However, the location of the project is only seven kilometers away from the downtown of Xiamen and the state-level scenic tourism area of Gulangyu Island. In addition, the project was slated for Haicang district, a newly developed into a residential area. Owing to the sensitive location and potential environmental dangers, the project met with strong opposition from members of the CPPCC and the citizens there. Tens of thousands of citizens “took a walk” on the street as an expression of their protest. On May 30, 2007, the city administration announced the delay of the PX Project. On June 7, the State Environmental Protection Zhou Xiansheng, “Opportunities and Choice: Reflections on the Songhua River Incident,” Xinhua News Agency, 2007, p. 3 and p. 59. 20 Translator’s note: PX stands for paraxylene, a solvent used in printing, rubber, and leather industries. 19

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Administration demanded a strategic EIA of the PX project in relation to the whole Xiamen area. In December, based on random selection, 49 citizens attended a strategic EIA meeting as citizen representatives. Of those selected, 40 were strongly opposed to the construction of the Haicang PX project in Xiamen. Afterward, it was reported that Fujian Province (福建省) and Xiamen City (厦门市) decided to comply with public will and relocate the project to Gulei peninsula in Zhangzhou, Fujian Province. However, no confirmation has been issued. In 2007, a public protest took place in Beijing against the planned construction of a garbage incineration power plant in Liulitun (六里屯), Haidian District (海淀区). Once built, the plant would burn 1,200 tons of domestic garbage and process 400 tons of compost a day. However, as many residential complexes have been built in Liulitun, the residents there became worried about the potential for pollution and appealed to the city administration for the power plant to be relocated. Many residents went to the State Environmental Protection Administration to express their protest against the project on June 5, World Environment Day. Their action aroused public attention. On June 12, SEPA suggested that the local government should suspend construction of the project until further study of its feasibility could be conducted. The Beijing Municipal Party Committee and the Beijing Government attached great importance to this incident, declaring that the project would not start without the complete understanding of the citizens. The project is currently suspended while Hiadain District government and Beijing Environmental Protection Bureau prepare for experts’ assessment of the feasibility of the project. The significance of these two incidents lies not only in citizens’ standing up for their rights, but also in the new demeanor of the administration. The government was praised for complying with the will of the people. However, the initial cause of the two incidents was the same. First, they both lacked a strategic EIA that took into account the whole area in which the projects were located. The two projects’ EIA also neglected the importance of openness and citizen participation. The necessity of strategic EIA was made prominent by the two incidents. Pan Yue, vice-minister of SEPA commented afterwards that the Strategic Environmental Impact Assessment Law that was being drafted would introduce a more mature procedure for public participation with clauses concerning public participation added. According to the Regulations, the units making strategic overall planning should inform the public and listen to their opinions, holding public hearings on major issues.

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B. Environmental Legislation Attaches Great Importance to Public Participation While environmental legislation is being strengthened, more importance is being given to public participation in environmental protection. The chapters by Xu Kezhu, Song Wanzhong, Zhu Fen, Qie Zhanrong, and Tong Zhifeng discuss emerging environmental legislation and public participation. The public shows great enthusiasm for participating in the legislative process such as in the revision of the Law of the People’s Republic of China on the Prevention and Control of Water Pollution. The Standing Committee of the NPC decided to solicit public opinions for the revision of this Law from September 5, 2007. This announcement attracted wide attention with 2,400 opinions and 67 letters being received by October 10.21 Openness with information is an important prerequisite of public participation. Following the Provisional Measures on Public Participation in Environmental Impact Assessments issued in 2006, SEPA stipulated Measures on Open Environmental Information (Trial) in April 2007, which were slated to take effect on May 1, 2008. This is the first government document about openness after the Decree of Government Information Openness issued by the State Council. It is also the first comprehensive departmental decree on disclosure of environmental information in China. It is very important for environmental protection and public participation. As citizens’ right to know about environmental information is legitimately guaranteed, their rights to participate and supervise are also reinforced. Although there is a principle regulating the “disclosure of information” in existing environmental laws, it is not clear who should be informed and what will happen if information is not open. Therefore, it is difficult for this principle to be applied, creating great obstacles to public participation. In comparison, Measures on Open Environmental Information (Trial) has clear targets and is operative. First, it clarifies who should be informed as well as the 17 kinds of environmental information that should be made open to the public. These include environmental laws and regulations, policies, standards, and administrative permission procedures. Measures compels enterprises with excessive pollution to disclose four types of environmental information and encourages all polluting enterprises to disclose environmental information. Second,

21 “The Public is Active in Giving Opinions on the Revision of the Law of Prevention and Control of Water Pollution,” http://www.gov.cn/jizg/2007–09/18/content_753561 .htm.

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it regulates the detailed methods by which environmental information should be made public. Third, it defines the responsibility of publicizing environmental information. Enterprises that fail to observe the Measures will be held accountable and fined. People who contend that their legitimate rights are violated have the right to appeal for administrative consideration or for administrative proceedings. C. China’s Civil Society Copes with Global Climate Change As global climate change becomes an important issue in international politics and diplomatic relationships, China, as a large developing country, is facing more and more pressure to reduce emissions. At the same time, it is obliged to take effective measures to mitigate the negative impact of climate change. As such, China and its citizens will have to adopt an active attitude in combating the climate crisis. Liu Haiying provides an overview of the impact of climate change on China. Fu Tao discusses how international and Chinese civil society are reacting to climate change. The deep concern of environmental NGOs for climate change is in contrast to the apparent lack of concern among China’s youth about consumption, as detailed in the chapter by Zhang Kejia. In December 2007, during the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Bali, Indonesia, representatives from Chinese NGOs submitted a report entitled, China Is Becoming Warmer: Civil society’s thoughts and actions. Headed by Friends of Nature (自然之友),22 more than 30 Chinese and international environmental NGOs, including Greenpeace, Oxfam, and WWF, cooperated in research on climate change. This report was the first of its kind on combating climate crisis by China’s civil society. It reflects Chinese people’s thinking and their sense of responsibility. It makes clear China and its people’s value orientation and attitude, plans for future actions, and the general direction of efforts. This successful cooperative research demonstrates the mature, rational, and constructive force of the rapidly developing civil society of China.

22 Translator’s Note: Friends of Nature is famous for being China’s first environmental NGO, and has been very influential in the development of both environmentalism and civil society in China. Homepage address: http://www.fon.org.cn.

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China’s NGOs confirm five common viewpoints in the report: – All governments involved should formulate a common goal to deal with climate change under the United Nations Climate Change Framework Convention. – Developed and developing countries have different responsibilities in regards to climate change. Developed countries must take the lead, drastically reducing their greenhouse gas emissions and providing technical and financial support to developing countries. Developed and developing countries should work together to promote low-carbon sustainable development globally. – The Chinese government should be more actively involved in international efforts to deal with climate change and claim more responsibility to protect the global climate while maintaining its right to development. The Chinese government should actively reform the economic development model and energy structure, conserve energy, and vigorously develop renewable energy. – Governments should formulate and implement policies to adapt to and slow down climate change based on the principle of social justice. At the same time, they should enhance weak communities and vulnerable areas in their ability to adapt to climate change. When corresponding policies, market mechanisms, and the technical methods are adopted, measures should be taken to prevent and alleviate the negative impacts on society. – Governments should encourage the public and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) to participate in the formulation of policies and the monitoring of the implementation process. It should also safeguard the legal rights of the public and NGOs. China’s environmental NGOs uphold “one earth” and “climate has no boundary” as basic values, and fully realize the complexities of climate change. To deal with and alleviate global warming not only concerns the conflict between humans and nature, but also involves various social and environmental issues including international politics, economic development, social justice, poverty, energy crisis, and industrial pollution. For this reason coping with climate change poses a great challenge. Therefore, the building of an ecological civilization and the protection of global climate require both powerful and effective governmental interventions and widespread social participation. A new

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pattern of management between governments, companies, and citizens should be developed. In April 2007, a survey on climate change and sustainable consumption conducted by China Youth Daily indicated that China’s urban residents’ “foremost wishes” center on owning spacious housing (38%), traveling abroad (21%), and purchasing family cars (12%). This result is almost the same as that of the survey carried out in Britain in 2006 on young consumers’ wishes.23 The global tide of consumer culture makes Chinese youngsters’ consumerism similar to those held by people in the West. This is unquestionably a great problem for a country as populous and lacking in resources as China. D. Public Advocacy Should Be Carried Out Actively Environmental NGOs continued to develop in a fairly rapid and smooth manner in 2007. On June 5, leaders of the State Council presided over a symposium, inviting representatives of grassroots NGOs that had made outstanding contributions to environmental protection to central government offices in Zhongnanhai, to discuss environmental problems. On December 9, the discussion on the advantages and disadvantages of building dams on the Nujiang River was included in the exam paper for candidates for civil servant positions. This discussion was initiated by environmental NGOs. These two examples show environmental NGOs are gaining more recognition by the government. 1. Chinese Public’s Environment and Resident Livelihood Index 2007 Chinese Public’s Environment and Resident Livelihood Index 2007 released by the China Environmental Culture Promotion Association best reflects public awareness and behavior in terms of environmental protection. A 2007 survey on these two aspects revealed that pollution ranks second among nine most important issues. Expense, pollution, and social security were the focal points of public concern. Pollution was cited by 46.1% of the people surveyed, an increase of 3.8% compared with 2006. Of the people surveyed, 66.9% believe that environment problems are serious in China an increase of 3.9%. Pollution has seriously affected people’s

23 “Young Consumers Support Energy Conservation and Emissions Reduction Initiative: Taking no action themselves but relying on the government,” China Youth Daily, August 20, 2007.

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daily lives: 60.7% of the people doubt food safety; 39.7% worry about the safety of interior wall paints; 25.8% are dissatisfied with the local air quality; 41.8% regard clothes material pollution as a hazard. At the same time, most people recognize the government’s efforts to improve the environment. Most people (64.4%) agree that the central government is very serious about environmental protection, an increase of 3.4% compared with 2006. As many as 73.1% of those surveyed think that Green GDP should be promoted in China. A majority (58.3%) also believes that many companies only pay attention to their own development and lack a sense of responsibility for environmental protection, while 44% of the people regard pollution because of “over emphasis on economic development.” The Chinese Public’s Environment and Resident Livelihood Index 2007 indicates that the public’s environmental protection awareness scores 42.1 points; their environmental protection behavior scores 36.6 points and their environmental protection satisfaction scores 44.7 points. These low scores should serve as a warning in regards to the Chinese public’s environmental awareness and behavior. In this aspect, public behavior obviously lags behind public awareness as almost half of the people regard themselves as being insignificant in environmental protection, and only 13.7% think of themselves as playing a very important or somewhat important role in protecting the environment.24 On one hand, this shows that the public relies heavily on the government. On the other hand, it reveals the government has not provided a good platform for the public to participate in the process. 2. Public Initiative to Conserve Energy by 20% NGOs have carried out a series of educational and publicity activities centering on global warming, energy conservation, and emissions reduction. All this has become an important part of China’s environmental protection, as shown in the chapters by Fu Tao and Kang Xue. In July 2007, more than forty NGOs from seventeen cities launched the Public Initiative to Conserve 20% Energy. It incorporated many energy-saving actions, which were proposed by different organizations with different points of emphasis, into one framework. Through training, lectures, and competitions, the Public Initiative encouraged adjusting

24 Liu Shuduo, “First Environmental Index of Resident Livelihood: 70% People Are in Favor of Green GDP,” China Economic Times, January 8, 2008.

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air-conditioners to 26°C in summer and 20°C in winter, popularized energy labels, and promoted environmentally friendly electrical appliances. The Public Initiative also promoted actions such as green commuting, green lighting, green housing, reducing the usage of plastic bags, saving energy in workplaces, organizing family energy-saving competitions, and taking energy-saving pledges. All of these activities aim to encourage people to form good habits in their daily life, work, and travels. 3. Green Commuting Kang Xue and Fu Tao both highlight how NGOs have been promoting “green commuting” as a way to save energy, improve energy efficiency, reduce pollution, and stay healthy. They encourage people to take buses, the subway, and other public transportation, as well as to walk, ride a bike or carpool in order to consume less energy and emit fewer greenhouse gases while traveling. A program called “Do not drive one day a month” began among white-collar workers in 2006 and continues to spread in 2007. From October 17 to 20, 2007, during “Good Luck, Beijing,” a test period for the Olympics, the number of associations joining the program amounted to 504, of which 407 are car clubs or drivers’ associations. 4. China’s Air Pollution Map Four months after Ma Jun (马军) established the Institute of Public and Environmental Affairs (公 与环境研究 中心) (IPE)25 in May 2006, IPE published the first water pollution data online – China’s Water Pollution Map. The map gathered data from various departments including environmental protection, water conservancy, oceanic, territorial resources, and fishery. The Map exposed more than ten thousand polluting factories including 270 famous multinational corporations noted for their efforts in environmental protection. In 2006, Ma Jun was listed among “the one hundred influential figures in the world” by Time magazine. In 2007, Ma Jun and his institute released China’s Air Pollution Map (中国空气污染地图). Like the Water Pollution Map (水污染地图), people could find out the air quality of any local city by visiting the website of China’s Air Pollution Map. This map covers more than 4,500 enterprises that emit more pollution than allowed, among which

25 Institute of Public and Environmental Affairs homepage and Water Pollution Map and Air Pollution Map: http://en.ipe.org.cn/.

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are famous national and international enterprises such as China PetroChemical Cooperation (中石化), China National Petroleum Cooperation (中石油), National Electronics (国电), China Huadian Corporation, China Huaneng Corporation, Shandong Energy Cooperation (山东 鲁能), BASF, Michelin, APP (亚洲浆纸业有限公司), and Hyosung Spandex 晓星氨纶. When Measures on Open Environmental Information (Trial) takes effect on May, 1, 2008, the environmental protection bureaus must publicize the names of enterprises whose pollution discharge exceeds the limits and who should be held responsible for major pollution incidents. In this way, public monitoring will become more effective. 5. Initiative to Reduce Plastic Bags In 2007, various public participation activities for sustainable consumption were carried out in many cities in China. The “Plastic Bag Reduction Network” established by Global Village Beijing cooperates with sixteen university associations and four supermarkets in carrying out the project of reducing plastic bags. According to the organizers’ estimates, every year Beijing city consumes nearly 10 billion plastic bags weighing 49,500 tons. Liao Xiaoyi (Sheri) (廖晓义), president of Global Village Beijing (北京地球村), stated that if each one of us can reduce the usage of plastic bags by 50% in a week, we can save about 94,000,000 bags, weighing more than 450 tons. If we can reuse plastic bags and other shopping bags, the amount of plastic bags that cause pollution and energy consumption would decrease considerably. 6. Green Figures of China 2007 “Green Figures of China of the Year Award” is one infused with “public spirit.” It praises those Chinese citizens and expatriates who have made outstanding contributions to environmental protection. The nine “Green Figures of China 2007” include: Zhang Xiaojian, professor of Environmental Science and Engineering Department, Tsinghua University, who has made great efforts in dealing water crisis of Taihu Lake; Cai Jing, correspondent for CCTV’s News Investigation Program; Huo Daishan, leader of the Huaihe River Guardians” in Henan Province and also a member of Friends of Nature; Wang Yongchen, director of Green Earth Volunteers (and author of chapter 3 in this volume); Zhao Xihai, a retired worker from Hongshi Forestry Administration in Jilin Province (吉林省); Liao Xiudong, former chief of Hong Kong Environment, Transportation and Works Bureau; Shi

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Zhengrong, president of Shangde Solar Power in Wuxi (无锡), Jiangsu Province (江苏省); Zhang Yimo, and Feng Xiaoning, famous movie directors. III. Discussion and Prospects A. How Should an “Ecological Civilization” Be Built? At the 17th Party Congress held in October 2007, Hu Jintao mentioned environmental protection many times in his report. He discussed issues regarding social development, pointing out that economic growth at the expense of the natural resources and environment is disproportionately high. In his report he said, “We must adopt an enlightened approach to development that results in expanded production, a better life and sound environmental conditions. We must build a resource-conserving and environmentally-friendly society that coordinates growth rate with the economic structure, quality, and efficiency, and harmonizes economic growth with the population, resources, and the environment, so that our people will live and work under sound environmental conditions and our economy and society will develop in a sustainable way.” In terms of accelerating the development of the national economy, the report said, “Improve energy, resources, and environmental conservation and enhance China’s capacity for sustainable development. Adhering to the basic state policy of conserving resources and the environment is vital to the immediate interests of the people and the survival and development of the Chinese nation. We must give prominence to building a resource-conserving, environmentally-friendly society in our strategy for industrialization and modernization and get every organization and family to act accordingly.” When talking about attaining the goal of building a moderately prosperous society in all respects, Hu Jintao put forward the concept of building an ecological civilization for the first time. Promoting an ecological civilization means “forming an energy- and resource-efficient and environmentally-friendly structure of industries, pattern of growth and mode of consumption. We will have a large-scale circular economy and considerably increase the proportion of renewable energy sources. The discharge of major pollutants will be brought under control and environmental quality will improve notably. Awareness of conservation will be firmly established in the whole of society.” Hu believed that by 2020 the Chinese people’s

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living standard will be greatly improved, people’s quality of life will be remarkably enhanced, and the environment will be much healthier. These remarks reflect the great significance that the environment has for the existence and development of the whole nation, proclaiming that China’s determination to abandon the traditional development model of destroying the environment and wasting energy and its resolution to carry out the strategy of sustainable development. This report is concise, clear, and practical. The concept of building an ecological civilization has further enriched and deepened the scientific outlook on development. It is a watershed moment in the modernization of Chinese society. China’s Modernization Report 2007 released by the Chinese Modernization Research Group gave China a score of 42 points in terms global ecological modernization, 17 points lower than the world’s average. China ranked 100th out of the 118 countries included in the study.26 This reminds people that China, which is now in the latter half stage of the middle period of industrialization, is faced with an enduring and tough green revolution and has a long way to go in building an ecological civilization. B. Has a Turning Point Been Reached in Environmental Protection? In the early 1990s, American economists Gene M. Grossman and Alan B. Krueger discovered that the relationship between the overall discharge of pollutants and economic development could be illustrated by an inverted U shape curve. According to their theory, in the early period of economic development, the quality of the environment could deteriorate as the economy develops. However, when it comes to a stable period of economic development, and reaches turning point, the quality of the environment will improve progressively along with economic development. This phenomenon is called the Environmental Kuznets Curve (EKC) (环境库兹涅茨曲线).27 26 “The Warning of the Water Crisis in Wuxi (无锡) City,” Changsha Evening News, June 25, 2007. 27 Environmental Kuznets Curve or EKC: The EKC holds that the relationship between economic growth and environmental quality is an inverted U-shape, according to which environmental conditions deteriorate during early stages of economic growth but begin to improve after a certain threshold of wealth is achieved. The original Kuznets Curve was named for Nobel laureate Simon Kuznets, who postulated in the 1950s that income inequality first increases and then declines with economic

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The turning point occurred in America when the average GDP per capita was 10,000 USD. In some countries, the turning point was reached when the average GDP per capita reached 6,000 USD. Because of the different ways of calculating GDP, the calculation of China’s GDP is debatable. According to data collected by the National Bureau of Statistics of China, the average GDP per capita in China in 2006 surpassed 2,000 USD for the first time. However, the World Bank calculations are based on purchasing power, concluding that China’s GDP in 2005 reached 5,300 billion USD, and the average GDP per capita surpassed 4,000 USD.28 In 2007, the energy consumption per unit of GDP in China dropped more quickly than the previous year. Sulfur dioxide (SO2) emissions as well as COD dropped for the first time, which led to an old question that has been discussed by the academic community for many years: whether a turning point in regards to environmental quality with economic development can appear with a relatively low average GDP per capita. Some Chinese government officials and scholars optimistically predict that the turning point in China will be reached soon. In fact, in early 2007, a report on the appearance of the turning point in southern part of Jiangsu Province was released, based on the fact that the average GDP per capita in Suzhou (苏州) reached 8,000 USD with a rapid economic growth of more than 20%, while the pollution dropped by 5%. The average GDP per capita in Wuxi (无锡) surpassed 7,500 USD with the 0.92 TEC per 10,000 RMB of energy consumption, which is at a lower level than the rest of China. The average GDP per capita was 4,000 USD in Changzhou (常州), where 2,500 units hold licenses for pollution discharge, occupying 90% of the units that applied for such licenses. Almost all (95%) of domestic garbage was treated, and environmental conditions continued to improve.29

growth. In 1991, economists Gene M. Grossman and Alan B. Krueger suggested the Kuznets Curve applied to the environment. It was a powerful counterargument to the once-conventional view, popular in the aftermath of the “limits to growth” enthusiasm of the 1970s that economic growth was the enemy of the environment. The EKC gained wide acceptance as a key development concept in the 1990s, including at the World Bank. 28 “World Bank’s New Report Shows China’s Economy Shrank by 40%,” Wall Street Journal, February 18, 2007. 29 Shi Yongfeng and Guo Bensheng, “A Favorable Turning Has Appeared in the Environment of Southern Jiangsu,” Xinhua Daily, January 26, 2007.

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Several months later, the Taihu Lake blue-green algae bloom incident took place, and the hope brought by the prospect of a turning point was smashed. The Southern Jiangsu Model was questioned. The hidden fact is that the local economy grows at the expense of Taihu Lake, for which no one took responsibility. The environmental crisis is still severe in China. A report about China’s environment following an 18 months’ investigation conducted by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) claims that one third of the length of all of China’s rivers are now “highly polluted,” as are 75% of its major lakes and 25% of its coastal waters. More than 17,000 towns are without sewage treatment plants meaning that approximately one billion people’s excrement is not collected or treated. The report concludes: “Although China is the world’s fourth largest economy, growing 10% a year and closing rapidly on the US, Japan, and Germany, its environmental standards are often closer to those of the poorest countries in the world.”30 This dramatic contrast leads people to be alert and reflect seriously on the future. The study conducted by the economics section of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences covering the years of 1995 to 2005 concluded that we are in the latter stage of the middle period of industrialization. Pollution and ecological destruction in many areas have gone beyond local carrying capacity. The prospects for ecological recovery and environmental protection are not at all optimistic, considering the overload of the environment, environmental debt, excessive discharge of pollutants, the irreversibility of ecological changes, and the great habitual power of traditional development model. In addition, prospects are not optimistic because some polluting enterprises in urban areas have been relocated to less developed areas where supervision is weak. Besides, new global elements such as global warming have brought about negative impacts. For these reasons, we should be very cautious in our conclusion about having reached a turning point. Instead, what we should do is to take an exceedingly careful attitude and make extra efforts to improve the environment.

30 John Vidal, “Dust, Waste and Dirty Water: the Deadly Price of China’s Miracle,” Guardian, July 18, 2007.

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C. How Should Local Special Interests Be Dealt With? 1. The Difficult Situation of Green GDP and Strategic Environmental Impact Assessment Regulations In 2004, the State Environmental Protection Administration and National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) co-launched the Green GDP Project, the full name being Research on Comprehensive Calculation of Environment and Economy (Green GDP) (综合环境与经济核算 (绿色GDP)研究). In September 2006, the first Green GDP report was released in China, showing that the national environmental degradation cost (economic losses caused by pollution) in 2004 reached 511.8 billion RMB, accounting for 3.05% of the GDP. The actual cost of controlling pollution in 2004 was 95.965 billion RMB, and the estimated cost of eliminating all pollutants reached 287.443 billion RMB. Therefore, the total cost of controlling pollution was 383.409 billion RMB, with the actual amount spent only making up 25% of this. The total cost of pollution in 2004 was estimated to account for 1.8% of the GDP. The Green GDP report for 2005 has been finished but not yet published. It is said that the pollution losses for 2005 were higher than that of 2004. The biggest breakthrough of this report is a list of statistics of pollution losses and GDP deduction index for every province, autonomous region, and municipality directly under the central government. However, this became a sensitive issue. In the end, the government declared that the publication of this report would be postponed indefinitely; giving the excuse that there is no precedent of publishing such reports by the governments of other countries. The team leader of this project confirmed that the main barrier lies in the divergent views on content and form of disclosure between SEPA and NBS. The latter believes the statistical method of Green GDP to be immature at its’ present stage, so that the environmental statistics, especially the statistics for different regions, should only be offered as a reference for the State Council in decision making, and are unsuitable for public publication and consumption. However, SEPA insisted on publication. Another obstacle came from some provincial and municipal governments that opposed publication by putting pressure on the SEPA and NBS. Although at the beginning of 2005, pilot Green GDP Projects were launched in ten provinces and municipalities, some people exhibited worry and even fear when talking about Green GDP. In July 2007, in a public inquiry conducted jointly by China Youth Daily (中国青年报) and QQ.com, 96.4% of the public agreed that “Green GDP accounting is necessary in China,” and 79.6% believed

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that “Green GDP is helpful to change the original notion held by many local governments that GDP is the only measurement for political achievements.” Only 4.4% thought, “there should be no disclosure of the Green GDP report due to the lack of precedent in other countries.” Of respondents, 85.2% maintained that it is common in their cities and regions to “achieve GDP growth at the cost of environment.”31 In 2005, when the State Environmental Protection Administration was starting to formulate regulations for strategic EIA, it declared that it would legalize the regulations as soon as possible and issue them in 2007. However, at the end of 2007, Pan Yue, Vice Minister of SEPA, revealed that due to the overlapping of functions of different departments and the over-emphasis on economic development in some places, Strategic EIA Regulations could not be issued in a timely fashion. Considering all the difficulties encountered during the drafting of the regulations, Pan Yue (潘岳) called for broad-based support for the issuing of the regulations. Recently, the draft of Strategic EIA Regulations has been submitted to the State Council and is being improved and perfected under the guidance of the Legislative Affairs Office of the State Council. 2. Negative Role Played by Local Special Interests The barriers hindering research on Green GDP and Strategic EIA Regulations best illustrate the conflicts of interest in environmental protection. As Pan Yue said, “There is always a conflict between the long-term, overall interests advocated by strategic Environmental Impact Assessment and the shortterm, local interests pursued by some local governments. This leads some people to resist this project, and even shirk their responsibility to carry out this assessment under various excuses.”32 Although the “energy conservation and emissions reduction initiative” is a positive step, there are still many problems in macro-economic regulation. There are places where big fortunes are made by a small group of people by grabbing resources and polluting the environment and thus doing harm to the majority of people and even the whole society. The expansion of high pollution and energy consuming enterprises cannot only be explained by the erroneous notion that GDP is the only measurement for government officials’ political performance. “Public Polls Show that 96.4% of the Public Supports Green GDP Accounting,” China Youth Daily, July 30, 2007. 32 Pan Yue, “Strategic EIA Legislation Postponed because of Conflicts between Departments,” Beijing News, November 4, 2007. 31

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According to some researchers, some local governments and enterprises, especially large enterprises, have formed groups to seize resources illegally. These local special interests, backed and manipulated by highranking government officials,33 have become one of the biggest obstacles in environmental protection. Environmental problems, which could considerably hinder economic development and do great damage to the state’s image, have become the bottleneck in China’s peaceful and green development. The public plays a decisive role in solving serious environmental problems in China. This shows that the road to building an ecological civilization in China will face myriad challenges. It not only calls for the transformation of the mode of economic growth, or the promotion of circular economy and energy conservation technology, but also the establishment of a new institutional and ecological civilization on the basis of political democracy and reform of the management pattern of society. All this will require full participation of the public.

33 Deng Luwen, “Cancer in Environmental Protection: Local protection and special interests,” Green Leaves 2007, No. 4.

PART I

WATER CRISIS

BLUE-GREEN ALGAE BLOOM IN TAIHU LAKE: REFLECTIONS ON POLLUTION AND DEVELOPMENT Zhang Ke

At the end of May 2007, Taihu Lake, an area known as the “land of plenty,” experienced an extraordinarily large blue-green algae bloom. This incident focused attention on the alarming fact that rivers and lakes have become dangerously polluted. The Taihu Lake algae bloom touched off rounds of questioning about the “Southern Jiangsu Model” that has guided economic development in the area. The government adopted stringent protective measures and began experimenting with new protective methods in order to combat pollution in the Taihu Lake basin. Key words: pollution in Taihu Lake, blue-green algae bloom, Southern Jiangsu Model, river basin management

I. Blue-Green Algae Bloom in Wuxi On May 28, 2007, some residents in Wuxi found that their tap water was giving out a rotten odor, which gradually grew so strong that the water was soon unfit for even laundry, much less drinking. At the same time, Wuxi (无锡) water management authorities confirmed that due to a large algae bloom, 70% of the water processing plants in Wuxi was seriously polluted. Consequently, millions of Wuxi residents found themselves suddenly faced with water shortage, and tens of millions in surrounding areas were threatened with water safety problems. A frenzied rush for bottled water started on May 29, which did not ebb until well over a month later. Wuxi Municipal Government gave its first press briefing on the incident at noon on May 30, “A variety of factors caused the algae bloom, which developed into a natural disaster and contaminated the source areas of tap water, thus the bad smell in the tap water.” On the same occasion the government also warned citizens that, “. . . since the present consolidated measures still cannot remove the smell completely, residents should boil all water before drinking.” Right after the outbreak of the incident, several government agencies adopted a combination of emergency measures to accelerate water circulation in Taihu Lake. Water flow from the Water Diversion Project

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from the Yangtze River to Taihu Lake was raised from 170m3/s to the present 240 m3/s, which was supplemented by water diverted from the neighboring Meiliang Lake (梅粱湖). While improving the water quality in source areas, an expert team expedited research to eliminate the bad smell from the tap water. On the evening of May 31, Zhang Xiaojian, director of the Water Science and Engineering Department of Tsinghua University, was invited to the expert team, and the technical problems were finally solved after a day of experiments. On June 1, water processing plants resumed normal operations. Algae blooms in Taihu Lake have been an environmental concern since the early 1980s. The first algae blooms appeared in Wuli Lake in the city of Wuxi, and in subsequent decades algae blooms broke out with more frequency and on a larger scale. In the mid to late 1980s, there were two or three algae blooms every year, which extended to the Meiliang Bay in Taihu Lake. The number of annual algae blooms increased to four to five a year from the mid-1990s, and the size of the blooms began to threaten all of Taihu Lake. In the summer of 1990, the massive algae bloom in Taihu Lake blocked the water intakes of water processing plants, forcing the plants to be closed for half a month and causing an economic loss of 200 million RMB. Monitoring in 2000 showed that the central area of Taihu Lake was seriously contaminated by algae. In recent years, algae blooms have extended beyond the lake to affect the entire Taihu Lake basin. Experts identified four major factors that have caused the algae blooms. The biggest factor is the high concentration of nutrients dumped into the lake through human activities. Under proper hydrometeorological conditions, algae propagated rapidly. Though the deterioration of water quality in some parts of Taihu Lake was brought under control, Taihu Lake still lost its first natural barrier against pollution due to inadequate protection in the upper reaches of the lake, the construction of Zhihu Port in Meiliang Bay and the Regulating Gate Project in Wujin Port. Consequently, the amount of pollutants increased sharply and the water body suffered from eutrophication. The second cause was that during January to April 2007, water temperature in Taihu Lake was higher than in normal years, which provided proper temperature condition for algae growth. The third cause was the relatively low water level in Taihu Lake between January and April, the average of which was 5cm lower than that in normal years. This had led to an increased luminous intensity in each unit water column, and stimulated algae growth together with increased water temperature. Finally, from

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January to April, the frequency of southerly winds is higher than the annual average, so algae in other lake areas tend to gather in Meiliang Bay. The lower wind speed in March and April was also favorable for the up-float of microcystins to form algae blooms. On the afternoon of May 31, Li Yuanchao, then Secretary of the CPC Provincial Committee of Jiangsu Province went to Wuxi to examine the situation and held an on-the-spot meeting. He emphasized that the government should be responsible for the people, sparing no effort to guarantee the safety of drinking water and the quality of domestic water, to safeguard people’s health and maintain social stability, especially stability in schools. From June 10 to 11, the State Council held a Joint Conference on Prevention and Control of Taihu Lake Pollution in Wuxi. Premier Wen Jiabao (温家宝) made an important instruction: decades of pollution control measures in Taihu Lake were still ineffective in eradicating the source of water pollution in this region. He pointed out that this algae bloom incident in Taihu Lake sounded a dangerous warning to which we should respond with high attention. He added that we should investigate and analyze the causes of water pollution, strengthen comprehensive management of water pollution based on present achievements and come up with specific measures to combat pollution. Delegates from relevant departments of the State Council, Jiangsu Province, Zhejiang Province and the city of Shanghai reached the consensus that the environmental situations in Taihu Lake had arrived at a critical point, and that the water quality would face more rapid deterioration if current control measures were not massively strengthened. On June 29, Premier Wen Jiabao went to Wuxi, Jiangsu to investigate the situations of water pollution and pollution control in Taihu Lake. Premier Wen emphasized that we should implement the Scientific Outlook on Development, and follow the guiding principles of “combining long-term strategy and short-term plans, addressing both existing problems and root causes, providing classified guidance, suiting our measures to different conditions, putting forward scientific planning, adopting comprehensive treatment, strengthening leadership and reinforcing implementation.” Through comprehensive, systematic, scientific and strict management and perseverance, we can curb the deteriorating trend of eutrophication in the “Three Lakes” (三湖) (Taihu Lake, Chaohu Lake and Dianchi Lake), improve water quality and gradually restore the original natural beauty of the “Three-Lake” areas, so as to achieve the healthy circulation of the ecological system

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in the lake basins and maintain a harmonious relationship between nature and humans. II. Developmental Pains of Wealthy Areas The Taihu Lake basin is the core region of the Yangtze River Delta and ranks among the wealthiest areas of China. This area boasts 3% of China’s total population, 12% of the national GDP, and a GDP per capita 3.5 times the national average. Its importance in Jiangsu Province is also noteworthy: with the four cities (Suzhou (苏州), Wuxi, Changzhou (常州), Zhenjiang) and ten counties (cities) under their jurisdiction, the Taihu Lake basin takes up 20.6% of the population, 46.2% of GDP and 44.3% of total fiscal revenue of the province. These statistics attest to the essential position this region occupies in the development of Jiangsu Province and the whole country.1 Since the 1980s, the Taihu Lake region has experienced rapid industrialization and urbanization, developing into a key center of regional economic development in China. However, the impressive economic takeoff was achieved at huge environmental costs: the Taihu Lake region is becoming a public “dirty water basin” in the Yangtze River Delta. According to monitoring statistics, presently water quality in the drinking water source areas in Taihu Lake basin is mainly at Level II and Level III, with 32% of the water undrinkable. In some areas, water quality in the drinking water source areas is even below IV. Jiangsu and Zhejiang provinces, reputed for their rich water resources, always impress people as a region crisscrossed with rivers and lakes. However, according to information provided by water administration departments in the two provinces, the Taihu Lake region has long been faced with difficulty making ends meet in terms of water supply. Water usage in the Taihu Lake basin has reached 31.6 billion cubic meters, while the water body in the basin keeps an average of 17.7 billion cubic meters for years. Moreover, due to rapid economic development, sharp population growth, and continued increase of pollutant discharge, pollution-induced water shortage was also a problem in this region.

1 Liang, Baohua (Secretary of Provincial Committee of CPC in Jiangsu Province). “Speech Delivered at the Provincial Work Conference on the Control of Water Pollution in Taihu Lake,” July 7, 2007.

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Seventy percent of the rivers and lakes in Jiangsu Province have been seriously polluted, and most of the urban rivers in Nanjing, Wuxi, Xuzhou and Nantong fare no better. The river water stinks and fish and shrimps disappear. In Southern Jiangsu, with economic development and industrialization, environmental problems become increasingly pressing. The intensified use of chemical fertilizers and agricultural chemicals and the discharge of domestic and industrial wastewater have made 80% of the urban rivers suffer from deteriorated water quality. Southern Jiangsu has become a typical example of pollution-induced water shortage. “Now people have fat purses and new buildings, but they also have blackened water and frequent diseases, and this worries many people,” some people said. The succession of algae bloom crises put people in Southern Jiangsu into a dilemma. Li Yuanchao said that for years Jiangsu Province, as a developed province on the east coast, had set many “records” in China: inviting the largest amount of foreign investments, maintaining the narrowest urban-rural gap . . . Yet water quality of Taihu Lake is one of the very few criteria that render Jiangsu the last one in national rankings. According to research conducted by the Nanjing (南京) Institute of Geography and Limnology of the Chinese Academy of Science (中国科学院), only 61.9% of the 21 major rivers flowing in and out of Taihu Lake meets satisfactory standards, and the satisfactory rate of water quality of 45 major rivers is as low as 53.3%.2 Currently external pollution sources of Taihu Lake mainly consist of industrial pollution, agricultural pollution and urban pollution. Among them, industrial pollution mainly comes from printing and dyeing industries, chemical material and chemical product industries, and food industry. Though in recent years, emissions standards have been set up in Taihu Lake region, pollution emissions still increased rapidly due to rapid economic growth. With accelerated industrial upgrading, those low-tech industries with high pollution are moved to rural areas where supervision is relatively loose. As a result, huge amounts of industrial pollutants enter Taihu Lake through river networks, making it more difficult to control pollution in Taihu Lake. The current mode of agricultural production also aggravates agricultural pollution. According to statistics, the amount of chemical fertilizers

2 “Deterioration of the Ecological System in Taihu Lake Leads to Serious Water Crisis in Wuxi,” Xinhua News Agency, June 6, 2007.

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used per hectare per year in Taihu Lake region has sprung from 24.4 kilos in 1979 to the current 66.7 kilos. In contrast, the amount of chemical fertilizers used per hectare per year in many developed countries is not allowed to exceed 22.5 kilos. Moreover, population density in the Taihu Lake region has reached 1,000 people per km2, making it one of the most densely populated areas in the world. The acceleration of urbanization and influx of migrant population has lead to a dramatic increase in urban wastewater emissions. As urbanization spreads, former waterless toilets have been transformed into standard toilets. These scattered domestic pollution sources have become the major source of nitrogen in Taihu Lake and its river network. Using remote sensing estimates, the Nanjing Institute of Geography and Limnology of Chinese Academy of Sciences (中国科学院) has concluded that eastern Taihu Lake covers an area of 131 km2, with 54 km2, or 41% of the total area, netted and used for fish cultivation. Presently the average deposition rate of the eastern bottom of Taihu Lake is about 1.24 centimeters per year. If the current rate sustains, the lake bottom deposition will reach 3 meters in 50 years and eastern Taihu Lake will disappear into a huge swamp. The city of Wujiang is located at the downstream of Taihu Lake. During the 1950s and 1960s, because of food shortage and the government’s emphasis on food production, 40,000 mu3 of the lake was filled for agricultural farming. Starting from the mid-1990s, restructuring of agriculture led to the rapid development of aquaculture, with 61,000 mu devoted to crab breeding by 2007. Unfortunately, the turning of water bodies into netted aquaculture areas or reclaimed land has interfered with the water flows in the eastern portion of Taihu Lake, speeding up its transformation into a swamp and causing water quality to decline. Numerous small enterprises are located in the rural areas of Jiangsu and Zhejiang provinces. These enterprises generate enormous wealth, but their water consumption is also shockingly excessive. According to statistics, the environmental carrying capacity of Jiangsu Province is six times that of the national level, and that of the Taihu Lake region even doubles the provincial level. The population density in the Taihu Lake region is approximately 1,000 people per km2, or eight times that of the national average, making it one of the most densely populated

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Translator’s note: one mu equals 666.7 square meters.

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areas in China. In 2006, the emissions capacity of COD (chemical oxygen demand) in Taihu Lake was 370, 000 tons, yet actual emissions totaled 510,000 tons. Currently the nutrition enrichment level in Taihu Lake has reached a critical point and its water quality has been declining rapidly. During the Tenth Five-Year Plan, the Jiangsu provincial government invested over 8 billion RMB and constructed 176 comprehensive water treatment projects in the Taihu Lake basin, including 77 sewage treatment plants. However, the problem was not solved. According to 2006 monitoring statistics released by environmental protection departments, the phosphorus level in Taihu Lake was at Level IV, while nitrogen level was below Level V. Throughout the year, water quality in Taihu Lake was at a pitiful Level V-.4 Research shows that the environmental carrying capacity and land resources around Taihu Lake have been unable to sustain the rapid growth of population, industrialization, and urbanization in the area. According to statistics, COD and ammonia nitrogen emissions from the six major industries of textile, chemicals, metallurgy, papermaking, electroplating, and brewing take up 65% and 63.4% of the total industrial emissions in Taihu Lake basin. The party committee and provincial government of Jiangsu Province adopted stricter water protection standards in the Taihu Lake basin, in accordance with internationally advanced technologies. The Jiangsu provincial government also decided to close 2,150 small chemical enterprises by the end of 2008, and to require other enterprises to build water treatment facilities to reduce pollution. Experts have made constant appeals to allow Taihu Lake to recover by reducing over-exploitation and banning the inflow of wastewater so that Taihu Lake can decompose the existing pollutants. Experts believe that it will take 10 to 15 years to improve the surrounding environment and restore the eco-system back to its original state. During this extended period, Taihu Lake needs care and protection from every one of us.

4 Liang Baohua, Secretary of the Jiangsu Committee of the CPC, speech at a working session on controlling water pollution of Taaihu Lake, July 7, 2007.

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The large algae bloom in Taihu Lake caused people to question the “Southern Jiangsu Model.” Provincial governor Li Yuanchao stated that the algae bloom wrought unprecedented damage to the province. Not only have people begun to doubt the development mode of Jiangsu, but they also question the achievements of Suzhou (苏州), Wuxi and Changzhou (常州). None of these cities qualifies as a well-off city and it is time we started making up for our missed lessons.5 The Southern Jiangsu Model is a development model in which the economies of towns and small cities are stimulated through the development of rural collective economy and industry. Taking advantage of the market environment of big cities, this model solved the problem of surplus labor in rural areas and promoted the industrialization and urbanization of counties and towns. This model debuted in the 1970s, took shape in the 1980s, and finally developed into a major model for the industrialization of the local economy of this area. As early as the initial stages of the Reform Era, Southern Jiangsu’s township enterprises mushroomed with impressive vitality. Unchained from the planned economy, these enterprises scored development miracles one after another, formulating the unique “Southern Jiangsu Model.” Rapid economic development drastically transformed people’s lives and the appearance of towns and cities; however, it also generated problems such as pollution and excessive use of resources. Township enterprises usually obtain raw materials and emit their pollution on the spot. They utilize environmental resources without paying the cost, or what they pay is far below the cost for the protection and restoration of the environment. This externalization of enterprises’ production costs has caused pollution and damage to the eco-system with nobody taking the corresponding responsibility. Experts argue that it might take only 20 to 30 years to build a modern industrial city; yet it has taken hundreds of years to form the distinctive culture in these southern towns and cities with their curving bridges and flowing rivers. Apart from the damage to the natural environment, should we also take into serious consideration the damage to cultural environment?

5 Li Yuanchao. “Algae Bloom incident has subverted the achievement of overall well-being in Suzhou (苏州), Wuxi and Changzhou (常州)” China Business News, July 7, 2007.

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According to a report by the Environmental Protection Bureau of Jiangsu province, the underlying social and economic causes of the environmental problems in Taihu Lake region are market failure and imbalance in government decision-making. These in turn were caused by the local government’s strong desire to eliminate poverty and catch up with developed countries, even at the cost of the environment. “The pollution of Taihu Lake exhibits its devastating effect on the water, but its root cause is the many enterprises on the lakeshore: the ultimate cause is the extensive development mode.” After the algae bloom, officials in Wuxi have reiterated their painful realization that the previous development mode is “killing the hen for its eggs.” Yang Weize, CPC secretary of Wuxi), observes that it is necessary to learn the lesson from past experience and endeavor to integrate small enterprises into intensive complexes, and scattered rural industrial enterprises should be mustered to theme industrial areas. Ma Jianguo, vice mayor of Wuxi, admits that Wuxi has been running blindly under the baton of GDP for decades, and it is time to reflect upon the development model. Several years ago, Jiangsu Province had already realized the environmental deterioration in the Sunan area. Back in 2005, the “New Southern Jiangsu Model” was proposed, which emphasized developing in a scientific and harmonious way. Its most obvious characteristic is the priority given to the benefits of the people, to science and education, and environmental protection. It is believed that during the transitional period when GDP per capita is increasing from 5,000 dollars to 10,000 dollars in the Sunan region, the development mode should shift from “speed over quality” to “quality over speed.” 　IV. New Measures to Strengthen the Treatment of Pollution in Taihu Lake In 2006, four cities in the Taihu Lake region, Zhangjiagang, Jiangyin, Kunshan, and Changshu, passed the national eco-city assessment to become the first eco-cities, and 10 other county-level municipalities passed the assessment for national-level model ecological areas. However, amidst these ecological models is the “slop basin” of Taihu Lake. This discouraging fact caused a re-examination of the current system of assessing environmental protection, waste discharge standards, the control of gross discharge, and the carrying capacity of Taihu Lake— aspects useful for the investigation of the key factors that caused the algae bloom crisis.

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Since the current discharge volume of wastewater into Taihu Lake far exceeds its maximum accommodation capacity, Taihu Lake would not recover even if all the factories met the required standard. If the discharge volume cannot be reduced dramatically, however much pollution taxes are levied, Taihu Lake will still be a serious situation. Having learned the lesson from the algae bloom in Taihu Lake, Jiangsu provincial government was quick in establishing an environmental protection and supervision centre in Sunan to strengthen the environment supervision of the Taihu Lake basin. The provincial government’s editorial committee officially defined the responsibilities of this newly established organization as follows: 1. To make forecasts and early warnings of environmental crises throughout the province 2. To collect, report, announce and release information about environmental crises 3. To respond to and deal with damage caused by environmental crises 4. To organize investigation and evaluation of the degree of pollution to the eco-environment 5. To rehabilitate degraded ecosystems 6. To supervise and urge all of the local governments below the provincial level to formulate contingency plans in case of future emergencies and to train emergency response staff Pursuant to the iron hand policy of pollution control proposed by the provincial party committee and provincial government, Shi Zhenhua, head of Environmental Protection Department of Jiangsu Province, proclaimed that his department would do its best to strengthen the enforcement of environmental protection laws and would put forward water quality requirements for the major rivers flowing into the lake. According to him, the department will act in cooperation with other relevant departments to implement environmental policies such as the control of dams and sluices, so that water from sources of inferior quality will be kept outside the lake. Meanwhile, the system of “substitutive execution” will be carried out so that environmental protection departments can authorize the mandatory transformation or takeover of those pollution-treating facilities that fail to stabilize discharges by area enterprises.

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By the end of June 2008, the Environmental Protection Bureau of Jiangsu Province will establish 37 new automatic water quality-monitoring stations, distributed at the boundaries of neighboring local administrative regions within the Taihu Lake basin, along the major feeding rivers, and in the centralized drinking water sources. In addition, the installation of 280 state- and province-sponsored key pollution sourcemonitoring systems will be completed. These will be networked so that an automatic monitoring system will cover the entire lake basin. The aim is to transform Taihu Lake region into the most competent area for analysis and early warning of environmental crises and automatic monitoring. Another decision made by the Jiangsu provincial government enjoins that each county and city in the Taihu Lake region should appropriate 10%–20% of their yearly increase of fiscal revenue for pollution treatment in Taihu Lake beginning from 2007. Other channels should also be explored to finance pollution treatment in Taihu Lake so that investment in environmental protection comprises 3% of the area’s total GDP in the year 2010. In 2007, the financial department of Jiangxi Province (江西省) pumped 300 million RMB into an initial fund for the prevention and treatment of water pollution in the province, as well as a special fund dedicated to the Taihu Lake basin. Recently, the provincial government is working on the adjustment of relevant financial policies and compensation mechanisms, which should attract investors interested in the construction and operation of the environmental infrastructure in the Taihu Lake region. The pollution treatment fund will be used for the following: the treatment of municipal domestic sewage, disposal of blue-green algae, protection of drinking water sources, restoration of aquatic ecology, and the planting of protective forests. With the construction of ecological projects such as artificial wetlands by the year 2010, 250 thousand mu of forest will be planted in the Level I protection area of Taihu Lake. A protective forest greenbelt around the lake will effectively absorb pollutants. Besides, plants and microorganisms that can purify water will be added in order to increase the self-purification capabilities of the lake. In August 2007, the Wuxi Environmental Protection Bureau proclaimed that a series of policies and measures would be introduced to strengthen the enforcement of environmental protection laws. Reducing total discharges remains the key task for future environmental protection, and will be incorporated into the evaluation system for leaders’

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performances. Also, leaders will be held accountable for the water quality of feeding rivers, which are to be checked more strictly to keep out waters that fail to meet the required standards. At the same time, the department in charge will spare no effort to block up any vent of polluted water from flowing into the lake or the feeding rivers of the lake. The 37 factories around the lake that have been listed as the most polluting ones will have to go through a thorough overhaul. If, after the overhaul, a factory still cannot meet the required standards, they will be banned from operation and other competent factories will be obliged by the bureau to take over the operation instead. With all these policies implemented, it is believed that the goal of zero emissions of polluted water by the end of this year will be achieved. Moreover, an investigation of the factories alongside the 23 major feeding rivers—a distance of ten kilometers will be traced up each waterway—will be conducted and all pollution sources that discharge polluted water directly into the rivers will be blocked by the end of 2008. Meanwhile, three key areas for blocking emissions and pollution control have been identified: the border area between north Yixing City and Changzhou (常州) City, the border area between east Jiangyin City and Changshu City, and the downtown area. Wuxi City is now preparing to establish an Environmental Supervisory Bureau, which will be equipped with improved facilities to supervise and monitor all of the major waterways. The construction of water quality monitoring systems at each water intake area is also under way. The city government has been working hard to construct 14 automatic monitoring stations in Taihu Lake in order to improve state-, province- and city-level water quality monitoring systems. On-line automatic monitoring systems at key polluting sources will be expanded to ensure that COD on-line monitoring systems are installed in all the state- and province-controlled polluting factories and 291 key polluting sources. Development zones above the municipal level should accommodate enough water treatment facilities and pipeline networks. New policies concerning water quality standards, the evaluation of river management, the discharge permit system and the paid use of pollutant discharge right should all be introduced soon. Besides administrative measures, experts also suggest market-oriented means including emissions license trading to solve the pollution problem in the Taihu Lake region. This region boosts a relatively mature developed market economy. Only in areas with economically mature

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regions such as the Taihu Lake region can emissions license trading achieve its desired success. Jiangsu provincial government launched the pilot programs with the support of the National Development and Reform Commission, Ministry of Finance and State Environmental Protection Administration. In December 2007, Jiangsu Environmental Protection Bureau announced that the final plan for emissions license trading was officially decided, putting an end to decades of free pollution discharges by enterprises in the Taihu Lake region. Beginning in the year 2008, a pilot project for COD emissions license trading was initiated in the lake region, with prices for initial purchases of emissions right assessed and ratified as follows: 10.5 RMB per kilogram of COD for chemical enterprises, 5.2 RMB for dyeing and printing enterprises, 1.8 RMB for paper-making enterprises, 2.3 RMB for brewing enterprises and 4.5 RMB for all other enterprises. The price list will be an unyielding restriction on polluting enterprises in the Taihu Lake basin. According to professional analysis, the price that key polluting enterprises have to pay for emissions licenses is twice the cost of pollution treatment. For example, if a chemical enterprise is to discharge 500 tons of COD, then it has to pay 5.25 million RMB to purchase the license for that amount of emissions. This pilot project covers Wuxi City, Changzhou City, Suzhou City, Jurong County, Danyang County and Gaochun County in the Taihu Lake basin, with 266 polluting enterprises chosen as participants in the pilot project. Based on the results of the pilot project, in 2009 Jiangsu provincial government will launch another pilot project of ammonia, nitrogen and total phosphor emissions license trading, and establish a trading market for emissions licenses at the municipal level in Taihu Lake basin. From the year 2010, a market for trading emissions licenses for major pollutants will take shape in the Taihu Lake region. Background Information: What is Blue-Green Algae? Blue-green algae is one of the oldest and most primordial plant phylum. Generally speaking, it contains much chlorophyll and phycocyanin and therefore appears cyan, though sometimes it is red when it contains much phycoerythrin. Many kinds of algae are capable of trapping nitrogen in the air, which helps fertilize the soil and increase crop production. Other kinds are edible, such as the well-known nostoc flogelliforme

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and nostoc commune. However, when living in nutritious waters, some kinds of blue algae tend to propagate exponentially and form on the surface of the water a layer of foam which is cyan in color and fishy in smell, creating the so-called “algal bloom.” A few kinds will even produce toxin, which aggregates the deterioration of water quality and brings great harm to aquatic animals, humankind and livestock.

WATER CRISIS IN CHINESE CITIES IN 2007 Jiang Mingzhuo

Water pollution has become a serious problem in China as many cities do not have safe drinking water. The seriousness of this problem became exceedingly apparent in 2007 as a wave of water pollution incidents caused a wave of towns and cities shut down their water supply systems because they were overburdened by pollution, making the drinking water unsafe for drinking. Unfettered economic development, urbanization, and industrialization have caused excessive pollution, especially in areas with poor water resources. The installation of water quality measurement systems as well as new laws and procedures are being implemented as countermeasures to water pollution. Key words: city, water crisis, drinking water, pollution

China is severely lacking in water resources, with per capita water resources below a quarter of the world’s average. Among its more than 600 cities, more than 400 are suffering from water shortages and 110 cities are plagued by severe shortages. The national water shortage reaches 60 billion cubic meters on average. The shortage is especially pronounced in the northern parts of China, including the Yellow River, Huaihe River, Hai River (海河), and Liao River (遼河) watersheds where the per capita water resource is a third that of the national average. Water shortages and pollution are two urgent problems confronting China. Water pollution is becoming much worse, causing water quality to deteriorate further. Two environmental accidents have occurred every day, on average, since the end of 2005, 70% of which are related to water pollution. Water pollution causes significant economic losses and thus constrains the socioeconomic and environmental development of these river basins. According to The 2004 Report for Integrating Environmental and Economic Accounting in China, jointly published by the State Environmental Protection Administration (SEPA) and the State Statistics Bureau, pollution caused 5,118 billion RMB in economic losses in 2004, representing 3.05% of total GNP. Water pollution caused 2,863 billion RMB worth of environmental damage, accounting for more than half of the total cost of pollution. Even worse, water pollution seriously threatens the safety of drinking water. There was a deluge of water-pollution-related environmental

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accidents in 2007, making combating water pollution an urgent issue, especially in urban areas. I. Unsafe Urban Water Sources Water resources are critical for urban development. Historically, most cities flourished near abundant water sources. Cities rely on sufficient quantities of safe water in order to develop, making them vulnerable to water crises. In 2005, the water supply in Harbin was cut off because of water pollution in the Songhua River (松花江). The water supplies in many other cities were subsequently suspended because of the pollution at their water sources. Fortunately, these crises were controlled quickly. It was not until 2007, triggered by a blue-green algae bloom in Wuxi that drinking water safety started to arouse people’s attention. On May 28, 2007, a large blue-green algae bloom appeared in Taihu Lake, polluting the water supply for most of the urban areas in Wuxi (无锡), leaving 3 million residents without drinking water. Shortly afterwards, blue-green algae also appeared in Chaohu Lake and Dianchi Lake. SEPA dispatched six inspection teams to investigate pollution in the Yellow, Yangtze, Huaihe, and Hai River basins. The results were astonishing: pollution had been prevalent for some time in all four areas and had “affected the very survival of the people in the areas.”1 Less than a month later, Yidu (宜都市) in Hubei Province also suffered a water supply shutdown. On June 22, heavy rainfall in Yichang (宜昌) caused scoria and polluted water from a manganese plant in Changyang to be flushed into the Qingjiang River (清江). On June 23, the mile-long pollution slick flowed into Yidu. In order to ensure the safety of the drinking water, the city cut off its water supply completely for a day. On July 2, the tap water in Muyang County in Jiangsu Province became yellow and very smelly due to industrial discharges in the upper reaches of the water source. The water supply was cut off from that afternoon until noon on July 4, leaving 200,000 people with no running water for more than 40 hours.

1 Interview with Pan Yue, Vice-Minister of SEPA, China News Weekly, July 6, 2007.

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On July 5, a blue-green algae bloom emerged in the Xinlicheng reservoir in Changchun (长春市), Jilin Province (吉林省), reproducing and spreading very rapidly. The municipal government of Changchun decided to stop taking water from this reservoir and to switch to another water source. As a result, about 100,000 people in Changchun had to live with low water pressure and about 20,000 were left without tap water. Similar accidents occurred in the city of Lengshuijiang (冷水江 市) and the county of Xinhua in Hunan Province (湖南省). On the night of July 26, some lead and zinc particles from Zhongtai Mining Industry Company leaked into Zijiang River (资江). Lengshuijiang and Xinhua, which took water from the river, were forced to cut off their water supplies. Approximately 40,000 people had no access to water until July 28. On July 21, the Water Quality Management Bureau (水质管理部) of Jinan (济南市), Shandong Province received a report of a large-scale fish die-off in Wohushan Reservoir (卧虎山水库), especially among silver carps over 30cm long. Experts in the Aquatic Products Research Center of Shandong Academy of Agricultural Sciences found a specific kind of algae in the gills of the dead silver carps. This disease was named “China Algae Disease” since the algae in the reservoir had caused it. On August 1, the Water Supply and Drainage Center of the city reexamined the water of the reservoir. The test found that nitrogen and dissolved oxygen exceeded established safety standards. The water sample was also smellier and muddier than acceptable. The city’s water plants stopped accepting water from Wohushan Reservoir on August 3. The number of extensive water supply shutdowns in major cities has led people to pay attention to safe drinking water issues both in cities and in the countryside. The Monthly Report of Centralized Drinking Water Source Quality in 113 Key Environmental Protection Cities (113个环境保护 重点城市集中式饮用水源地水质月报), released in early June 2006, presented alarming data. The water quality of 16 cities (14% of the key cities) and 74 drinking water sources (20.1% of the total) failed to meet established safety standards. This means that 5.27 billion tons of water, or a third of the water used by these cities’ residents, was below acceptable safety levels. The problem of unsafe drinking water in cities has existed for a long time. There are seven major water systems in China, with the overall water quality being relatively low. Tests carried out in recent years have found that the water quality of Zhujiang River and the Yangtze River

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(长江) is relatively high, that the quality of Liao (遼河) River, Huaihe River (淮河), Yellow River (黄河), and Songhua River (松花江) are relatively low, and that the Hai (海河) River is severely polluted. Major pollutants in these rivers are ammonium nitrate, BOD, permanganate, and oil-based products. In the 100 trans-provincial sections of the seven water systems, water qualities of Levels I to III, Levels IV to V and worse than Level V make up 36%, 40% and 24% of the waterways, respectively.2 Meanwhile, lakes in China suffer from the problem of severe eutrophication. Among the 28 key lakes and reservoirs monitored by the state, only 28% of them meet the standards for Levels II and III, and 43% of the lakes have water quality worse than Level V.3 Water pollution in China is extending to entire river basins, threatening water sources. When surface water is polluted, the pollution permeates into deeper strata. Nowadays the groundwater in nearly half of the cities in China is polluted. In addition, according to the report submitted by the Environment and Resources Committee of the National People’s Congress, in the entire Huaihe River valley, 80% of the shallow groundwater has deteriorated to Class V status and has lost its biological functions. In addition, some parts of the groundwater between 50 and 300 meters deep have also been polluted.4 The pollution of water sources threatens the safety of drinking water. Because of severe water pollution, 20% of key cities’ respective water supplies are considered to have Level III pollution. Apart from exceeding regular indicators, many cities’ centralized drinking water supplies contain harmful microorganisms. Unfortunately, polluted urban water supplies have become normal in China. More disturbing is the fact that limitations in both the methods and indicators used when measuring pollution means that the known pollution is just a small tip of the iceberg. Nowadays, COD density is used as the main indicator when measuring the severity of water pollution. The higher the density is, the more the oxygen is consumed in the lake water, and therefore the more serious the pollution is. However, it is just one aspect of the water pollution problem. Even if we add up the “major pollution indicators” such as total phosphorus, total nitroTranslator’s note: See the introductory chapter for China’s water pollution classification system. 3 Meng Wei, Zheng Binghui, and Zhang Yuan, “Dealing with Water Pollution Calls for the Management of the River Basins,” Chinese Economic Report, No. 5, 2007. 4 “China Water Pollution Crisis,” Fortune and Economy, September 2007. 2

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gen, ammonium nitrate, BOD, and permanganate we still do not get the entire picture. Actually, the components of industrial wastewater are much more complex than can be covered by regular tests. Many chemicals in wastewater can cause deformities, cancers, and mutations. Chen Xiaohong, Deputy Minister of Public Health, has admitted that the current drinking water monitoring and testing system is unable to ensure urban drinking water safety.5 On July 1, 2007, China’s new “Drinking Water Health Standard” was put into effect. The number of indicators for water quality increased from 35 items to 106 items, and 42 of which are mandatory. However, the items and the schedule for implementation of the non-regular indicators and limit levels are to be decided by provincial governments, based on their specific conditions. All of the indicators are supposed to be applied no later than July 1, 2012. Yet of the more than 3,000 water plants in over 660 cities in China, no more than 10 can perform all of the 106 tests, less than 15% can test the 42 mandatory items, and approximately 51% have no testing ability at all.6 In most cities, currently available data is insufficient in deciding the safety of the drinking water. II. The Cost of Anti-Nature Urban Development China’s large population and economic growth caused water pollution. The explosion of urban populations, especially along the east coast has made it very difficult for urban planners to take into account the affordability of water resources. In addition, industrial development in China has been unbalanced towards a few water-intensive and heavily polluting industries such as paper mills, breweries, chemical processing, and dyeing. Energy consumption per unit of production by companies in China is about 10 times that of the US, 20 times that of Japan and 6 times that of Germany.7 In addition, industrial pollution has not been effectively

5 Chen Xiaohong, Deputy Minister of the Ministry of Public Health, speech on “The 3rd National Forum on Environment and Health,” November 21, 2007, Beijing. 6 Song Lanhe, Deputy Director of Urban Water Supply Quality Monitoring Center of the Ministry of Construction, speech on “The 3rd National Forum on Environment and Health,” November 21, 2007, Beijing. 7 Meng Wei, Zheng Binghui, and Zhang Yuan, “Dealing with Water Pollution Calls for the Management of River Basins,” Chinese Economic Report, No. 5, 2007.

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controlled and recycling is under-utilized. For instance, the recycling rate of industrial water in China is 55%, compared to a 75% recycling rate in developed countries. Similarly, China’s petrochemical industry discharges 2 to 5 times more pollution per ton of oil product than that of developed countries. Moreover, due to historical reasons, a large number of water-intensive and heavily polluting sewage-discharging enterprises are located in areas comparatively lacking in water resourses, thus exacerbating water shortages and pollution problems in those areas.8 Pollution in China’s rural areas is also a serious problem. According to an investigation in 2004, roughly 50% of the total nitrogen and phosphorus in Taihu, Chaohu, and Dianchi Lakes resulted from agricultural pollution, making it difficult to control eutrophication.9 For instance, statistics show that in the Taihu Lake watershed, the annual consumption of chemical fertilizer per hectare of cultivated land increased from 24.4 kg in 1979 to its current level of 66.7 kg. Some developed countries, in contrast, recommend that no more than 22.5 kg of chemical fertilizer be used per hectare of farmland. Outdated infrastructure such as sewage disposal facilities is another cause of China’s urban water crisis. Urban sewage treatment in China started 30 to 40 years later than developed countries, with sewage pipelines lagging by more than 100 years. The amount of domestic sewage in urban centers is rising rapidly while the sewage treatment rate in China’s cities and towns is only 51.9%. Half of the cities in China do not have sewage disposal plants at all. In addition, among the cities equipped with sewage processing facilities, only half function properly. The disposal amounts of some sewage treatment plants do not reach 20% of the designed disposal capacity due to problems with sewage collection networks.10 Taihu Lake is a good example. The population density in this area has reached 1,000 people per km2, one of the highest in the world. A large amount of untreated domestic sewage is discharged into Taihu Lake, overwhelming sewage disposal facilities to the point that the Ibid. Xie Zhenhua, former Director of SEPA in speech, “Water Pollution Prevention and Treatment in Key River Basins During the Tenth Five-Year Program Period,” May 2004. 10 Meng Wei, Su Yibin, Zhang Binghui, “Analysis of the Current situation & Control Strategies of Water Pollution in River Basins in China,” Journal of China Institute of Water Resources and Hydropower Research, No. 4, 2004. 8 9

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treatment plants have become a source of pollution themselves. The Taihu Basin Bureau of the Ministry of Water Resources conducted an investigation in the upper reaches of the Taihu basin that found that of the 16 companies whose wastewater and sewage discharge exceeded their discharge quotient by more than 50%, two were sewage treatment plants. One of the two plants had a disposal capacity of 20,000 tons per day but received more than 40,000 tons of sewage a day. Changchun serves as another example. Its water supply was shut down because of a blue-green algae bloom in 2007. The city has a sewage treatment plant and there was no direct pollution at its main water source. Nonetheless, the city’s water became polluted by water from the upstream Yitong river, where there are no sewage disposal facilities to clean the domestic water dumped directly into the waterway. To summarize, the environmental quality of various waters in China is deteriorating because of the low sewage disposal level, limited water recycling and large amounts of sewage discharged directly into rivers and lakes. Furthermore, the ineffective control of industrial pollution, agricultural pollution, and urban domestic pollution has led to an explosion in the number of Chinese cities facing water crises. III. Rehabilitation and Countermeasures After years of uneven success in reducing and controlling pollution, the reasons for the worsening water crisis in China have become quite evident: low standards in terms of industrial discharge, the violation of regulations by businesses with the complicity of local governments, inefficient construction, and functioning of sewage treatment plants due to financial restraints, and weak administrative supervision and punishment. Therefore, the root cause lies in governance. Mr. Ger Berghamp, Head of Water Program at IUCN, has said that the world’s current water crisis is not a crisis of water resources, but a crisis of water management and utilization. We should thus use water resources in a more efficient and sustainable way.11

11 Liu Kunzhe, “Water Management is Key to Dealing with the Water Crisis in the World—an Interview with Ger Berghamp, Head of Water Program at IUCN,” World Environment, No. 5, 2006.

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Inadequate management of water resources mainly causes the water crises in China. To be specific, environmental management in China is not based on the ecological characteristics of the river basin or local level of socioeconomic development. Furthermore, the administrative capacity of local officials is insufficient, and regulatory system needs to be improved. In particular, research on environmental benchmarks for marine environments is lacking, and standards regarding discharges and marine environmental quality are far from being practical. This impedes the implementation of effective environmental management in China. The management of marine systems should shift from pollution prevention and treatment to ecological management. Also, rather than the parallel management of land and water, comprehensive management of water and land together is needed. The government should formulate administrative measures that emphasize the importance of watershed ecosystem health. The government should also establish a technical system of river basin management based on watersheds and improve the system of environmental monitoring indicators. Finally, the government should be more systematic when formulating chemical standards, monitoring eutrophication and aquatic life, and evaluating the health of lake and river ecosystems. The government should also increase investment in sewage disposal facilities, improve the disposal rate in cities, strengthen the maintenance of sewage disposal networks, and enhance the disposal ability of existing sewage treatment plants. Existing urban sewage treatment techniques and equipment should be used more efficiently in reducing the phosphorus and nitrogen as well as the removal of organisms in order to reduce the eutrophication of lakes. Environmental monitoring and emergency systems should also be improved. Inadequate monitoring measures, unsound laws and regulation, insufficient legislature for supervision and law enforcement, and a lack of environmental responsibility leads some companies to discharge sewage into the waterways without any treatment. Some sewage disposal plants even discharge sludge directly into rivers, exacerbating the pollution problem and thwarting other efforts to improve the marine environment. Laws and regulations regarding the management of river basins should be improved. Companies should strictly adhere to discharge quotients and environmental quality standards. The government should strengthen law enforcement when companies violate these regulations.

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China should also consider establishing a multi-dimensional and comprehensive environmental monitoring system of river basins, and establishing and improving the management of environmental monitoring systems overall. In addition, the ability of monitoring and testing drinking water supplies should be enhanced, disclosing the test results to the public to ensure the health of the people. China should also formulate stratified standards in light of the financial strength of cities, mandating that cities conduct water quality monitoring of their drinking water supply. Currently, 19 cities in China produce regular reports on the quality of their water supply, and more cities should follow suit. The northern branch of Shanghai Water Supply has been releasing reports on the annual water quality to users since February 2001, and this practice should be encouraged in other metropolises. Presently, the quality standards of drinking water supplies in China do not include any indicators of public health. The departments of water resources, health, construction and environmental protection should work together to formulate such standards and implement them strictly. This will increase the wastewater treatment standards and guarantee the safety of the water supply at its source. Only this will insure a safe drinking and domestic water supply for residents, especially urban residents.

A HEALTH CHECKUP ON THE ECOLOGY OF THE YANGTZE RIVER Wang Yongchen

In March 2007, Protection and Development of the Yangtze River in 2007, known as the “Health Checkup Report” for the Yangtze River, was released, thus arousing public concern about ecological problems such as hydropower development, the ecological impact of the Three Gorges Dam, and the environmental changes of the Yangtze River. Key words: Yangtze River (长江), Three Gorges Dam, environment, climate change

The Yangtze River is regarded as the Mother River of the Chinese people. The conservation of its hydrological environment is the foundation for future sustainable utilization of water resources in China. It is, however, a challenging task for the Chinese people to protect the ecosystems of the Yangtze River. At the second Yangtze River Forum held on September 25, 2007, the relevant authorities released Protection and Development of the Yangtze River in 2007, which drew wide attention at home and abroad. The report probed into the ecological changes in the Yangtze River through ten important issues, namely: water pollution, soil erosion and sediments in the Yangtze Basin, protection of bio-diversity, the exploitation and use of the “Golden Watercourse,” climate change and floods, hydropower exploitation in the upper reaches, flood prevention after the completion of the Three Gorges Dam, ecological issues in the Three Gorges Reservoir area, water quality protection in the water source regions of the middle route of South-to-North Water Diversion Project (南水北调), and dammed lakes in the middle and lower reaches. The report candidly acknowledged the emergence of problems after the construction of the Three Gorges Dam, claiming, “Now is a crucial stage of transformation—from ‘development first’ to ‘protection and development together’ ” In its title, the word “protection” is put before “development,” indicating a new era in which people will have to coexist with rivers harmoniously. The Yangtze River originates from the Tibetan Plateau. The main river is more than 6,300 km long, with a drainage area of 1.8 million km2, approximately 18.7% of China’s total land area. The Yangtze

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River runs through 11 provinces and municipalities from west to east. Many issues in this basin have been incorporated into the “Sustainable Development of Eastern China,” the “Rising Central China” and the “Western Development” projects. The total population of the nine provinces and two municipalities in the Yangtze Basin is 480 million, accounting for 36.4% of China’s total population. The GDP in these regions accounts for 40.3% of the national total. Cities and towns are densely located along the sides of the rivers, forming an important industrial corridor in China. With tremendous potential for development, the Yangtze Basin is at the same time facing various challenges.. The runoff volume of the Yangtze River is approximately five times as much as the total runoff volume of the Yellow River, Huaihe River and Hai (海河) River. The water source regions of the east, middle, and west route of South-to-North Water Diversion Project are all located in the Yangtze Basin. After the completion of ongoing construction of the east and middle route for South-to-North Water Diversion Project, all the four municipalities in China will share the water from the Yangtze River. Problems related to water resources and ecosystems appeared frequently in 2007 with media attention focusing on the ecological issues of the Yangtze River. Professor Chen Xiqing, the chief expert on Hydrology, Water Resources, and Hydraulic Engineering at Hohai University stated that the Yangtze River Basin has been under increasing pressure over the last few decades, causing an ecological crisis. China’s senior officials and scholars commented that the ecosystems around the Three Gorges Dam are confronted by a number of potential risks at seminar held in Changsa in September 2007. If precautionary actions are not taken in a timely fashion, disasters will occur in the future. Xinhuanet.com delivered a report entitled “China Confronts many Ecological Issues in the Three Gorges Dam.” Wang Xiaofeng, director of the office of the Three Gorges Dam Committee of the State Council, revealed that at the 182nd executive meeting of the State Council, Premier Wen Jiabao deemed ecological issues as the leading matter of concern when discussing the major issues regarding the Three Gorges Dam.1

1 Jiang Shiqiang and Li Zhihui, “China Confronts a Good Many Ecological Issues in the Three Gorges Project,” www.xinhuanet.com, September 26, 2007.

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I. Over-Exploited Hydroelectricity Over-exploitation and changes in natural conditions are the major causes of the deterioration of the ecosystems in the Yangtze River. China has the richest hydropower resources in the world. However, compared with developed countries, China’s hydropower utilization is lagging behind. It is estimated that the utilizable hydropower of the whole country is as much as 540 million kilowatts; but the actual amount utilized is no more than 130 million kilowatts. This is far below the general utilization rate of developed countries. In the 1990s, when China decided to build the Three Gorges Dam, China’s total installed hydropower capacity was a mere 40–50 million kilowatts. The designed total installed capacity for the Three Gorges Dam reaches 22.4 million kilowatts. Although its single dynamo capacity, total installed capacity, and annual energy output all rank first in the world, it has taken more than half a century to plan, and construction took 17 years. With the advancement of the rolling “cascade development strategy” of hydropower exploitation in the Yangtze River Basin, China’s total installed capacity of hydropower exceeded 100 million kilowatts in 2004. Since then, the newly added installed capacity of hydropower has been increasing rapidly in China. Every year, hydropower stations whose total installed capacity amounts to half of that of the Three Gorges Dam are put into production. In 2007, the China Three Gorges Project Corporation invited public bidding for thirty-two 700,000 kw generators. This amounts to another Three Gorges power station being installed, not to mention other corporations in the field of hydropower generation. Over the next decade, the China Three Gorges Project Corporation and other corporations will build more than 10 large hydropower stations in the basin of Jinsha River, Yalong River and Dadu River. All of these hydropower stations will have an installed capacity of more than 3 million kilowatts and even as much as 10 million kilowatts with a total installed capacity equal to five Three Gorges power stations. According to the Tenth Five-Year Plan and the 2015 Prospective Planning, China’s total installed capacity of hydropower is expected to reach 125 million kilowatts by 2010, making up 28% of the total installed capacity of electric power. By 2015, national hydropower capacity will rise to 150 million kilowatts. According to China Three Gorges Project Corporation, China is now in the peak period of utilizing hydropower in the upper reaches

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of the Yangtze River. More than 100 power stations will be built along the main stream of the Yangtze River, as well as its branches, including the Minjiang River, Wujiang River, Yalong River, and Jialing River. Some experts have expressed concern that in the in the upper reaches of the Yangtze River, the five major power corporations in China are competing for water resources. The diversification of participating enterprises will bring about potential risks and enormous challenges to the uniform operation and management of hydropower projects in the Yangtze River Basin. Experts believe that it is an important issue in need of immediate attention so chaotic and excessive exploitation may be avoided. In recent years, whether to build a dam in the Hutiao Gorge in the upper reaches of the Yangtze River has become a controversial issue. Many officials are reluctant to cause damage to the splendid natural wonders in the area by building a dam. Some propose that the dam be moved upstream. However, the ecological situation in upper Jinsha River is much more fragile, which will lead to other problems if a dam is built there. With regard to the impact of the exploitation of hydropower on the Yangtze River, a paragraph in Protection and Development of the Yangtze River in 2007 stated, “It is internationally acknowledged that 40% should be the upper limit for hydropower utilization. However, the designed total capacity of reservoirs in the Jinsha River Basin has reached 83% of the river’s runoff. With the construction of hydropower stations as planned, the total capacity of reservoirs in the upper reach of the Yangtze River will peak at 61% of the river runoff.” This far exceeds the limit and does not fit with the notion of sustainable development. Wang Nucheng, the Minister of Water Resources has emphasized this idea: “we should not exploit 100% of the Yangtze River. There should be room for ecology so as to conserve the original ecosystems and biological diversity.” In his opinion, the degree of utilization should be 60%. The criterion of a healthy Yangtze River should be determined by sustainable development. II. Migratory Aquatic Biota Faced with New Hydrological Conditions A river is a complete ecological system in which each living species has its own position and function while being interdependent with one another. If one species vanishes, the life of remaining species and

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the whole system will inevitably be affected. Therefore, it is a complex issue requiring long-term observation and investigation to gain in-depth knowledge on how dams and reservoirs affect living creatures and how the latter respond to the construction of reservoirs. A cascade of hydropower stations and reservoirs will be constructed in the upper reaches of the Yangtze River and at the Jinsha River, Yalong River, Minjiang River, Dadu River, and Wujiang River branches. The construction of these projects will change the hydrological and geological features and have notable impact on the ecosystems of the rivers. Migratory fish are important indicator species for water ecosystems in the sense that their extinction will change the structure and integrity of the entire system. The upper reaches of the Yangtze River is a critical habitat for many migratory fish, which need three grounds and one channel to perpetuate the species (reproduction grounds, breeding grounds, spawning grounds and a migration channel). Building a cascade of reservoirs will cause the obstruction of the life channel of aquatic biota such that some migratory fish will become endangered due to the changes in and loss of their habitats. The pattern of water flow will change from rapid currents to a sluggish stream after the construction of reservoirs and those fish species accustomed to rapid currents will accordingly lose their habitats. Building channels such as fish ladders to enable fish to migrate increases construction costs and technical difficulties. As a result, no such fish ladders or channels have been built in existing dams to date. Green Earth Volunteers, one of the earliest environmental NGOs in China, initiated a campaign to protect the baiji dolphin (白暨豚)2 in 1997. The endangered baiji dolphin is endemic to the Yangtze River. Scientists and observers from China, the U.S., Switzerland, Japan, the U.K., and Germany searched for the baiji dolphin in 2006. After thirtyeight-days of searching with the most advanced observation technology, researchers could not find a single baiji dolphin in their traditional habitat, the middle and lower reaches of the River. The former director of the Yangtze River Resource Management Office of the Ministry of Agriculture, Chen Zhengguo said to a journalist,

2 Translator’s note: The latin name is Lipotes vexillifer, with Lipotes meaning “left behind” and vexillifer “flag.” Nicknamed the “Goddess of the Yangtze” in Chinese, the baiji dolphin is also known internationally as the “Yangtze Dolphin,” “Yangtrze River Dolphin,” “Chinese River Dolphin,” and “Whitefin Dolphin.” It is distinct from and should not be confused with the Chinese White Dolphin (中华白海豚).

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“The state has set up Hejiang-Leibo National Nature Reserve in order to protect rare and peculiar species of fish and to reduce the influence on biological diversity after the completion of the Three Gorges Dam. However, after the Three Gorges Dam was completed, the first phase of Jinsha River construction started. The operation of Xiangjiaba Hydropower Project and Xiluodu Hydropower Project exerted a range of influences on the hydrological state of the upriver waterways. Various hydrological elements closely related to fish habitats in the Reserve changed dramatically, apparently because of the reduced rate of water flow, the lower flood peak, increased mud and sand, impaired ability to clean polluted water, exacerbated waterway erosion under the dam, and lowered water temperature. All these changes seriously affected the environment of the Yangtze River Hejiang-Leibo National Nature Reserve and led to the destruction of a spawning ground and the extensive narrowing of the proper habitat of rare and peculiar fish.” Protection and Development of the Yangtze River in 2007, known as the “health check report” for the Yangtze River, shows that the construction of the Gezhou Dam on the Yangtze River, the Three Gorges Power plant, and the other projects such as building dikes and gates along the river all caused a steep decline in the number of fish migrating between rivers and the ocean, including rare fish such as the sturgeon and reeves shads. The spawning area of the first-class national protected animal Chinese sturgeon originally consisted of sixteen spawning grounds, each being 800km long from the upper reaches of Hejiang River to Pingshan River. Though artificial spawning grounds were built in the lower reaches of the Gezhou Dam reservoir after the completion of Gezhou Dam power station, the spawning ground was only 1–2% of the original one. This was below one of the three necessary conditions for the Chinese Sturgeon to spawn (i.e., sufficient spawning space together with a steady stream and nine-to-thirteen-feet-deep water). The firstclass national protected animal paddlefishes habitually spawn along the river banks between March and May with their former habitat located in the lower reaches of the Jinsha River and the Yangtze River above Chongqing. The second-class national protected animal mullets spawn in branches of the Yangtze River such as the Min River and Jialing River. The mullets’ glutinous spawns develop while scattering in the fissures of rocks. They float downstream, arriving at the lower reaches of the river and connected lakes. The river banks will be inundated and the spawning grounds ruined if the reservoirs are built in the areas mentioned above. More seriously, this will directly influence the habitat and the migration route of all these rare and peculiar fish.

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There are four semi-migratory fish in the Yangtze River, namely grass carp, black carp, bighead carp, and silver carp, and now eight of their spawning grounds have already been destroyed. An expert interviewed in 2004 reported that 80% of the four fish fry have been reduced sharply. Three years later, the reduction of the fry resources of the four fish amounted to 97% as shown in the fourth edition Chinese National Geography Magazine in 2007. If the most populous fish suffered such a life, one can well imagine the living conditions of other aquatic life.3 III. Fragile Water-Level-Fluctuating Zone Experts believe the influence of hydropower construction on ecosystems is largely brought about by the founding of dams and reservoirs. The construction of dams and reservoirs changes the hydrological situation of the river and hence changes the structure of the ecosystem. Accordingly, these changes have far-reaching effects on the ecosystems of the river basin, some of which are temporal and reversible while others are permanent. Upon the completion of the Three Gorges Dam, the normal storage of water for the sake of electricity generation will stand 175 meters in winter and recede to 145 meters in summer to prevent floods in the Three Gorges Reservoir area. The 30 meters gap will bring into being the exposure of river banks, the most fragile ecological zone in the area. Protection and Development of the Yangtze River in 2007 stated that micro earthquakes increased in the wake of the Three Gorges water impoundment. There have been 4,719 landslides, including 617 cases caused by filling in the reservoir water and 836 cases taking place in the resettlement area. The impoundment of the reservoir may also put some residents in danger because of local landslides as well as river bank collapses. The safety of the Three Gorges Dam is threatened to some extent by collapses and landslides due to the fragile ecosystems of the Three Gorges Reservoir area. Huang Xuebin, an expert from the Ministry of Land and Resources in charge of the headquarters in Prevention and Control of Geological Disasters in the Three Gorges Reservoir area, remarked that the

3 Liu Jing, “The Unpredictability of the Yangtze River’s Aquatic Life,” Chinese National Geography, 4th edition, 2007.

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frequent geological disasters gravely threatened the safety of residents in the reservoir area. He said that landslides into the Yangtze River could cause huge waves, the highest of which might reach ten meters and spread around an area of tens of kilometers. Clear water released from upstream poses challenges to the Jingjiang section to such an extent that it drew a great deal of attention in Hubei Province. The vice Governor Li Chunming said that in recent years dangerous situations such as collapses in the Jingjiang area apparently increased in frequency and severity. The investigation warned that the Yangtze Riverbed will be eroded along the way and spread its influence widely. This will exert a great impact on the control and protection of riverbank conditions and as a consequence will cause new collapses.4 The pollution of the fragile zone causes a great deal of concern among experts. Specialists think that various pollutants deposited in the river will remain in the fragile zone after the water level lowers in summer. The soil stopped in this zone has difficulty draining water after being submerged for more than half a year. This, in combination with the waste and weeds will not only destroy the nature of the landscape, but also release gases as the temperature increases. These areas will also become breeding sties for pathogenic bacteria, parasites, mosquitoes, and flies which may cause a variety of epidemics. In the meantime, some stagnant pools are likely to appear and cause significant pollution to the environment due to the incomplete drainage of water. More importantly, water storage and recession in the Three Gorges Reservoir takes place respectively in winter and summer every year. The pollution deposited in fragile areas in the previous year becomes a source of pollution the following year. It repeats like that year after year in cycles.5 The China Three Gorges Project Corporation holds that it is moving forward with environmental construction projects in Chongqing, Hubei, and Shanghai. It is also conducting specialized experiments, and evaluating the efficiency of the environmental monitoring system according to a number of criteria, including the treatment of fragile areas, the treatment of the waterways in river branches, urban-rural pollution disparities, and biodiversity. Moreover, progress has already Jiang Shiqiang and Li Zhihui, “China Faces Three Gorges Environment and Many Other Issues,” Xinhua.net, Sep. 26, 2007. 5 Xie Liangbing, “Three Gorges: Unexhausted environmental reclusion,” Chinese News Weekly, November 19, 2007. 4

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been made concerning the safety of drinking water in towns, the protection of the Chinese sturgeon, and the protection of particular plant species in the Three Gorges area. IV. The Overall Water Pollution in the Yangtze River Drainage Area Worsened The preservation, management, and exploitation of the Yangtze River confront some new challenges, including shrinking lakes and wetlands, and a decline in water quality in some areas. Concerning pollution, Protection and Development of the Yangtze River in 2007 stated, In recent years, population growth and the rapid development of industrial and agricultural production and urban construction has led to yearly increases in the volume of waste and polluted water in the Yangtze River’s drainage area. Although some measures have been taken and some key control projects have been carried out, the overall situation is that whereas some areas have improved, the whole has gotten worse . . . Through analyzing the results of water quality tests collected in 58 provincial regions in 2003 and 2005, the worsening tendency of sectional water quality is evident: in 2003 the sections exceeding the III standard of surface water environmental quality standards took up 41% of the whole; in 2005 this percentage rose up to 55%. The major excessive items are amino nitrogen, total phosphorus, potassium permanganate, fecal bacteria, and petroleum.6 Along the mainstream of the Yangtze River there is a riverside pollution zone with a length of over 600 kilometers in total which still tends to expand. The pollution in the main branches like Minjiang River (Sichuan Province), Tuojiang River, Xiangjiang River and Huangpu River is serious; the pollution of those minor branches which pass through urban areas is serious in general; the section of water quality in the boundaries of provinces is not worrisome, too, with over 40% sections inferior to the Level III standard water quality.7

After the Three Gorges Dam began to store water, the current slowed in the backwater area, with a speed of only 1.2cm/s in certain areas. This weakens the diffusion ability and causes the pollutant carrying capacity of surrounding waters, reservoirs, and bays to decrease. Algae blooms (water eutrophication) began to occur in the Three Gorges

6 7

Protection and Development of the Yangtze River in 2007, p. 62, Changjiang Press. 2007. Ibid., p. 61.

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reservoirs. Algae blooms usually occur in stagnant waters such as lakes but rarely affect rivers. Concerning the causes and problems of pollution in the Yangtze River, Protection and Development of the Yangtze River in 2007 provided the following analysis: “1. With the rapid development of industrialization and urbanization, the absolute amount of emissions of pollutants increases continually; 2. Non-point source pollution has not been efficiently controlled; 3. irrigation projects change the water environment, hence aggravating the deterioration of water quality; 4. Many problems exist in the control and management of water pollution.”8 Places like Hubei Province and Chongqing have claimed that, since the Three Gorges Dam began to store water, the water quality of tributaries has decreased with algae blooms increasing in size, frequency, and duration. In some tributary areas residents worry about the safety of the drinking water. The situation is especially serious in Xiangning River, Daning River, and Meixi River. V. Decline of Water Feeding into the Yangtze River and Climate Change On January 3, 2007, in Shashi City, Hubei Province, the water level of the Yangtze River was –0.77m. This record is well below the historical average water level and is also the lowest record in the past one hundred and forty years. Meanwhile, the water level in the Beibei segment of Jialing River decreased to 176.95m, close to the lowest water level of 176.41m over the past seventy years. Experts in the Hydrological Bureau of the upper reaches of the Yangtze River report that over the past twenty years, the Yangtze River, Jialing River, and Wujiang River have experienced a notable reduction of water volume in main urban areas,9 which has directly influenced the ecology of Poyang Lake (鄱阳湖) and Dongting Lake (洞庭湖). In November 2006, Poyang Lake was at its lowest water level since 1949. Since large areas of the lake dried up, 2/3 of the fishing population found no work. In January 2007, severe drought and intense dam-building on the Xiangjiang, Zijiang, Yuanjiang and Lijiang Rivers Ibid., p. 64. Liu Bangyun, “The Water Level of the Yangtze River in Chongqing Jialing River Approaches the Lowest over the Past Seventy Years,” Chongqing Evening, Jan. 5th, 2007. 8 9

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reduced the amount of water feeding into Dongting Lake, and the water level of the Yangtze River dropped continuously, resulting in the threats to the wetlands of Dongting Lake. Under the influence of a low water level, grass in the lake began to wither earlier than in the past years. Therefore, wintering wild geese found no food and had to eat wheat in the fields. As this situation has continued, migratory birds have been severely affected.10 On May 28, 2007, Chengdu Daily reported that from May 11 to May 27, the average incoming flow of Zipingpu Reservoir was 370 m3/s per day, a reduction of 111 m3/s, or 23% less than usual. It has since dropped to about 300 m3/s and is still dropping. The director of the City Water Bureau said: “If the feeding water volume of Min River keeps on decreasing, according to the present situation of water diversion, the Zipingpu Reservoir is estimated to reach the water volume of dead storage capacity over a week. In order to meet the needs of water diversion, Zipingpu Reservoir will have to stop generate electricity and ‘break’ the reservoir to divide water.”11 The Dujiang Dam, which was constructed by Li Bing and his son 2,264 years ago, was the first non-dam irrigation project in the world, and was ranked as the world’s cultural heritage until recently. The reason that Chengdu has been regarded as “the land of abundance” is directly related to Dujiang Dam. However, when the Zipingpu Hydropower station along Min River became operational, an urgency to “break the reservoir” to release water appeared. Over the past few years, the climate of the Yangtze River has experienced many abnormal changes: the 2006 drought in Chongqing, the 2007 flood in Chongqing, the fact that Dongting Lake and Poyang Lake are at historically low levels, and the increase in rats in the Dongting Lake area. Such incidents have drawn different opinions and discussions on climate change and the Three Gorges Dam. Weng Lida, an expert who has been researching the ecological problems of the Yangtze River for many years, believes that, “Along such a big river, after the reservoir was built, the water level in some parts of the Three Gorges increased by more than 70m, even 100m in areas near the dam, how could it have no impact on the climate? It is commonsense Ou Yaying, “The Lowest Water Level of the Yangtze River in the Past 142 Years,” China Water Information, Jan. 8th, 2007. 11 Xu Lili, “The Inflow of Dujiang Dam in Sichuan Reaches the Lowest over the Past Decade,” Chengdu Daily. May 28th, 2007. 10

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in science. All these should be taken into consideration while assessing environmental issues. In spite of global climate change, we need time to examine the extent to which the construction of the Three Gorges Dam affects the regional climate.”

APPENDIX

NGOS PUT FORWARD COMMENTS AND SUGGESTIONS ON REPORT ON THE ENVIRONMENTAL INFLUENCE Ahai Hydropower In November 2007, in response to the appeal of media, experts and NGO (non-government organizations) years, Report on the Environmental Influence from Ahai Hydropower in the Middle Reaches of Jinsha River (simple version) was released on the official Yunnan government site “Qicai Yunnan,” and was open to public opinions. This is a document that must be publicized according to the Provisional Measures for Public Participation in Environmental Impact Assessment and the principle of public participation required by the Environmental Impact Assessment Law. It was an important, historic step forward. Afterwards, eighteen experts, scholars, journalists, and NGO leaders forwarded a signed letter praising the project organizers and participated in the public assessment of the environmental assessment report. NGO leaders have forwarded the following ideas and suggestions on Report on the Environmental Influence from Ahai Hydropower (simplified version): I. Since different ideas and evident controversies exist in the assessment method, assessment result and especially the proposed protective measures concerning the impact on fish in the Yangtze River from Ahai Hydropower as described in the Report on the Environmental Influence from Ahai Hydropower (simple version), we require that the development company and the environmental assessment units take the experts’ advice into serious consideration, give further explanation and clarification to the public, and carry out further investigation and research if needed. II. The development of hydropower should be integrated into the planning of the drainage basin. Report on the Environmental Influence from Ahai Hydropower indicates that this hydropower site was designed according to the “eight-stage in one reservoir” scheme forwarded in Report on Hydropower Planning in the Middle Reaches of Jinsha River of 1999. However, the Integrated Planning of Water Resources in Yangtze Basin, on

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which the Report on Hydropower Planning in the Middle Reaches of Jinsha River was based, is being revised to reduce environmental impacts. We request that the environmental assessment of Ahai hydropower resume after the revision of Integrated Planning of Water Resources in Yangtze Basin is completed. III. We suggest that in the environmental impact assessment of the Ahai hydropower project as well as EIAs of the other ten hydropower projects included in the hydropower planning in the middle and lower reaches of Jinsha River, should clarify their functions in relation to that of the Longpan Reservoir (i.e., the reservoir of the upper Hutiao Gorge). The environmental impact assessment can not rely on the assumption that the Longtou Reservoir of the upper Hutiao Gorge will be approved. IV. The description of some key problems in Report on the Environmental Influence from Ahai Hydropower was too simple and short. We hope that the assessment method and basis through which the environmental impact assessment conclusion was drawn could be publicized. Concerning this problem, we think that the project organizer should give explanations and clarifications to the public to enable them to put forward more pertinent ideas and suggestions about the project. The project organizer replied soon after this position paper was sent. Luojun from Yunnan Jinsha River’s Middle Reaches Hydropower Development Limited Corporation wrote: “We have received your comments and suggestions. Thanks for your concern and support. Our company and the report-compiling unit will study your ideas and suggestions seriously to implement and perfect the report. The position paper was also sent to the State Environmental Protection Administration. An official said in a letter after reading the paper: Thanks for sending me your opinions on the document of project environmental impact assessment. This position paper is the most complete that I have ever read on the scheme of a construction project from the people who have no direct relations or interests in it.

Actually, whether your suggestions are correct or not, they show the publics’ great concern for the environment. Certainly, it is also your right granted by the Environmental Impact Assessment Law and other related regulations of the country. As an ordinary public servant, I respect your sense of responsibility in dealing with the environment. You put forward your concerns and suggestions. I think it is in favor of the decision-making organs’ integrated consideration and scientific

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decision-making. Under the background of scientific and democratic decision-making, I think such suggestions should not be taken as interference. I will print some copies and give them to relevant officials to show them that there are a large number of responsible environmental protection volunteers.”

PART II

CLIMATE CHANGE

THE IMPACT OF CLIMATE CHANGE ON CHINA1 Liu Haiying

The impacts of climate change on China is reflected in the attention given to it by Chinese civil society. International and Chinese NGOs have been working to promote extensive social participation in combating climate change. These NGOs also want to encourage collective governance by governmental, corporate, and civil society actors. Key words: climate change, civil society

Global warming is a pressing topic around the world. At the Davos World Economic Forum annual meeting in January of 2007, climate change was prioritized over issues such as terrorism, the Arab-Israeli conflict, and the Iraq issue. Later, climate change was the main theme of the international diplomatic arena at the G-8 Germany Heiligendamm Summit in June, the APEC summit held in Australia in September, the 62nd United Nations General Assembly, and a series of international conferences. On October 12, 2007, the Nobel Peace Prize was awarded to former U.S. Vice President Al Gore and the expert team of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). With the publication of three assessment reports by IPCC this year, climate change has been given unprecedented attention around the world. On June 4, 2007, China’s National Climate Change Program was officially released. This is China’s first policy document in dealing with climate change and the first national project in the field of climate change among developing countries. In November, climate change was added to the Eleventh Five-Year plan by the State Council and it has become a new focus of concern. Global warming is not just putting pressure on the environment, but is also a serious challenge to human development. The adaptability of global change is no longer a distant scientific problem, but an urgent 1 This article is based on the research report “Warming China—Thoughts and Actions of Civil Society” handed in to the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Bali in December, 2007. This research was coordinated by Friends of Nature, participated by jointly by eight NGOs including Friends of Nature, Oxfam, Greenpeace, the International Action Aid, WWF, the Global Village of Beijing, the Green Earth volunteers, the Institute of Public and Environmental Affairs.

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social, political, and economic issue. China, as a member of the global village, as well as a large developing country with a vast population, but limited natural resources and relatively poor ecosystems, faces even greater difficulties and challenges in mitigating and coping with climate change. I. The Impact of Climate Change on China’s Vulnerable Areas and Groups As a large developing country, China has suffered greatly under the impact of climate change. In the context of global warming, in the past 100 years, China witnessed a rise in the average surface temperature by approximately 0.5 to 0.8 ºC, slightly higher than the global average surface temperature increase over the same period (0.6 ± 0.2 ºC). Over the past 50 years, mainly after the mid-1980s, warming in China has become obvious. The average of China’s surface temperature has increased 1.1 ºC, with a warming rate of 0.22 ºC every 10 years, significantly higher than the average warming rate globally, or other parts of the northern hemisphere.2 B. Impact of China’s Natural Environment on Disadvantaged Groups China has a relatively poor natural environment, and climate change has exacerbated the situation. As a result, the essential geographical vulnerability of certain disadvantaged groups means they are facing even greater challenges. Climate border areas and ecologically fragile zones are the most vulnerable to global change. The utility and the production capacity of land in these areas is noticeably reshaped by climate change. According to the research of Professor An Shumin of Peking University, in China’s central and western counties fragile ecosystems are strongly correlated with poverty-stricken counties. The most vulnerable populations tend to be rural communities in arid and disaster-prone areas. Their poverty, isolation, and lack of infrastructure make them especially vulnerable to natural disasters. A report from the IPCC in 2001 showed that the fewer resources a country has, the less adaptable, and thus the more vulnerable its citizens will be. The capability of human social systems, or human society, to

2

National Climate Change Assessment Report, Science Press, Beijing, December, 2006.

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adapt and cope with climate change depends on a number of factors such as: wealth, technology, education, information, skills, infrastructure, access to resources, and management capabilities. Developing countries, especially the least developed countries, are thus more vulnerable. C. Is China One of the Most Vulnerable Regions? It is believed that the most vulnerable society is neither the poorest, nor is the wealthiest, but those that are in the process of rapid modernization. In these countries and regions, changes in production and lifestyles brought about by development often cause even more serious losses under the attack of global climate change. The reasons are that the traditional social systems in these countries and regions have been undermined, but the country has not yet reached the level of wealth needed to build infrastructure and other adaptation measures. China is now undergoing transitions. China’s miraculous economic growth over the last three decades of the Reform Period has attracted worldwide attention. However, the gap between the richest and the poorest has gotten much bigger. Social inequalities exist between urban and rural areas, between genders, and between different groups of people. Indeed, China has a Gini Coefficient exceeding 0.4, indicating vast socioeconomic inequality. II. Endeavors of China’s Civil Society Concerning forces in place to cope with climate change, NGOs’ strength should not be ignored. They can make up for deficiencies in the system and provide plural social coordination, as well as specific products and services in accordance with their respective abilities and resources. Over the past few years, some local and international organizations have launched a variety of projects that have helped to alleviate the impacts of climate change. These projects include promoting energy conservation, enhancing the capacity of local residents to cope with specific challenges in areas seriously affected by climate change such as drought, high temperatures, floods, and the rise of sea-level. At the same time, in the international arena, China’s voice has been heard in some important conferences. Given that NGOs have various levels of resources, efforts are being made from different perspectives and in a variety of fields. Generally

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speaking, international NGOs based in China who actively participate in international negotiations and conventions have more impact than local NGOs. Compared to local NGOs, international NGOs have relatively adequate capital to conduct research projects and to promote the development of specific national policies. International NGOs possess more knowledge and information, and are more accustomed to working at the international level. III. The Impact of Climate Change and the Response of Civil Society A. Agriculture, Rural Areas, and Food: Impact of climate change on China’s Agricultural Prospects According to the research of Lin Erda and Yang Xiu of the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, from a macro perspective and in terms of the total amount, China’s productive potentiality can fully meet the annual demand of 400 kilograms per capita of grain for the future population of 1.6 billion. At the same time, it is technically possible to further increase China’s grain yields by 80% to 100%3 through making comprehensive use of various production technologies. It can be predicted that in the coming decades, climate change will not have any significant impact on food security in China. Nonetheless, global warming has increased the difficulty for China to meet its future goal for grain production. The requirements for material inputs and for the technology and management in agricultural production will be higher, and agricultural inputs will increase. On April 23, 2007, Co-Chair of IPCC Working Group I, former director of the China Meteorological Administration (中国气象局) Qin Dahe said, “from now to 2020 and to 2030, China’s average temperature will rise by 0.5 to 4.2 degrees. In this case, China’s agricultural production will decrease by 5% to 10%, especially the production of wheat, rice, and corn.”4 Moreover, global warming will change China’s agricultural system.

3 Lin Erda & Yang Xiu, Climate Change on China’s Agriculture and its Countermeasures, China’s Meteorological Report, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, 2003. 4 Warming Affects the Future of Food Production, Shanghai Securities News, April 24, 2007.

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Climate change will cause plant diseases and pests to spread to new areas. Surveys have shown that the loss of China’s agricultural output due to disease and pests equates to 20% to 25% of agricultural GDP. Diseases and pests will not only be able to expand to regions previously too cold for them, but their growing season will also extend in time. This will adversely affect the growth of crops. Moreover, warmer temperatures will lead to greater growth among weeds, which means increased use of pesticides and herbicides. B. China’s “Climate Refugees” “Climate Refugees” refer to those whose lives are significantly impacted and thus are forced to migrate from their indigenous habitat due to the worsening climate, ecological imbalance, or pollution. According to a report by the Tears Foundation in the United Kingdom, there are 25 million climate refugees currently in the world. Over the next 50 years, these numbers are expected to increase to 200 million. There are climate refugees in China, as well. In the city of Lanzhou, Gansu Province, more than 1,000 children of migrant workers cannot afford and therefore, withdraw from school. They come from poor families that attempt to make a living in the cities due to the ecological degradation of the rural areas. These climate refugees mainly live on the borders between urban and rural areas. In 2006, Xing Bang Cultural Advisory Service Center in Lanzhou and the World Bank cooperated in launching a project called “Literacy Education for Children of Minority Migrant Workers in the Marginalized Communities in Lanzhou.” The project sponsored 120 out-of-school, or dropout children and adolescents aged 9 to 15 years old. Retired teachers, university graduates and unemployed teachers give them a one-year free literacy education. In addition to teaching fundamental disciplines, the literacy training integrates the future needs for employment with practical life skills to assist these children as they encounter life crises and subsequently enter the community to make a living at the appropriate age. C. Water Crisis and Desertification 1. Water Crisis The water crisis in China is becoming more and more severe. “Recently, global warming has brought about obvious changes

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in the condition of water systems in China. As a result, extreme climate disasters such as floods or droughts or both may happen more frequently. At the same time, China is industrializing and urbanizing rapidly, which has already been proved to consume more resources as well as producing more pollution. Therefore, the resources and the environment have much more tightened restricts over the whole country and the economic development.’ said Chen Lei (陈雷), the Minister of Water Resources.”5 The climate influences the instability of water systems. On one hand, the changes in climate exacerbate floods and droughts in China and increase their frequency. Research has suggested that higher temperatures will result in stronger evaporation, thus the rainfall distribution pattern of each region will change. Rain patterns will become more erratic, thus increasing the incidence of droughts and floods. Indeed, some regions may experience droughts followed by floods followed by droughts in successive years. The annual flow of the seven major rivers basins in China is declining overall. Global warming will raise the evaporative capacity of each basin area. For example, the evaporative capacity of the Yellow River (黄河) and the inland river area will rise to 15%. However, in the Northwest, other than the Sailimu River in western Tianshan Mountain, the impoundment of lakes will cause a net negative water balance, as demand will far outstrip supply. Moreover, because the way agriculture and other sectors use water resources will change as a result of the warmer climate, the quality of water will continue to deteriorate. More droughts will intensify the conflict between supply and demand. People already have difficulty getting access to potable water, which directly threatens their daily lives. Drought-stricken rural areas lack water resources and water shortages are becoming worse and worse in cities, too. At present, nearly 400 cities in China do not have sufficient water resources. This will not only impede industrial production and urban development, but also residents’ daily lives. Especially when a severe drought occurs, some cities may only supply water at fixed times and in limited amounts, or they will have to transport water from remote areas for these emergencies.

5 Speech at the advanced meeting on China water resources and water environmental protection by Chen Lei, the Minister of Water Resourses, Beijing, Nov. 2, 2007.

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According to Chen Lei (陈雷), Minister of Water Resources, there are 280 million people in rural areas who are unable to get access to safe drinking water. During the Eleventh Five-Year Plan period, the Chinese government plans to solve the drinking water problem for 32 million people annually, reaching a rural population of 160 million within five years. Special attention will be paid to 205 cities and 350 towns that have water shortages and/or unsafe drinking water.6 However, if climate change impact cannot be controlled effectively, severe droughts will continue and increase in frequency, and there will be a chronic lack of water resources available. In this case, the cisterns will cease to function. Besides the natural factor, there are additional human factors that have caused the water shortage problem. In order to develop the economy, many local governments continue to approve projects that consume excessive amounts of water. In China, multiple governmental departments manage water usage, which leads to inefficiency. This ineffectual system has badly influenced the realization of optimizing the distribution of water resources. Besides, as for the exploration and usage of the underground water resources, the managing body is near-sighted, and the water resource distribution among the upper, the middle, and the lower reaches of rivers is not balanced. Hence, a rational and effective system of water resource utilization will be necessary for both local residents as well as for the protection of the environment. 2. Global Warming, Glaciers, and Water Resources Glaciers are the biggest reservoir of freshwater on our planet, with 70% of global fresh water stored there. As glaciers shrink many of the regions that depend mainly on glacier runoff will face severe water shortages. In 2005, Greenpeace investigated the impact of climate change on the environment of the Yellow River source zone. The report showed that by 2050, more than half of the glaciers in northwest China will completely disappear. In the past 50 years, the average temperature on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau (青藏高原) (including the Yellow River source zone) has risen by almost one degree centigrade, hitting a record high. At the same time,

6 Speech at the advanced meeting on China water resources and water environmental protection by Chen Lei, the Minister of Water Resources, Beijing, Nov. 2, 2007.

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the amount of rainfall has shown a tendency of declining precipitously; in some places, the amount of rainfall dropped by as much as 20%.7 In the past 20 years, the continual degradation of permafrost and reclamation of lakes has resulted in the rapid degradation of grasslands. Furthermore, the increase in the number of sheep, goats, and cows has further exacerbated the degradation of grasslands. Although environmental change is complicated, we can still draw a brief conclusion to it, that is, that the decrease in the water supply and the rapid degradation of the grassland will cause the number of livestock to drop. The drop in livestock will in turn will increase poverty among local residents, since the livestock represent all the living materials of the local people. 3. Desertification Desertification refers to land degradation caused by factors such as climate change and human activities in the arid region, semiarid, and sub humid regions. The problem of desertification is among the top ten global environmental problems of the 20th century. Desertification is one of the most serious environmental problems causing concern among the current international community. D. Natural Disasters Compared with other forms of natural disasters in China, the meteorological disaster is the most severe in terms of influence and impact. Many experts agree that the increase in the number of extreme weather events is closely related to climate change. During the Fifth session of the Fourth Chinese Environment and Development International Cooperation Committee Conference held in 2006, experts pointed out that there are two main reasons why climate change was so influential in China. First, China has a large population, the environment is relatively fragile, and both the ecosystem and the human society are very sensitive to climate change. Not only are they vulnerable to natural disasters, but also their recovery capacity is weak. In addition, sociologically speaking, China’s economy is still not well developed. New technologies have not

7 The assessment of climate change on the environment in the Yellow River, Cold and Arid Regions Environment and Engineering Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Oct. 2005.

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Other disasters 2% Earthquake disaster 49%

Meteorological disaster 45%

Figure 4.1: Ratio of deaths caused by major natural disasters

Biological disaster 9%

Other disasters 3% 0%

Meteorological disaster 88%

Figure 4.2: Ratio of natural disasters that affected crops

Oceanic disaster 7%

Other disasters 8%

Biological disaster 6%

Earthquake disaster 8%

Meteorological disaster 71% Source: Climate Change and Natural Disasters by Huang Jianmin, China Meteorological Press, 2006.

Figure 4.3: Ratio of economic damage caused by natural disasters

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been widely promoted, infrastructure is still lacking, and the management of natural resources is not effective enough. 1. Floods Floods occur frequently in China, especially along the seven largest rivers in the east. These are, from north to south, the Songhua River, Liao River (遼河), (海河) Hai River, Yellow River, Huaihe River, Yangtze River, and Zhujiang River. There are various kinds of floods in China, either as a kind of natural phenomenon or natural disaster, and they interact with and influence other natural disasters. Since the other forms of disasters develop from the flood, we could call this process the “flood disaster chain.” Various disasters within the chain change into other forms by affecting the surroundings of the human community. The loss caused by flood is impressive. The flood in 1998 alone resulted in direct economic losses of 25.51 billion RMB. 2. Mudslide When a mudslide takes place, thousands of tons of mud and rocks can be carried down a mountain in seconds, destroying fields, villages, roads and bridges along the way. Lives and property are thus severely damaged by catastrophic mudslides. 3. Disasters “Favor” the Poor Poor people are usually the most affected group when a disaster occurs. They neither take preventive measures, nor do they have enough resources stored to support daily life when they become homeless after a disaster. In disaster stricken countries and regions, when the disaster happens, poor developing countries suffer more severe damage in terms of people’s lives and due to a lack of effective facilities or resources to prevent or mitigate the disasters. The main reason why the poor are the most vulnerable group during a disaster is that they have less access to either resources or information. In places where there are more frequent hurricanes, families with better incomes will move to safer places, or rebuild their houses to be stronger, but poor people are not able to do so. They are usually the most pitiable victims. What is worse, when they become homeless when a disaster happens, they do not have enough food survive. With the climate getting warmer and warmer, the frequency of events like extreme heat and strong rainfall will rise, and the impact will become exponentially more severe. At present, China’s overall ability to handle extreme meteorological disasters is relatively weak, especially in terms of under-developed regions.

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There are some bad practices in China’s traditional management mechanism of emergent public affairs. For example, laws on how to deal with emergencies are a blind spot in the fundamental legislative field. The information management system is quite immature. With this weak public service system, China encounters considerable setbacks in handling the impact brought about by public emergencies. The public does not have access to crisis education, so people have limited awareness in how to prevent or cope with disasters. Nowadays, the comprehensive social security system, which can act as a balancing and buffering method against the changes wrought by introduction of a market economy into society has not been fully developed in China. China’s social welfare system currently has very limited coverage. For example, China’s public health service has not yet covered the whole country. The third National Health Service survey in 2003 showed that 44.8% of urban residents and 79.1% of the rural population did not have access to medical insurance. They have to pay for themselves when they visit their doctor. E. Sea Level Rise China is one of the areas in the world that is greatly affected by the rise of the sea level. Sea levels have been rising at an annual rate of 2.5mm a year. From 2004 to 2006, the overall sea level in China was higher than average. In 2006, the sea level was 71mm higher than the average. Compared with the year 2003, the sea level of all the waters in China from 2004 to 2006 showed a tendency of rising sharply. It is predicted that the sea level will continue to rise by 9–13 mm within 3–10 years, compared to that in 2006.8 Coastal areas will experience complex changes, including coastal erosion, increased flooding, and beach submergence. At the same time, human survival and development will be jeopardized. The function of the harbor weakens, and problems such as seawater invasion and soil salinization will emerge, resulting in a loss of coastal wetlands and migrating animals.

8 China’s Sea Level Report by State Oceanic Administration People’s Republic of China, 2006.

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Sea level change (mg)

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Sea level in 2003

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60 35

0 Average sea level

2004

2005

2006

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Figure 4.4: Sea level changes from 2004 to 2006

It will not only cause serious losses of land resources in China’s coastal areas, but also will significantly affect the construction of important facilities and the development of coastal cities. The coastline in Mainland China is 18,000 km long. More than seventy percent of China’s largest cities lie in the coastal region, many of which will be influenced by sea level rise. A storm surge in 1994 caused a loss of more than 9 billion RMB. In 1996, a storm surge loss amounted to more than 10 billion RMB. Besides the environmental and economic effects, which can be estimated, there are also social impacts that cannot be measured by financial constructs. Facing the possible harm caused by sea level rise, the government should attach great importance to the construction and management of coastal protection infrastructure, carrying out the long-term plan and deployment of environmental protection and disaster prevention. Next, it should strengthen community awareness of environmental protection and disaster prevention. Third, the selfcentered way of economic development in the coastal area should be overcome. In order to prevent the ground from falling, the mining of ground water should be reduced as soon as possible. Otherwise aquifers will be completely drained. Fourth, the government should strengthen its protection of beaches, sand dunes, mangroves, and coral reefs since they offer natural protection against sea level rise and storm surges. These habitats should thus be protected from random exploitation and destruction. At the same time, local governments should also work towards comprehensive management of coastal zones, enhancing and developing

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cooperation through community associations and environmental NGOs. They should make management transparent, sharing information with them, and encouraging their participation. Certainly, these measures cannot solve the fundamental problem. Therefore, Chinese citizens suggest that the Chinese government should be more involved in alleviating global warming. The Chinese government should systematically consider the negative effects brought by sea level rise. It should also fund scientific research on the relationship between coastal zone ecosystems and climatic change. Finally, the Chinese government should enhance its ability to deal with this problem comprehensively by formulating a national strategy to mitigate sea level rise. F. Energy Burning fossil fuels is the prime cause of global warming. Facing the pressure of reducing greenhouse gas emissions all over the world, the energy problem has attracted international concern. Therefore, on the one hand, China must develop its economy to ensure its employment rate; on the other hand, it also must fulfill its duty to protect the environment. A low-carbon economy is an inevitable choice for China. Chinese civil society has accumulated many successful experiences and created some localization patterns in reducing the discharge of waste gas, and in promoting energy conservation and recycling. They have done this through enlisting support from policymakers, raising public awareness, and exploring new models. 1. Agriculture, the Reduction of Discharges in the Countryside and Clean Energy Sixty percent of China’s population lives in the countryside. Although the countryside inhabitants consume less energy than urban citizens, their consumption is unnecessarily inefficient, wasting energy due to a lack of technology. In Minhe County, Qinghai Province in western China live the Tibetan, Turkish, Salar, Hui Minorities. Most of the local people live in mountain areas and make a living by traditional farming. Because they are in an arid area with little irrigation, they are depend on nature for their livelihoods, with an average grain ration of less than 400 kg per person a year. Many families depend on young men and women working in cities far away from home. They are either laborers or factory workers. Meanwhile, the older generation digs Cordyceps, a precious and expensive herb used in traditional Chinese medicine and

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grow wheat. Each family usess nearly 4,000 kg of straw every year. Because of a straw shortage, people have relied on cutting down trees on hills, and digging up shrubs and wild roots. Long-time clearing of forests has caused the forest area in that region to be reduced day by day and has generated tremendous damage to the environment. At the same time, each local family needs 1 to 2 cattle or mules to do the farming, and thus they need wheat straw to feed the livestock. The lack of fuel has led to a decrease in agricultural production. Also, for those farmers who do not have alternative fuel or extra money to buy coal, finding firewood or other forms of fuel such as cow patties is a heavy burden on their daily lives. In April 1997, the Sanchuan Development and Promotion Association in Qinghai Province introduced a solar stove from Dahejia County in Gansu Province. By the end of 2006, 24 solar stove projects had been implemented, bringing convenience to 4,862 families and work units, solving the fuel deficiency problem. Furthermore, the solar stove also saved money for the families and reduced the women and girls’ workloads. Every year China produces more than 600 million tons of straw and 2,500 million tons of animal excrement from animal farming. These traditional wastes can be transformed into a useful resource: methane. The methane project in China’s countryside has already developed to serve 22 million household users. Every year, high quality energy equal to 13.5 million tons of standard coal is produced by the methane project. 2. Public Promotion “Citizen Action to Save 20% Energy” was jointly initiated by more than forty NGOs in July 2007 and spread across 17 provinces. The Worldwide Fund for Nature (WWF), the Energy Foundation, the Global Village Beijing (北京地球村), and Friends of Nature launched the campaign. This action is based on the NGO cooperation network, which was formed in the 26 degree Air Conditioning Campaign, carried out in recent years and on the basis of the 20TO20 campaign initiated by WWF not long ago. “Citizen Action to Save 20% Energy” incorporates many multistakeholder conservation campaigns with diverse focuses into one framework. It aims at extensive cooperation and joint action in forming a network connecting different NGOs devoted to the field of energy conservation so that they can share resources with each other. Under the premise of voluntary participation, all parties discuss methods of

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energy conservation through this network and promote communication and collaboration, with consideration of both cooperation and independent work. The very successful campaign to set air conditioners at 26 ºC was only the beginning. More coordinated actions will be launched by this network. However, NGOs, overall, still face difficulties when they proceed with their work. First, media coverage is insufficient. As a result, the public is often not aware of the fact that climate change is closely related to their vital interests in the near future. Second, there are few videos and reading materials for the public. Accessible reading materials on climate change are rare, especially in remote rural areas where people depend on subsidence agriculture for a living. Climate change exerts an impact on crop harvests and agriculture, which is quite evident in these areas. Due to the lack of information, farmers in these areas do not know how to react to climate change. Similarly, local government officials in these areas also do not know how solve problems associated with climate change. Finally, there are no effective channels of communication between domestic and the international society, and between the central and local governments. As a result, related information cannot be transferred in a timely manner between them. Moreover, the local government does not take the information seriously enough and the supervisory role of NGOs has not been brought into full play. G. International Negotiations Since climate change issues entered the international political arena from the scientific area ten years ago, almost all of the reports on the impacts of and solutions to climate change are joint efforts by the whole society under the leadership of the governments of the developed countries. Because they lack experience citizens from developing nations have only done preliminary work in their own country, and usually have not worked on changing national policies. Another reason lies in the fact that the climatic change discussions are highly professional and technical, thus attracting the attention and the participation of citizens with scientific expertise. Chinese NGOs are able to do the following three things at present. They can promote understanding, exchanges, and cooperation between developing countries on the climate change issues. They can also work

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to uphold the principle of differentiated responsibilities adopted by the United Nations Climate Change Framework Convention. Finally, Chinese NGOs should propose that the Chinese government become more participatory, but at the same time make their own contributions to fighting climate change. NGOs can also pressure developed countries to be more responsible in providing guidance and assistance. In March 2007, the “China Climate Action Network” (CCAN), a volunteer network organization initiated by Chinese NGOs concerned with climate change, was founded. At present, it has nearly 30 leading members, from over 20 Chinese organizations and several international NGO branches in China. They work on climate change issues independently, but they share the same time they share the concern of seeking a solution to climate change through non-governmental channels. III. Stance of Chinese Civil Society In order to avoid the most severe consequences brought by climate change, all countries should commit to taking immediate action. Chinese Civil Society would like to make the following appeals on this significant issue. 1) All governments should formulate a common goal to deal with climate change under the United Nations Climate Change Framework Convention. 2) Differentiate the responsibilities of developed countries and developing countries in tackling climate change. Developed countries must take the initial step by sharply reducing their emissions of greenhouse gases and provide technological and financial support to developing countries through effective mechanisms. Developed and developing countries should together explore the global lowcarbon sustainable development pattern. 3) The Chinese government should more actively join international efforts to deal with climate change and shoulder the responsibility of global climate protection while defending the right to develop. The Chinese government should actively reform the mode of economic development. The Chinese government should also reform the energy structure, effectively guaranteeing the realization of energy conservancy goals, and making great efforts to develop renewable energy sources to control greenhouse gas emissions.

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4) Governments should make and implement policies that adapt to and tackle climate change according to the principle of social justice and fairness. Governments should build the capacity and conditions of disadvantaged groups and vulnerable regions to accommodate to climate change. Governments should prevent and alleviate the negative effects on society and environment when taking policy, market and technological measures. 5) Governments should encourage and guarantee the participation of the public and NGOs in policy-making, supervision, and implementation of climate change related projects.

CLIMATE CHANGE AND EXTREME WEATHER EVENTS IN CHINA IN 2007 Huang Lei

In 2007, China was frequently attacked by extreme weather and climate events, many of which were most severe in history, bringing terrible losses of life and property to several regions in the country. In the context of global warming, extreme weather and climate events such as heavy rain falls, heat waves, intense droughts, and tropical cyclones, are increasing in frequency. How to understand and cope with such dramatic climate change is a major challenge we have to meet. Key words: global warming, climate change, extreme weather and climate events

The year 2007 should be recorded in history as a year of “Climate Change.” In February 2007, Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) released its fourth evaluation report in Paris. In December 2007, the U.N. Convention of Climate Change was held in Indonesia. Climate change also surged to the top agenda in a series of international conferences held during the months in between. It is also in this year that Nobel Peace Prize was shared by IPCC and the former U.S. Vice-President Al Gore “for their efforts to build and disseminate greater knowledge about man-made climate change, and to lay the foundations for the measures that are needed to counteract such change.” The international society has come to recognize that global warming is very real and very inconvenient, and extreme climate and weather events such as heavy rainfall, heat waves, intense droughts, and tropical cyclones will become more common and will bring more severe costs to human society as well as the global environment. The year 2007 witnessed an increase in the frequency and distribution of global extreme climate and weather events. At the end of December 2007, China Meteorological Administration (中国气象局) announced the World Top Ten Weather Events that includes the tropical cyclones in India and Arabia Ocean, intense droughts in Australia, heat waves in Europe and snowstorms in U.S. and Canada. It is also true that the severity and frequency of extreme weather and climate events in 2007 was unprecedented in China’s recorded history of natural disasters.

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At the end of December 2007, China Meteorological Administration (中国气象局) announced the Top Ten Weather Events of the year, which includes huge storm and serious flood in the Huaihe River area, intense snowstorms in Shangdong and Liaoning (辽寜) provinces, tremendous thunderstorm caused by frequent strong convection, intense droughts in South China, and grave damage caused by Typhoon Sepat and Typhoon Krosa. The year 2007 will be remembered for the intensity and frequency of its extreme weather events. We’ll take a close look of such events in the following sections. A. Heavy Rainfalls Due to global warming, the troposphere has been successively heated, which leads to the atmospheric instability. As a result, we saw in 2007 an obvious increase in the frequency, distribution, and intensity of heavy rainfall, thunderstorms, hails and hurricanes. The daily precipitation hit record highs in many areas in China. On May 31, 2007, the precipitation of Wuhan City (武汉市) reached 143 mm, refreshing the record set for that day in 1956. On September 17, 2007, Chongqing City, once hit by an intense “Drought of the Century” in the previous year, was again attacked by a powerful “Storm of the Century.” The latter event brought precipitation of as much as 262.8mm in Shapingba, 258.0mm in Bishan, and 179.5mm in Tongliang, all record highs, with Shapingba’s amount hitting the highest level since 1892. More than 7 million people were affected by the disaster, which claimed 55 lives and brought direct economic losses of nearly 3 billion RMB. On July 18, Shangdong Province was struck by heavy storms. The average precipitation in the urban area of its capital city Jinan (济南市) reached 153 mm, with a maximum hourly precipitation of 151 mm, a record high since 1958. The suddenness of the storm caused severe flooding in the city, which disrupted most of the traffic and resulted in serious costs to life and property. From August 9 to 11, successive strong rainstorms swept over the Leizhou Peninsula of Guangdong province, and precipitation in Tangjia Town in Leizhou City reached 739mm within 24 hours. During the several days, it had a maximum precipitation of 935 mm, a record high in 200 years. At the night of August 31, Quanzhou City of Fujia Province was attacked by a strong storm. Three hours later, precipita-

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tion in Lantian and Changleng of Anxi County had reached 159.5 mm and 130.5 mm respectively. More than 300,000 residents in the county were affected by the heaviest storm in a century. On October 8, Typhoon Krosa brought strong rainstorms to the southeast coastal area including Zhejiang Province and Fujian Province (福建省). Daily precipitation in Hangzhou City and Zhoushan City reached 191.3 mm and 233.8 mm respectively, both unobserved in history. Urumchi, a city located in the arid and semi-arid region of northwest China, had a daily precipitation of 45.3 mm on May 8, a record high for that day. On July 17, precipitation reached 57.4 mm, again a record high. Monthly precipitation in the city in July 2007 amounted to 110 mm, nearly half of the average annual precipitation. Such a frequency of heavy rainfalls is record-breaking in the history of Urumchi. Since Huai (淮河) River entered its major flooding season around June 19, its drainage area experienced continual rain from June 29 to July 26, with an average precipitation of 465.6 mm, the second highest on record since 1953 (the highest record was made in 1954). The increased intensity and duration of storms caused the water level of the Huai River (淮河) to rise, causing the biggest flood since 1954. More than 30 million people in Anhui, Jiangsu, Henan and other provinces were victims. With more than 3 million hectares of crops damaged and more than 100,000 houses collapsed, direct economic losses caused by the flood totaled more than 10 billion RMB. Frequent heavy rainfalls occurred not only in the Yangtze and Huaihe River areas in South China, but also in the Yellow River area in North China, with some reaching as far as to the dry area in Northwest China. Moreover, in the autumn of 2007, North China experienced successive rainfalls, which is quite unusual for that time of year. From September 26 to October 14, parts of Northwest China, most of North China, northeast of the Yellow River and Huaihe River areas, as well as the eastern portion of Southwest China all witnessed 10 to 19 days of rainfall, which is 5 to 10 days more than the average number. Precipitation during the days was 2 to 5 times more than usual. Provinces including Gansu, Ningxia, Sha’anxi, Shanxi, Hebei and Shandong had 13.1 days of rainfall on average, which is 8.5 days more than usual, and the most since 1951. Although days of rainfall could help improve the soil quality and increase the water preserve of the reservoirs, it inflicted serious damage on agricultural production in many areas and caused heavy storms and landslide in certain places that brought

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increasing death toll. Successive rainfalls can bring serious damage to crops like corn and cotton that cannot grow without adequate sunshine. In Cangzhou of Hebei Province, the spoilage rate of one of its major produce, Cangzhou dates, rose to 80 percent during the days, giving a heavy blow to local farmers. B. Snowstorms Snowstorms can disrupt traffic, lead to freeze damage, and bring severe costs and great inconvenience to local industry, agriculture, and people’s life in general. The emergence of snowstorms is always associated with the abnormity of weather systems, and its increased frequency is closely related to global warming. Abnormal temperature rise in the atmosphere of the Earth’s surface speeds up evaporation, and thus the circulation of water, which in turn brings more precipitation within an unusually short period of time. Besides, since the water storage capability of the atmosphere is in proportion to the air temperature, the rise of the latter will increase the former, which may cause a higher frequency and intensity of snowstorms in cold areas. In recent years, snowstorms have occurred more frequently as global warming becomes serious, and the damage they cause to economic development, social life, and the environment becomes increasingly severe as well. In 2007, extremely heavy snowstorms swept over various regions in China. On the evening of January 31, 2007, an epic snowstorm attacked Doacheng County, Gonggan state of Sichuan Province. Within 12 hours, the amount of snow had exceeded the recorded average amount by 17.7 times, and it was 6.5 times more than the average amount of the county’s winter precipitation. Strong snow keeps the icing rate high, and thus poses a serious threat to cattle farming as well as traffic safety. On March 2, Chaidamu Basin in China’s arid region experienced the most extensive and intense snowstorm on record, which resulted in 18.3 mm of precipitation in Haide City. On March 16, the Basin was struck by another snowstorm, which brought 13.8 mm of precipitation of to the same city. The total precipitation caused by the two snowstorms was as high as 32.1 mm, exceeding the average amount by 6.42 times. From January 2 to 5, 2007 when China was celebrating its Lantern Festival, an extensive sleet slammed North China. Liaoning, Jilin and Heilongjiang Provinces in Northeast China were hit by the strongest

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snowstorm since 1951. This extensive snowfall was beneficial to the northern area in relieving the winter drought, preparing the field for spring sowing, and suppressing spring sandstorms. However, the extreme intensity of the storm exerted negative impacts on regional agriculture, power generation, transportation, and social life in general. In Liaoning (辽寜) Province, public transportation including railway stations, roads, civil aviation, and shipping were all almost paralyzed by the snowstorm. During the snowstorm, around 90,000 students in primary and middle schools were forced to be off school; a large number of industrial and agricultural facilities such as factories, warehouses, and greenhouses were damaged; the fishing industry in the coastal area of Liaoning Province and Shandong Province (山东) also suffered great losses in the disaster. The total direct economic losses caused by this snowstorm surpassed 1 billion RMB. From November 14 to 16, Deqin County in Yunnan Province was caught in the biggest storm on record, which disrupted power generation, communication, and TV signals in several parts of the county. The deepest snow cover on the Deqin segment of National Highway 214 was 1.2 meters. Transportation was cut off, and many sections of the road connecting Deqin to Weixin were also destroyed. The heavy storm not only brought great inconvenience to local people, but also had more than 200 travelers stranded in the freezing open air on their way to the scenic spots in the area. C. Droughts Drought is an extreme climate event that exerts frequent threat to the economic and social development of China. Ever since the 1990s, the drought area in North China has been expanding at a high rate, and intense droughts are becoming more common. After the extensive and intense drought of 1997, consecutive exceptional droughts hit the area from 1999 to 2002. In the summer of 2006, Sichuan and Chongqing region was hit by the worst drought since 1951, and Chongqing was ravaged by the worst draught in a century. In 2007, frequent intense droughts in North and South China brought serious damage to agricultural and livestock production, and to life and property as well. In the summer of 2007, the western part of Northeast China and the eastern part of Inner Mongolia was hit by a severe drought. From June 1 to 26, precipitation in most parts of Northeast China and the eastern Inner Mongolia was no more than 50 mm, and the average

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precipitation in Liaoning (辽寜) and Jilin regions was the lowest since 1951. Most of Liaoning (辽寜) Province and the south of Jilin Province went 15 to 20 days without any rainfall, which also set a record in history. Meanwhile, the sharp temperature rise of 2 to 4ºC against the average temperature of the period finally resulted in a rapid spread of drought in Liaoning (辽寜) Province, along with most parts of Jilin Province and the southeast part of Inner Mongolia, with certain places hit by intense droughts. Continuous lack of rainfall and the increasingly high temperature built the forest fire environment in Northeastern forested area; caused heavy drought in Inner Mongolia which not only devastated agriculture and livestock production, but also aggravated pasture degradation, desertification, and thus threatened the prairie ecosystem in North China. In the autumn and winter of 2007, South China was caught in a persistent and extensive drought. From late September to late November, precipitation in most parts of South China and Guizhou Province was no more than 100 mm, which decreased by 50% to 80% compared with the average amount in statistics. Within the areas, the average regional precipitation during the time in Hunan, Jiangxi, Guizhou, Guangdong, Guangxi, Fujian Province (福建省) was merely 65.7 mm, which was second only to the lowest amount of 1992 since 1951. The persistent shortage of rainfall caused heavy drought in central south of Hunan and Jiangxi provinces, the north of Guangxi Province, the north and the west of Guangdong Province, the southeast of Guizhou Province, and the west of Fujian Province (福建省) as well. The average precipitation in Guanxi from November 5 to December 20 was only 4.7 mm, which decreased by 92% compared with previous years, which was unobserved since 1951. A number of 55 counties and cities included Guilin City refreshed its record of least precipitation and worst drought in history. Jiangxi Province witnessed a rarely seen continuous drought from summer to winter, leaving millions of people in the province with drinking water shortages. Planting seeds, transplanting crops and fruit were badly affected. The water level of Poyang Lake and certain parts of Ganjiang River plummeted and struck a record low. The water level of the four rivers, Xiangjiang River (湘江), Zijiang River, Yuanjiang River (沅江), Lijiang River, and Dongting Lake (洞庭湖) in Hunan Province (湖南省) continued to decrease. At eight o’clock on November 9, the water level of Changsha station on the Xiangjiang River was 0.06 meters lower than the previous record low, leaving more than 600 ships stranded in the river.

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The Beijiang River Basin in Guangdong Province also witnessed the lowest water level in a century, leaving the kilometer-wide riverbed largely exposed. The continual drop of the water level of rivers and lakes and the insufficient storage of the reservoirs posed severe threat to the preservation of water supply and water quality, and made great challenges to hydropower generation and the shipping system. Reduced precipitation in the South also increases the risk of forest fire environment, with forest-fires occurring frequently in Jiangxi and Guangxi provinces. D. Heat Waves Since 1990s, the world has become increasingly vulnerable to frequent intense heat waves that affect vast areas. Both world records and domestic records of extremely high temperatures and the number of extremely high-temperature days have been constantly refreshed during recent years. Intense heat waves become more common and some areas are even scorched by heat waves annually. In the years 2003, 2006, and 2007, Europe was repeatedly hit by high-intensity heat waves. Since 1999, north China, the Yangtze River drainage area and the southern area as well as the eastern part of north-west China have witnessed over 10 days of extremely high temperatures each year. In 2003, south China was hit by a heat wave, with 40 consecutive days of daily temperatures at or above 35ºC. In addition, heat waves started to affect a wider range of areas. The formerly cool areas such as Europe, the United States and Japan started to suffer extremely high temperatures, and north China also becomes a newly emerged stricken area of heat waves. Northern cities like Shijiazhuang and Beijing are in no different position from the “Stove Cities” like Nanjing, Wuhan, and Chongqing in terms of high temperature. Chongqing, the famous “Furnace City,” yet suffered the century’s most intense heat wave in the summer of 2006. In July 2007, the heat wave that swept over the Yangtze River drainage area and the areas of South China can be compared with the heat wave of 2003 in terms of its duration and its affected range of areas. The wave brought a daily maximum temperature at or above 35ºC to the areas for 10 to 25 days, which is 5 to 12 days more than in previous years. In Taizhou, Zhejiang Province, the number of days with a maximum temperature at or above 35ºC amounted to 24 in July, which was 5 days more than that of 2003. The average temperature in the area reached 30.8ºC in July, 0.5ºC higher than that of the corresponding

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period in 2003, and the highest since 1951. Fuzhou, the capital city of Fujian Province (福建省), had witnessed 32 consecutive days with a daily maximum temperature at or above 35ºC from June 4 to July 31, a record high since 1880. The average temperature of the urban district of Shanghai reached 30.4ºC in July, the highest since 1873. Besides, the maximum temperatures of Dinghai (Zhejiang Province (浙江省), Nantong ( Jiangsu Province) and Xiamen (Fujian Province (福建省)) all broke local records. In August, the area south of the Yangze River and the areas of South China were caught in the same climate event again. The highest temperature of Fenhua (Zhejiang Province), Yinxian (Zhejiang Province), Lianxian (Guangdong Province), Hexian (Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region), Cixi (Zhejiang Province), Daoxian (Hunan Province), Mengshan (Guangxi Zhaung Autonomous Region) all set or refreshed the local record. Once the air temperature rises above 28ºC, human body will show symptoms of uneasiness, sunstroke and mental disorder. A temperature above 35ºC, if lasting for days, may induce a series of diseases, especially those associated with heart, blood vessel of brain and respiratory systems. The epic heat wave that swept over Europe in the summer of 2003 claimed 35000 lives in total. This event may become a landmark of global climate change. Heat waves will increase further with the increase of air humidity and air pollution, and will likely lead to frequent epidemic diseases. Meanwhile, city dwellers, especially the elderly, the sick, and those living in buildings without cooling systems or air conditioners will be major victims. Besides, continuous heat waves and lack of rainfall will dry out small-sized reservoirs, interrupt river flows, result in water and electricity shortages and thus bring harm to agriculture and industry. Global warming is associated with not only the more frequent heat waves in summer, but also high temperatures in winter. In early February 2007, most northern areas in China, including the Yangtze-Huaihe River area, Jianghan Region, the area south of Yangtze River, the eastern part of Southwest China and the northwestern part of South China, had an average temperature 4~9ºC higher than usual. The tenday average temperature of 22 provinces (municipalities/regions) in the whole country was the highest or next to the highest on record since 1951, and the daily maximum temperature on February 5 in Beijing reached 16.0ºC, hitting an all-time high since 1840 when weather conditions were first recorded. On February 6, the maximum temperature of Nanjing (南京) in Jiangsu Province (江苏) rose to 23.9ºC, the highest

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in a century. Higher temperatures in winter are favorable for the dissemination of germ and virus, which are harmful to health. E. Other Extreme Weather and Climate Events In 2007, China also experienced extreme convective weather events, among which strong thunderstorm, tornado, and hailstorms were the most common. On May 23, a primary school in Xingye Village, Yihe Town, Kaixian County of Chongqing (重庆) municipality was hit by a lightning strike, leaving 7 persons dead and 44 injured. On May 31, the same county was hit by another three lightning strikes that killed 2 and injured 3. In June alone, the death toll of thunderstorm amounted to 57 in Jiangxi Province. The day of June 24 alone witnessed 21deaths; from July 10 to July 16, under the influence of strong convective weather, the frequent lightening strikes in Jiangxi killed 36 people. On July 3, a tornado attacked Gaoyou city, Jiangsu Province, and Tianchang City, Anhui Province, leaving 14 dead and 151 injured. In July alone, convective weather such as thunderstorm, hailstone and tornado claimed a total of 251 lives in China. In 2007, an abnormality occurred in the activities of landing typhoons in China. From April to mid July, the number of typhoons formed in northwest Pacific Ocean and South China Sea was much less than average. From April to June, no typhoons formed or landed in China. However, a sudden increase of typhoon activities occurred in August, with Typhoon Pabuk and Sepat landing back to back. Sepat finally intensified into a super typhoon, landing in the coastal area of Chongwu Town, Huian County of Quanzhou City, in Fujian Province (福建省). Typhoon Sepat caused widespread, heavy rainstorms in five adjacent provinces, including Fujian, Zhejiang (浙江), Guangdong, Jiangxi and Hunan. It even brought torrential rainstorms in some specific areas, and the water level of Xiangjiang River rose sharply. On October 7, typhoon Krosa landed in Xiaguan, Cangnan County of Zhejiang (浙江) Province, on the border of Zhejiang (浙江) and Fujian (福建) Provinces. Never before since the year 1949 had a typhoon landed in Zhejiang so late. “Krosa” not only caused heavy rainstorms in the eastern and northern part of Zhejiang (浙江) and northeast Fujian, it broke the record of daily precipitation of Hangzhou and Zhoushan city. It also brought severe economic losses to coastal areas, especially Zhejiang Province, since it was then the national holiday season and those areas are tourism resorts.

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II. Coping with Climate Change and Guarding against Extreme Weather Events China is one of the countries that suffer the most devastating natural disasters in the world. In China, more than 70% of big cities, about half of the total population, and 75% of the total value of industrial and agricultural output are located in coastal regions and the eastern plains and hilly regions, where meteorological, marine, flood and geologic disasters frequently occur. Each year, around 400 million people are affected by extreme weather and climate events such as rainstorms, floods, high temperatures and drought, typhoon, hailstone, snowstorm as well as secondary or derivative meteorological disasters such as forest and grassland fires, landslides, flash floods, pests, and disease. The annual economic losses caused by such disasters amounts to 200 billion RMB on average. Since the beginning of the 21st century, the global average temperature has been rising continuously. Statistics show that the top seven years in terms of global average temperature rank as 1998, 2005, 2003, 2002, 2004, 2006 and 2001, all in the new century except for 1998. In 2006, the annual average temperature in China was the highest since 1951. From January to November 2007, the average temperature of China was 11.4ºC, which rewrote the record since 1951. The IPCC Fourth Climate Change Assessment Report indicates that along with the continuous rise of the global temperature, extreme weather and climate events have increased and intensified over the past 50 years, and a higher frequency of such events is predicted for the future. Research recently published in the American journal Science on August 10, 2007 indicates that in the next ten years (2006–2015), the world would become warmer, and from the year 2009 to 2015, at least half of the years will have an annual global average temperature above the record of 1998. According to research published by British scientists in the British journal Nature on October 11, 2007, global warming remarkably increased the global air humidity on the land surface, the water vapor content increased by 2.2% from the year 1976 to 2004, and by the year 2100, air humidity will increase by 10% in the context of global warming. The change of air humidity will accordingly influence rainfall distribution and intensity. Moreover, since water vapor is one of the greenhouse gases, the increase in air humidity will intensify global warming, which in return, will increase the air humidity, and continue to influence precipitation.

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In recent years, North China has also been hit by more frequent and more intensified droughts. Since the late 1990s, continuous droughts have attacked this area, spanning for five or six years in certain places. Extremely high temperatures and heat waves also increased sharply since the mid-1990s, same with the number of days with maximum daily temperature above 35ºC. Moreover, extremely heavy rainfalls also surged in number, especially in the 1990s, with a significant increase in precipitation and extremely heavy rain falls in the Yangtze River and the areas south to the Yangtze River. A high frequency of rainstorms and floods was also witnessed in Yangtze-Huaihe River Basin. Since 2003, precipitation in Huaihe River area has risen to a level above normal. From 2003 to 2007, the annual precipitation (except that of 2004) was always higher than average, with four massive floods occurring in the period. In the summer of 2003, continuous heavy rain forced the Wangjiaba Dam to discharge floodwater twice, and formed the most serious flood situation in the Huaihe River area since the year 1991. Since the beginning of the 21st century, the abnormity of the middle and high latitude atmospheric circulation became more apparent, thus pushing and intensifying monsoon rainy belts further to the north. Therefore, it is not strange that the Yangtze River rainy belt gradually moved to the north and finally reaches the Huaihe River Basin. The analysis above indicates that due to global warming, extreme events such as rainstorms, droughts, and heat waves will occur more frequently. How to cope with such disasters has become an urgent problem that has to be addressed. Let us take one case for example. The increasingly concentrated precipitation may result in longer intervals of small amounts of rainfall, which in turn leads to the alternate occurrence of heavy rain falls and severe droughts in the area. In 2006, Sichuan Province was hit by severe high temperature and intense drought. Only a year later, the same area was hit by an unprecedented heavy rainstorm. Another case in point occurred in Liaoning Province in northeast China. In early March of 2007, it witnessed the heaviest snowstorm since 1951, and then summer arrived unusually early on June 6 (the earliest summer on record since 1951). It was struck by a severe drought, with the lowest amount of precipitation on record since 1951. At the end of July, the province was again hit by a heavy rainstorm, and the meteorological department released 15 rainstorm warnings, two thunderstorm warnings. Therefore, it remains an urgent task for China to cope with extreme weather and climate events. To achieve this, emphasis should be put

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on the prevention rather than solution. Large amount of historical lessons and international experiences seem to show that to cope with the increasingly frequent and intensified natural disasters, we must rely on scientific ways of development, reasonable planning, timely warning systems, adequate preparation, and effective responses. Otherwise, even a high level of economic development cannot prevent heavy losses of life and property caused by natural disasters. What happened to New Orleans in America during Hurricane Katrina can serve as an example. It is true that we are not capable of changing nature and preventing the occurrence of natural disasters, but we could learn the rules of nature, forecast the tendency of natural disasters, and thus win time for people in hazard-prone regions to take effective measures to prevent heavy losses. The urban and rural disaster prevention and relief systems should also be improved. In the summer of 2007, a large number of major cities in China (including Wuhan, Chongqing, Jinan, Hangzhou, and Urumchi) were hit by rainstorms. However, in most of the cities, flood prevention and drainage facilities were below standard and thus failed to cope with such extreme meteorological disasters, leaving areas with lowland and poor drainage pipelines devastated by the accumulated floodwater. The storm water logging in some sections caused various secondary disasters, including traffic disruption. Most urban disaster prevention systems appeared fragile and vulnerable in face of extreme meteorological disasters. Therefore, we should adopt effective measures to establish a comprehensive disaster prevention system and promote the overall capability to cope with disasters. Compared with urban areas, rural areas, which claim 80 percent of the total casualty caused by meteorological disasters each year, remain the weak link in the course of disaster prevention and relief. Compared with other sectors, agriculture, forestry, animal husbandry and fishery are the most vulnerable industries since they are frequently subject to the impact of weather and climate. Besides, rural areas lag behind urban areas in terms of communication, electric power generation, transportation, and housing. Due to inadequate education and training, rural residents are either unaware of the severity of the situation, or simply incapable of coping with extreme weather and climate events in a scientific way. In order to solve the problem, citizens in both urban and rural areas should be provided with adequate education in this regard and timely forecast released by government and competent authorities should reach all so that local residents in hazard-prone regions can

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keep alert and act reasonably in the face of a natural disaster. Only by doing so can we minimize damage. Irrational human development and construction has aggravated natural disasters. In order to address the issue of climate change and strengthen the capacity of disaster prevention and relief, we must pursue sustainable development and the harmonious relationship between humans and nature by protecting the natural environment, promoting ecological construction, and conserving natural resources and energy sources. We should also respect the laws of nature, and prepare by enhancing strategic planning and scientific design. Keeping our inhabited regions and important strategic infrastructures far away from the disaster-vulnerable and environmentally fragile areas can surely cut losses caused by extreme weather and climate disasters.

CHINA AND CLIMATE CHANGE FROM THE PERSPECTIVE OF INTERNATIONAL CIVIL SOCIETY1 Fu Tao

International civil society has played an active role in international climate negotiations, emphasizing the participation of local communities and broader civil society. Civil society has utilized its technical expertise to promote a low-carbon revolution via policy recommendations. At the same time, climate change issues have been integrated into development programs to benefit the disadvantaged. These practices provide a model for NGOs in China by which they could play a more positive, professional, and effective role in dealing with climate change. Key words: Climate change, civil society, equitable development, low-carbon development

Since 2007, in addition to the publication of the fourth report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), increasingly frequent climate change-related natural disasters have increased public awareness and attention within the international political arena. Climate change has become an indispensable part of all bilateral, multilateral, and regional conferences. The United Nations established a negotiation committee under the IPCC as early as 1990, which initiated negotiations in 1991. Since then, countries with similar interests have formed voting blocs while producing treaties such as the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the Kyoto Protocol. In December 2007, UN member states adopted the Bali Roadmap at the United Nations Climate Conference in Bali, Indonesia, setting the agenda for climate change negotiations up to 2009. Climate change negotiations require cooperation among countries. Because of the technical nature of these negotiations, they have been navigated primarily by government officials and experts. However, given its impact on political, social, economic aspects of human life as well as humanity’s future, climate change has long been a part of civil society’s field of activities. Climate change raises a number of

1 The article is based on the first part of Warming China—Thoughts and Activities of Civil Society, a research report coordinated by Friends of Nature in 2007.

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complicated problems such as equity between countries and between generations, gender equality, and development rights. Policies from energy-conservation and emissions-reduction to adaptation require the active participation of civil society. In the global context, civil society has already worked to stop climate change by conducting research and calling for actions to mitigate climate change. The interaction between civil society and the states of the world has helped implement policies that consider fairness. I. Justice and Adaptation Civil society, especially NGOs that focus on development, take the issues of justice and equality seriously. They have shifted the assessment of climate negotiations from a purely technical focus to include the concerns of the rights of communities and disadvantaged groups. Some NGOs have introduced the principle of Climate Justice. The International Climate Justice Network released the Bali Principles of Climate Justice for the World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD) held in Johannesburg in 2002. The Bali Principles criticized the negotiations for being too limited to the technical arena, and for being controlled by interest groups. The Bali Principles connected climate change with community problems from the perspective of human rights and climate justice. It also advocated the rights of people affected by climate change, including indigenous peoples, to participate in policy-making on every level. The Bali Principles also held that market-based solutions to climate change should be subject to the principles of democratic accountability, ecological sustainability, and social justice. At the UN Climate Change Conference in Bali, December 2007, the NGO Action Aid International commented that climate change had become the biggest obstacle for eradicating poverty and realizing rights. Apart from North-South equity issues, Action Aid also paid attention to the impact that climate change brought to individual countries, in particular gender inequality within a country. Accordingly, it urged the world to analyze the influence of climate change on gender relations, and called on women to take a leading role in seeking solutions and implementing policies.2

2

Action Aid, International Climate Change Position Paper, September 2007.

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Climate change has posed a direct challenge to international development organizations, which have put adaptation on the agenda. They have shared their experiences, presented policy suggestions, and put new ideas into practice in communities. One typical example of coping with climate change in development is the release of the report Up in Smoke: Human Development and Climate Change, written by a dozen international, African environmental, and development NGOs including Action Aid, Oxfam, and Greenpeace. The report examined the impact of climate change on vulnerable communities in terms of food, water, hygiene, energy, natural disasters, environment, and livelihood. It also presented a number of case studies, discussing strategies and measurements for development organizations working in different contexts. It emphasized that developing countries should act against climate change, and that rich countries should take the lead in adopting mitigation and adaptation measures and share costs accordingly. Drawing upon such discussions on adaptation, Chinese NGOs could clarify its orientation and specify how to integrate the issue of climate change into specific community practices, promoting energy saving, emissions-reduction and structural adjustment. NGOs should make use of the current community resources to empower vulnerable communities. II. Involvement in International Negotiations On the 62nd session of the General Assembly of the United Nations on September 24, 2007, Lu Sicheng, Program and Communications Director of Greenpeace China delivered a speech on behalf of the Climate Action Network, presenting five demands to the governments. He urged for the United Nations Climate Negotiations to be held in Bali, Indonesia in December 2007, and for the adoption of a legally binding “Bali Authorization” to direct climate negotiations so that countries can reach an agreement by the end of 2009. The first direct participation of NGOs in climate negotiations took place in Brazil. The Brazilian government established the Brazilian Climate Change Forum (FBMC) which invited businesses, academics, trade unions, and NGOs to participate in the national policy making process. Vitae Civilis represented Brazil as an NGO while participating in the signatory states conference for the Kyoto Protocol. The Brazilian

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Forum of NGOs and Social Movements for the Environment and Development (FBOMS) was established as early as 1990 to promote involvement at the Earth Summit in 1992. Since then it has been regarded by the government as an important partner. FBOMS currently has more than 300 member organizations, and has been entitled to send its own representatives to the decision-making and consulting committees in a few countries. Given the diverse interest groups involved in climate negotiations, both their responsibilities and the ability to implement those responsibilities should be taken into consideration. International NGOs, based on their expertise, provide principles and plans for climate negotiations. The Right to Development in a Climate Constrained World, published before the Climate Change Conference in Bali in December, is one such example. The report proposed a climate-protection framework—Greenhouse Development Rights (GDRs), quantifying the ability and responsibility of every country, offering a consistent principle through which all the countries could take their respective responsibility for climate change. It also pointed out that obligations should be shared among high emissions communities of both the developed and developing countries. Participating in the climate negotiations provides opportunities for civil society to promote democratic governance, guaranteeing a sustainable development framework within the negotiations. NGOs from developed countries play an active role in international climate negotiations because of their in-depth research. In contrast, NGOs from developing countries have little voice in the international arena because they lack strong technical expertise and they focus on local issues. However, a few active organizations from developing countries have emerged, including the Third World Network (TWN). TWN actively exchanges ideas with representatives from various countries, provides information, and offers analysis and explanation from the perspective of developing countries, asking the developed countries to take more responsibility. The global nature of climate change poses a challenge to Chinese NGOs that have focused primarily on local issues. Chinese NGOs should adapt by adopting an international perspective, creating their own strategies to influence national policies. The perspective of NGOs can also shed light on the actions to be taken by the developing countries. The rapid development of carbon trade has inspired NGOs to reflect.

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III. Reflecting on Carbon Trade: Positive Effects and Limitations of Market Mechanisms The emissions reduction mechanisms set in the Kyoto Protocol have been an important booster for international cooperation toward building a low carbon economy. The Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) is the only emissions reduction mechanism that features cooperation between developed and developing countries. The basic principle of CDM is that through investing in developing countries, developed countries achieve emissions reductions by buying emissions reduction credits. The supporters of the Kyoto Protocol think that the CDM is a win-win mechanism, stimulating economic growth in developing countries, and utilizing the market and private property rights to protect the environment. Emissions reductions can thus be achieved without hurting economic development. However, there are also many critics of the commoditization of the climate. Some believe that the CDM has a number of deficiencies, including funding projects that go against the initial intention of reducing emissions. The process of carbon credit trading will not only become a way for investors to profit, but will also cause new poverty and inequality, jeopardizing local natural resources and community interests in the Global South. Some NGOs hold that carbon trading allows polluting companies to avoid their responsibility to reduce their emissions. They refer to carbon trading as carbon dumping or carbon colonization. Take the carbon sink projects for example. Environmentalists worry that these projects will stimulate massive industrialized forest planting, thus jeopardizing food security, exhausting water and land resources, and affecting biodiversity. Others argue that the carbon sink may prompt planting after cutting, which turns the natural forests into economic forests. This leads to the destruction of old forests for the carbon credit of planting a new forest. The difficulty of controlling for these risks makes it necessary to have continuous monitoring and evaluation. It only works if implemented on a large scale with state-level control. Civil society’s criticisms of the market mechanism in the Kyoto Protocol come from organizations with a variety of ecological values, ethics, and diverse strategies. Some NGOs applauded the Tokyo Protocol mechanism as it formally includes their perspective, enabling them to make up for the shortcomings of the market.

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Twenty-five percent of greenhouse gases result from deforestation and inappropriate land use. In March 2006, the Nature Conservancy (TNC), an NGO long devoted to the protection of forests through market mechanisms, suggested to the signatory parties of the UNFCCC and the Secretariat that effective monitoring and assessment of existent measures should be provided to avoid deforestation. TNC also suggests that we should reduce the possibility of carbon leaking, monitor and reduce carbon leaking caused by deforestation, and provide funds for programs aimed at reducing deforestation through the compensation funds marked for Carbon Dioxide emissions reduction. The 11th conference of UNFCCC has agreed to discuss the issue with developing countries. IV. China’s Road to Low Carbon Development Along with highlighting development and justice issues in climate negotiations, international civil society has also been a proponent of a shift to a low carbon economy through clean energy as a long-term solution to greenhouse gases. Greenpeace holds that the low carbon economy is another milestone in the energy revolution. A. Energy Revolution China is extremely dependent on coal. The 2005 coal yield is the combined total of Russia, Australia, India, and the US. Dependence on coal has led to inefficiency in energy production, serious pollution, high-cost products, and low competitiveness. In 2005, coal consumption accounted for 69% of all energy production in China while the world average is only 28%. Carbon dioxide emitted in producing new coal electricity in 2006 almost doubled the goal set in the Kyoto Protocol.3 In terms of energy efficiency, though China’s energy consumption per unit of GDP dropped by 60% within the past 20 years, the present consumption is still 3.1 times of the world average, 9 times of Japan

3 杨富强/Yang Fuqiang, “中国的节能目标和2050能源前景”/Zhongguo de mu biao he 2050 neng yuan qian jing,” 能源基金会/Neng yuan ji jin hui, 20% 节能行 动发布会发言/Jie neng xing dong fa bu hui fa yan, (“China’s Energy Conservation Object and Energy Prospects in 2050,” Energy Foundation, June 6, 2007, speech at the 20% Energy Conservation Campaign Conference.)

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and 4.3 times of OECD countries. Though there has been a massive reduction in the high energy-consuming production facilities, the level remains 25% to 60% higher than the world average. China’s overall energy efficiency in energy production, conversion, and end-use is 10% lower than other countries.4 The Chinese government set a target of reducing energy use per unit of GDP by 20 percent between 2006 and 2010, though it did not achieve its goal of 4% reduction a year in 2006. The negative effects of the coal dependent growth pattern have been self-evident. As a big developing country, China plays a subtle role in the international climatic politics. The responsibility is both a political duty and a moral one. Shouldering this responsibility is a test for every nation that seeks to lead the world. For China, it is not only a commitment to international responsibility, but also a national need. Greenpeace and WWF recently released research reports that give scientific support for the pursuit of a low-carbon development route in China. In the past two years, China’s wind power capacity had increased by over 100% annually. From 2005, more than 90% of China’s wind power programs have applied to be included in CDM under the Kyoto Protocol. Thus, China has been making progress in the development of renewable energy. The National Assessment Report on Climate Change released at the end of the year of 2006 pointed out that China would adopt a low carbon development model.5 B. Carbon Emissions and Transfer in Trade Globalization The fact that China has become the world’s factory through the global division of production and trade caught the eye of prominent international NGOs. Greenpeace investigated China’s timber consumption, finding that “in the last ten years, China suddenly became the world’s second largest importer and consumer of forest products, which accelerated illegal cutting and damage to forests. However, at the same time, there has been a faster rise in forest product exports than in domestic

4 Zhou Fengqi, The Resource and Environmental Restraints of China’s Economic Development, Resource Development of State Development and Reform Commission, speech at the Heinrich Boll Foundation Workshop in May, 2007. 5 庄贵阳/Zhuang Guiyuang “低碳经济：中国别无选择/Jiang di jing ji: Zhongguo bie wu xuan ze,” www.sina.com.cn, 世界知识杂志/Shi jie zhi shi za zhi, (“Low Carbon Economy: China Has No Other Choice,” World Knowledge Magazine, May 9, 2007).

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timber consumption. China is thus a world factory producing plywood, furniture, and paper. The demand for cheap Chinese products in developed countries has prompted China’s forest industry to import more timber from other countries. If China’s need of timber worsens the global forest crisis, countries like the US, Japan and European countries cannot be considered irrelevant.” A survey report released in April 2007, WWF Report: Re-Think China’s Outward Investment Flows, pointed out that global consumers, especially those in developed countries, are also responsible for China’s increasing ecological influence overseas.6 Dennis Pamlin, the coauthor of the report and a WWF expert on global strategies, argued that most of China’s imported natural resources would be exported after they were turned into value-added products. For example, Sweden has cut its carbon emissions by 10% because Chinese and Indian companies produce consumer goods for the Swedish market.7 As the world’s factory, China is also the target venue for heavy industries from developed countries, with China paying the emissions costs of such factories. Thus, we should have a balanced view of China being the world’s factory and the world’s manufacturing centre, which worsens the greenhouse gas emissions from China. Some data indicate that if the U.S. made the goods imported from China within its own territory, its carbon emissions would increase by 3% to 6%. Between 7% and 14% of China’s present carbon emissions are due to production for American consumption. China is at a unique development stage with an export policy specific to this stage. That is why China exports a huge amount of embodied energy. Therefore, the post-Kyoto climate policy model should consider this situation in China. In 2006, New Economic Foundation, a British think tank, released the research report The Interdependent Era, in which it speculated that a product produced in Chinese factories would produce one third more carbon dioxide than one produced in European factories, with even more carbon dioxide being emitted during transportation. Moreover, the continuous increase in commodity production in China and other

6 Dennis Pamlin and 龙柏金 Long Baijin, WWF Report: Re-think Chinese Outward Investment Flows, 2007. Available at: http://assets.panda.org/downloads/wwf_re_think_ chinese_outward_investment.pdf. 7 Greenpeace, Common Responsibility: the impact of world and Chinese forest consumption on the world’s forests, 2007.

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developing countries is polluting local areas, exhausting water resources, and overcutting forests. The Foundation pointed out that a model by which the emissions responsibility is attributed to the consumer instead of the producer should be established and institutionalized. Presently, China’s NGOs participate in supervising and advising multinational companies on how to reduce emissions, and they have developed their own working models. Though carbon emissions from China keep rising, no discussions about how to assess the role of Western consumption neither in this, nor in how to divide the responsibility between China and other countries have been held. Civil society can play a more positive role in the future in this regard. V. Equality within Nations International negotiations usually concentrate on the interests of nation-states with the government as the only representative of all social members of a given state. However, climate issues require consideration for the development and adaptive capacities among different groups and regions. A researcher from the Research Center for Sustainable Development (RCSD), Pan Jiahua, presents the concept of human-development-based carbon emissions demand. As a scare resource, the right to emit carbon could be traded as a commodity. At the same time, it is a basic requisite of human life, and thus a basic right of development. In fact, climate change raises issues of equity in every nation. For instance, there has been a long-term uneven distribution of China’s per capita energy consumption between cities and rural areas. Data show that the per capita energy consumption of rural residents in 1990 was only 27.9% of that of urbanites (83 and 298 kg of standard coal, respectively). Although this proportion has been increasing annually, reaching 44.9% in 2004 (109 and 243 kg of standard coal, respectively), it is still below 50%.8 Climate Change is directly related to development. In the past few decades, uneven social development has been a serious issue for environmental protection. A small number of people and regions have developed rapidly at the expense of the majority. In turn, the less

8

China Energy Statistics Yearbook 2005, China Statistics Press.

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fortunate are forced to endure more hardships, further trapped by both pollution and a lack of resources, often forced to live in the mist of ruined environment.9 Concerning mitigation and adaptation measures, the lessons of the past must be taken seriously to guard against various forms of inequality. The public should thus enjoy more rights of participation and supervision. The adaptive measures in carbon-emissions rights trade and other issues are related to the government’s responsibility to uphold social equality. The government needs to take into consideration the possible results of mitigation and adaptation measures. For instance, changing the resource structure may bring more “legitimacy” to large hydropower projects. Prompted by CDM financing, if environmental and social impact assessments are not strictly conducted, the projects in question will have more impacts that are negative. For example, the move towards producing agriculture for biofuel as an alternative energy in some developing countries has resulted in high crop prices and water scarcity, which have in turn worsened poverty in those countries. Therefore, large projects with CDM financing must be assessed for their social and environmental impacts. Communities should be empowered to deal with climate change with community efforts maintain water resources in upstream areas compensated by regions downstream that have higher carbon emissions. Moreover, market measures alone cannot solve the systemic equity issues of the CDM mechanism. China today has the largest number of CDM projects in the world, which are expected to produce a climate emissions rate (CER) of 395 million tons, worth approximately 3 billion dollars. Over 70% of China’s CDM credits come from projects aimed at reducing hydro chlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs).10 However, current CDM projects in China concentrate on increasing energy efficiency and financing for the construction of renewable energy projects. Those projects attract both buyers and sellers in terms of scale and operability. Cities and industries benefit greatly from these projects, but vulnerable rural areas receive little to no benefit. In addition to the responsibilities of the business sector, CDM projects should also guard against inequality brought by uneven development Ma Jun, “Environmental Governance Needs Social Consensus and Public Participation in Order to Curb Rent-seeking,” China Dialogue, April 2007. 10 Elliot Diringer, “Kyoto and Post-Kyoto: a way out of the mist,” China Dialogue, April 2007. 9

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in developing countries: rural areas, especially those in China’s western regions, produce fewer emissions, but bear more of the costs of climate change and environment deterioration. According to the fairness doctrine pursued in the negotiations in the North-South dialogue, there should be national legislation whereby developed areas assume more of the responsibilities in emissions-reduction and adaptation and help developing areas through capacity-building projects. VI. Conclusion In recent years, climate change has gradually become a major topic of international politics and diplomacy both economically and socially. As a large developing country, China is facing increasing pressure regarding its emissions while more adaptive measures should be taken to mitigate the impacts of climate change while ensuring equity. Given this, China’s civil society needs to play a more active role. Participation of Chinese NGOs in international climate negotiations is still at a low level. More knowledge and expertise are needed to create measures dealing with climate change both domestically and internationally. The thoughts and practice of the international NGOs depicted in this report come from studies and discussions of international environmental and development organizations. The perspectives of these NGOs are no doubt insightful for Chinese NGOs, who may create their own strategies adapted for the specific Chinese context. Some NGOs have recently founded the China Climate Action Network (CCAN) and have begun studying the climate issues and planning advocacy activities. Stimulated by the China’s Civil Society in Climate Change: Consensus and Strategies project, some NGOs have formed a basic position on climate change. Others have begun community development projects in different regions in response to climate change. They also promote public participation and serve as a watchdog for destructive business practices and government policies. By drawing on experiences from their international counterparts, Chinese NGOs will inevitably become more professional, active, and effective.

CLIMATE CHANGE AND CHINESE YOUTH’S ATTITUDES TOWARDS CONSUMPTION Zhang Kejia

A survey on consumption among Chinese urban youth revealed that Chinese youth show a relatively strong recognition of climate change. However, the majority aspires to own cars and big houses and to travel abroad, which is similar to the consumption behavior of their western counterparts. Although young people are economical in some ways, ideas of sustainable consumption have not been integrated into mainstream living styles and thus still needs to be promoted. Key words: sustainable consumption, climate change, Chinese youth

The public’s attitudes towards consumption, especially those of younger generations, determine the health and sustainability of China’s future development. Chinese youth should give more attention to the concept of “green life,” and think more deeply about how to construct a resource-conserving society through the concept of sustainable development in order to confront the challenges brought by rapid economic development and global climate change. Climate change has received a great deal of attention from young people and “sustainable consumption” came to the forefront as an issue in Chinese urban life in 2007. In August 2007, China Youth Daily presented the results of its research on urban young people on their attitudes towards sustainable development. Data was collected by both a returned questionnaire survey and by random door-to-door survey interviews. The questionnaires were sent out with major newspapers and posted on the very popular Sina.com website. Interviews were conducted in areas with a high concentration of office buildings in large cities such as Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Chongqing, and Tianjin. Data from 2,500 copies of the questionnaire were collected and used in the final analysis, including 1,000 copies returned from newspaper inserts, 1,000 from the Internet, and 500 from the personal interviews. Survey participants came from 31 different provinces, municipalities, and autonomous regions. Their average age was 30.1 years old. Young people ranging in age from 21 to 40 accounted for nearly 80% of the respondents. The average monthly income of the interviewees was 2,977 RMB (students, military personnel and the unemployed were

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excluded). Young people whose monthly income ranged from 1,000 to 3,000 RMB account for the largest group at approximately 38% of the respondents. Young adults with monthly incomes of over 5,000 RMB accounted for 14%. I. Young People’s Recognition of Climate Change Because much has been reported about climate change, young people are already aware of and knowledgeable about the phenomenon of climate change, its causes and consequences. The survey shows that nearly 80% of the young people have some knowledge of climate change and are concerned about the harmful impacts of global warming. Only 20% either showed false or little understanding of climate change, or expressed indifference about the topic. The majority of the young people know that climate change can lead to a “rise in sea levels” and the “disappearance of coastal cities and islands.” However, only 55% of the young people agree that it may lead to “the extinction of the polar bear.” Only 5% of the respondents possess no knowledge of climate change or think that it is just hype by scientists. It is notable that although about 18% of the young people are knowledgeable about global warming, they are not concerned about it. One opinion is that although the climate is getting warmer, this will have very insignificant effects on their generation. Another opinion is that global warming may not necessarily be a bad thing. The former opinion reflects a selfish attitude that shows apathy towards social issues, and their opinion does not reflect reality. Actually, climate change is exerting more and more obvious effects on our daily life, with the increased frequency of severe weather being one example. The latter opinion, which purports that global warming is not necessarily a bad thing, arises out of ignorance of the ecological deterioration of the earth and human beings’ predicament. II. Scholars are Surprised by the Consumption Behaviors of Chinese Youth According to the survey, when asked “what wish do you want to realize most” 38% of the respondents long for a big house, 21% to travel abroad, and 12% for private cars. Scholars from many developed

climate change and youth’s attitudes towards consumption 127 countries were surprised by the power of globalization. They found that consumption in China is similar to developed countries. The research findings discussed above were almost identical to the results of a similar survey done on young consumers’ consumption preferences in Britain in 2006. The Report of the Roundtable Conference on Sustainable Consumption provided by the Department of Sustainable Development of British Embassy in China reveals that the consumption plans of British young people include big houses, luxury cars, an upscale life style, and “traveling abroad is quite representative of the desire of most consumers.” The report states, “more and more people regard excessive consumption as a fashionable life style. Rival-consumption driven by commercialization is tempting more and more people into frequently replacing their clothes, shoes, cell phones, and mp3 players with newer ones. Similarly, the use of credit cards has become very common in China within the past few years, and the popularity of updating cell phone models exceeds that of some developed countries. Moreover, urban young people are increasingly interested in shopping, and they buy things not because they are “in need of them,” but because they “like shopping itself.” The survey also reveals the problem of consumption at the public’s expense. As many as half of the interviewees say they have opportunities to eat or travel on public expense. When consumers need not pay for themselves, the problem of inappropriate and excessive consumption is more conspicuous. III. Difficulty of Young People Adopting Sustainable Consumption as Way of Life The wide-spread trend of consumerism has squeezed out the concept of “sustainable consumption.” Many young people do not pay attention to the “green choice” of improving the quality of life when thinking of their future plans. The survey shows that 13% of the interviewees say that if they see any clothes or shoes they like or if they are on sale, they will buy them without hesitation, whether they really need them or not. Another 12% attaches more importance to price and they say if the products on sale are cheap enough, they will probably open their wallets. These two kinds of consumers, which altogether amount to 25% of the interviewees, tend to be easily influenced by sales promotions.

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As early as 100 years ago, Thorstein Veblen, an economist and sociologist, proposed the concept of “conspicuous consumption.” “Conspicuous consumption” is used to describe the behavior of spending money lavishly to show off in order to establish social status through displaying one’s economic power. Some scholars state that multinational corporations promote consumerist lifestyles, which encourage people to stop using domestically-produced goods since they do not convey the same status as international products. This way of consuming is called rival consumption. It emphasizes competitive consumption rather than consumption for need. In China, rival consumption is growing, especially in regards to real estate and cars. As many as 66.8% of the interviewees think that they should try to change the materialistic and luxurious life style of living in huge houses, driving everywhere, and travelling too often. However, because their living standard is not yet at that level, their opinion is hardly tenable. It is significant that almost 32% of the respondents held that, “to pursue a comfortable life is every individual’s right” and “people need not give up the comfortable life they already lead.” An obstacle to sustainable consumption is that the public is worried about the possible lowering of their present living standards. The survey shows that 50% of the interviewees think that sustainable consumption will not lower their standard of living. Another 38% admitted that they are not clear about that, but they are willing to try to consume sustainablility, while only 9.8% think that it will lower their living standard. However, there is still a big gap between what people know and what they do. According to the survey, 84% of the interviewees agree that car exhaust is the main source of urban air pollution. Only 8% of the interviewees do not agree and another 8% say they are not clear about this. The majority of the interviewees know the harm of vehicle exhaust, and of the depletion of energy resources for cars. However, when they are asked whether they will buy a car if they can afford one, 27% of them answer they “certainly will” and 49% answer they “probably will,” accounting for 2/3 of all respondents. Only 15% say that they will not buy private cars. According to a forum on the website Sina.com, private cars are a status symbol for many people. Besides, there is a pervasive opinion that public transportation is not a good option because “it takes twice as much time” and “the price of public transportation has been reduced, which is a good thing, but this makes the buses and subways

climate change and youth’s attitudes towards consumption 129 more crowded and thus frightens away those who are used to driving their own cars.” The widespread use of credit cards also stimulates excessive consumption. In recent years, almost all of China’s commercial banks began competing for customers by widely issuing credit cards, thus promoting consumption. The survey shows that about half of the interviewees have various credit cards. As to the monthly expenditure, 30% of them spend less than 1,000 RMB, 11% between 1,000–2,000 RMB, and 9% over 2,000 RMB. Among them, 27% have even become “moonlight people,” which refers to people who always spend all of their earnings before the end of the month so that they cannot make ends meet (students and the unemployed not included). IV. Influence of Environmental Awareness on Sustainable Consumption Many of the public’s day to day behaviors accord with the standard of sustainable consumption whether they are self-conscious or not. For example, traveling via public transportation, turning off the lights when leaving a room, limiting the use of home air conditioners, and delaying the replacement of refrigerators all show that consumers are conscious of the need to save energy, water, and electricity. According to the survey, 76% of the interviewees show that they are already aware of the need to conserve in their daily lives. Less than a quarter show that they do not care very much and only 0.4% show that they do not have any consciousness of the need to conserve at all. The survey shows that most urban youth have some knowledge of environmental protection. They widely recognize the damage of vehicle exhaust to the urban environment, and think that “energy waste is serious in government office buildings, restaurants, and hotels.” At the same time, there are still some blind spots in the public’s knowledge of environmental protection. For example, some people have not realized the effect of energy-saving light bulbs. Most people have no idea of their amount of water consumption. Neither do they have enough understanding of “buying local products rather than products made in other places.” Sustainable consumption encourages people to give preference to buying local products because of the energy consumed and carbon dioxide emitted when transporting goods long distances via trucks, planes, and

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trains. The survey finds that over 50% of the interviewees admit that they mainly consider the ratio of performance to price rather than the distance travelled by products, despite the fact they have been told of the influence of long-distance purchasing on the environment. That said, almost half of the interviewees showed an inclination towards buying local products. The survey also shows that 48.7% of the offices use energy-saving lamps and 38% of households use them. However, nearly 17.2% of the offices do not use energy-saving lamps at all, and this rate is as high as 31.8% for households. The survey also finds that 77% of the consumers believe that energy-saving products on the market in China are not sufficient. To summarize public attitudes towards energy-saving lamps and local products, the performance-price ratio of energy-saving products is not high enough, and people do not know enough about the high-energy requirements of shipping products long distances. The performanceprice ratio of the energy-saving lamps is quite low and it is difficult to tell whether they can really save money, all of which directly block their adoption by ordinary families. The public attitudes towards energy-saving products are mainly decided by the performance-price ratio. The undertone is that people can participate in environmental protection campaigns and support the idea of sustainable consumption, but are not willing to sacrifice their quality of life by spending more for conservation. This is one reason why many new energy-saving products have entered the market but numerous consumers still think that the variety of products is too limited. V. Public’s Expectation of Government to Be the Model of Sustainable Consumption In our daily life, especially in public places and office buildings, it is easy to find lights on during the daytime, air-conditioners running in empty rooms, leaking toilets and faucets, and dumped copy paper with only one side utilized for printing. The government should take the initiative in becoming a model of sustainable consumption for the public. According to the survey, 58.8% of the public expect the government to set the example, and 24% consider that business enterprises should be the model of sustainable consumption. At the same time, 78% of the public pin their hopes of improving the environment on

climate change and youth’s attitudes towards consumption 131 the government and they expect business enterprises to bear a large responsibility, as well. The public hopes that governmental and commercial enterprises will provide more energy-saving and environmental protection information on their products in order to provide more choices. As to the government’s initiative of building a conservation-oriented society and promoting the concept of sustainable development, 61% of the public have some understanding of it and support it. However, 34% reported that they do not know how to participate in these activities, though they are willing to cooperate. The data from the Bureau of Culture and Education of the British Embassy in China shows that there is nothing special about the Chinese public’s expectations. Many consumers in Europe, including England, also pin their hopes on the government and enterprises instead of changing their own behaviors. According to a report from the Roundtable Conference on Sustainable Development in England, up to 80% of English consumers think that the government should lead the way in promoting the concept of everyday sustainable consumption. For example, Beijing increased air quality monitoring and introduced vehicle restrictions in August 2007 by banning private cars on alternate days based on their license plate number. The public actively supported this four-day experiment as it was part of the preparations for the Olympic Games, but many also appealed for government cars to be limited as well. Some also criticized celebrities for their supporting and calling for energy conservation while simultaneously driving high-energy consuming vehicles and possessing numerous large houses. VI. Necessity of Popularizing a Green Lifestyle among the Youth The thriving market brings us unprecedented comfort, convenience, and choices. However, the complexity of the market links our way of life to nature. It is a simple fact that if everyone consumes at the same rate as people in developed countries, for example England and America, human beings will need three earths to live on. Nowadays, many people in developed countries have realized that they have to change their consumption patterns at home, while at the office, and while travelling. They have also realized that it is imperative that they change themselves in order to cope with the challenge of climate change.

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The youth of today are very fashion conscious. In some countries, environmental protection has become a new trend, not only among people with high salaries but also in various classes of the society, especially among younger generations. The living standard of the average Chinese person is improving rapidly and no one wants to return to the poverty of earlier times. However, there are various new techniques and concepts that can help us choose a more comfortable and harmonious way of life. It is not easy to change one’s consumption habits, but positive guidance will be a compelling impetus for change. Everyone should know that all of their actions have larger implications for society, and that environmentally-friendly consumption will be supported by policy. Although the public has the right to choose the products they want to buy and to live a high quality life, they also have the right to know the full implications of the choices they make. Our way of housekeeping, dining, traveling, and holiday spending exerts a major influence on the environment, accounting for four-fifths of our overall influence on the environment. Energy resources are just like an invisible hand in our life. If everyone relates climate change to their way of using light, hot water, and electrical appliances, the emissions of carbon will be greatly reduced. Moreover, the environmental situation will be improved significantly if airline passengers are aware of the influence of their flight on climate, everyone is assigned a credit quota for carbon, and every car is labeled with its carbon monoxide emissions and is taxed accordingly. These new rules will be accepted gradually just like laws regarding seatbelt use and smoking in public places and offices. Buying energy-saving electrical appliances is one way to reduce daily consumption. Also, new air conditioners that run on AC current can reduce energy consumption by 30% while those running on DC current can save over 50% over older models. Energy-saving refrigerators and washing machines can also reduce energy consumption by more than 30%. Turning off the heating and cooling functions of the drinking water dispenser, extending the life span of commodities to reduce frequency of purchases, and avoiding purchasing over-packaged commodities are all ways to save energy. To produce one plastic bag, for example, about 0.2 g coal equivalent will be consumed. Every time we go shopping in supermarkets, we should bring our own plastic or cloth bags and use them repeatedly. If we drive, we should stop the engine when parking in order to save 1.2 liters of gasoline per hour. We

climate change and youth’s attitudes towards consumption 133 should also make the most use of local farm produce and products in order to reduce carbon dioxide emissions from long distance airplane transportation. Other environmentally friendly ways of life include walking more, taking the stairs instead of the elevator, unplugging electrical appliances when they are not in use, and using solar-powered water heaters and fans instead of air conditioners. We should also stay away from low-quality goods, because they consume large amounts of energy in production. It is obvious that we have many opportunities to participate and choose. The wide participation of the public is the principal strategy for China to cope with the challenge of climate change. Ms. Wu Changhua, the Greater China director of the Climate Group, an international NGO, points out that the youth population accounts for 30% of the world population, and that their current behaviors will exert a great influence on their future way of life, thus influencing the global consumption model. She believes that the environmental awareness of Chinese youth is steadily increasing and their horizon is constantly expanding. She also believes that younger generations will choose their way of life wisely, which will do much to contribute to solving climate change and leading to a bright future for China.

PART III

URBAN ENVIRONMENT

GREEN OLYMPICS AND ENVIRONMENTAL IMPROVEMENTS IN BEIJING Li Jiao

The year 2007 was a decisive year for the preparation of the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games. In order to achieve the goal of “Green Olympics,” the Beijing Organizing Committee for the Olympic Games made tremendous efforts and achieved apparent successes in various aspects, including stadium construction, air quality improvement, transportation management, creating green space, and water conservation. However, improving Beijing’s overall environment remains an arduous task. Key words: Green Olympics (绿色奥运), Beijing, air quality

On July 13, 2001, Beijing was granted the right to host the XXIX Olympic Games. On the first anniversary of the bidding, the Beijing Organizing Committee for the Olympic Games (BOCOG) officially announced the Beijing Olympics Action Plan and released the overall goals and construction plans for the Olympics. Since then, the BOCOG built infrastructure in line with the concept of “Environmentally-friendly and Culturally-enriched Olympics.” The most important year in the buildup to the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games was 2007. United Nations Environmental Program (UNEP) and International Olympic Committee (IOC) released the report, Beijing 2008 Olympic Games—an Environmental Review at the 7th World Conference on Sport and Environment, held in Beijing from October 25 to 27. According to the report, the central government and Beijing municipal government have spent over 12 billion dollars on environmental protection and have achieved remarkable success.1 BOCOG was awarded “the Public Awareness to Protect the Ozonosphere Prize” by UNEP for its outstanding achievements in improving the environment, constructing “Green Olympics,” and promoting harmony between humans and nature. Achim Steiner, Deputy Secretary-General of UN and the Executive Director of UNEP, commented at the meeting, “Beijing, as the fastest growing economy among the major cities in developing

1 Yao Xin, “The 7th World Conference on Sport and Environment Ended, Partners and Actions Decided,” October 29, 2007, http://www.beijing2008.cn/.

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countries, has made prominent success in the environmental protection. The preliminary environmental evaluation report indicates that Beijing’s environment meets the standards of ‘Green Olympics.’ ”2 I. Olympic Downsizing Projects According to the Beijing Olympic Action Plan (北京奥运行动规划) announced in 2002, the Games would need 37 stadiums all together, 32 of which would be located in Beijing, with five additional stadiums located outside Beijing. In order to meet the demands, Beijing would build six temporary stadiums and enlarge 13 existing stadiums. In addition, 59 other training stadiums would be updated and special support facilities for the Paralympics Games would be installed.3 To the people’s gratification, Beijing municipal government made considerable changes to the stadium construction plan two years later in order to realize a “Green and Money-saving Olympics.” At the beginning of 2004, several academics from the Chinese Academy of Science (中国科学院) and the Chinese Academy of Engineering (中国工程院)) submitted a written statement to the higher authorities, pointing out the problems hidden in the Olympic projects. They pointed out expensive things done for superficial appearance as well as the neglect of safety and compatibility. Afterwards, the Beijing municipal government urged that the Olympic Games should be hosted in a frugal way and the cost must be lowered to the best of its ability. On July 30 2004, the construction of Beijing National Stadium (北京国家体育场) (Bird’s Nest) (鸟巢) was temporarily suspended, indicating the commencement of the Olympic downsizing program. However, this action led to a cultural debate. A group of architects and artists issued a round robin to “maintain the integrality of Bird’s Nest.” They criticized that the changes would convert the original functional framework into mere preciosity due to the deletion of a removable roof supported by the steel framework, extinguish the shock and awe effects and functions of the original design, and eventually destroy the

Zhou Wenli, Sun Tao, “UN Environmental Report Praises Beijing Olympics as ‘Green Olympics,’” Beijing Daily, November 1, 2007. 3 Beijing Olympic Committee, Beijing Olympic Action Plan, July 13, 2002, http://www .olympic.cn/. 2

green olympics and environmental improvements in beijing 139 integrality and violate the principle of “frugally hosting the Olympic Games.” Taking these criticisms into consideration, the construction of the downsized Bird’s Nest commenced again after the completion of the revised design on November 15, 2004. The revised plan removed the retractable roof, enlarging the opening instead. The seating capacity was lowered from 100,000 seats to 91,000 with 79,600 ordinary seats. The amount of steel used was reduced by 12,000 tons, thus enhancing safety performance. The construction of Bird’s Nest used over 80,000 tons of steel slag from Shougang Group (首钢), the fourth largest iron and steel producer in China. The processed steel slag, which would otherwise be waste, thus became a valuable commodity. It replaced the aggregate that would have been used in the foundations, thus also saving the amount of aggregate consumed.4 Time magazine included Bird’s Nest in its list of the Top 10 Architectural Marvels in the world in December 2007 issue.5 Since then, the downsizing of Olympic arenas has been in full progress. The National Aquatics Center (国家游泳中心) or “Water Cube” (水立方), saved 90 million RMB by reducing its space by 7,800 m2. Commercial facilities on the top five floors in Wukesong Indoor Stadium were eliminated, which reduced the construction size from 119,000 m2 to 63,000 m2. The walls of TVs encircling the interior were cancelled. The entrances to the stadium were simplified along with the tunnels, and the size of the area where matches would be held was reduced. After optimization, the steel consumption of the framework was reduced to 35,000 tons, 5,000 tons less than the original budget of 40,000. This saved 500 million RMB while both reducing construction difficulties and strengthening safety performance. Beijing municipal government has modified construction plans of Olympic stadiums and relevant facilities. It also worked to decrease the number of new buildings and increase the number of stadiums updated and expanded on the condition that they would meet the technical standards of IOC and International Sports Federations. The number of stadiums needed overall was reduced from 37 to 36. The number of stadiums slated for expansion was reduced from 12 to 11 while Fan Fan, Li Wei, “Over 80,000 tons of coal is hidden in the base, waste is environmentally friendly made profitable,” November 26, 2007, http://www.olympic.cn/. 5 Richard Lacayo, “Top 10 Best (New and Upcoming) Architectural Marvels,” Time Magazine, December 24, 2007. 4

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the number of temporary stadiums was increased to eight. All of the Olympic stadiums and relevant facilities met acceptable standards in 2007.6 The cost of the total 31 stadiums in Beijing was tightly controlled. Of the 13 billion RMB spent, the central and regional governments’ investment covered 50 percent while the other half was made up of community financing and donations. The estimated cost of the Bird’s Nest was 3.5 billion RMB.7 According to initial statistics, 29 environmental protection methods were employed in Olympic projects, including noise control, garden greening, environmental protection facilities, and solid waste disposal. There are 11 water utilization technologies and reclaimed water disposal, 46 green construction materials, and 57 other environmental protection products, making energy-conserving construction a reality. Apart from optimization of air-conditioners, water pumps, and the application of new energy resources, Olympic projects also introduced 61-advanced air cleaning methods, 48 energy-saving lighting techniques, and 38 energy-saving construction configurations.8 The water-saving aspects of the Olympic stadiums were also a highlight. All of the stadiums in the Olympic Park using the “Dragon” water system use reclaimed water. Qinghe Sewage Processing Plant and Beixiaohe Sewage Processing Plant provided the reclaimed water from the main lake and from the central region’s water system in Olympic Forest Park (奥林匹克森林公园), respectively. A high-level sewage processing system was established in five construction projects, namely, National Aquatics Center, Shunyi Olympic Rowing-Canoeing Park, Olympic Village, Olympic Forest Park, and the stadium group in Olympic Park. The utilization of rainwater was given substantial consideration in the design of the stadium, which includes gathering, processing, and recycling procedures. The downsized Bird’s Nest will save nearly 60,000 tons of water annually. At Fengtai Softball Field, rainwater and sewage from the swimming pool and toilets are processed to meet standards

6 Beijing Youth Newspaper, “Olympic Downsizing Project will Complete by the End of this Year,” September 10, 2004. 7 Wu Peng, “Bird’s Nest’s Estimated Cost: within 3.5 Billion Yuan,” The Beijing News, January 29, 2008. 8 Beijing 2008 Project Construction Headquarters Office, “How Many New Technologies Are Used in Olympic Stadium Construction?” April 10, 2007.

green olympics and environmental improvements in beijing 141 for reclaimed water and then used to clean the toilets and to irrigate the field’s grass, saving about 80,000 tons of water annually.9 On the afternoon of July 20, 2006, Swedish King Gustaf and Queen Silvia visited the Beijing 2008 Engineering Exhibition Center as well as the National Stadium, and spoke favorably of the concept of “Green Olympics.”10 II. Beijing’s “Blue Sky Plan” (蓝天工程) “Sport, and in particular our athletes, need a healthy environment, but sport also needs to contribute to a sustainable environment, for example in the context of Olympic Games,” said Pál Schmitt, IOC member and Chairman of the IOC Sport and Environment Commission. “There are many opportunities for different forms of collaboration at all levels. We all have to play our part in the global effort for a sustainable environment, in the global fight against climate change—that means everybody, every day.”11 Beijing has long been plagued by air pollution, which was also a key part of international concern when the city bid for the XXIX Olympic Games. To solve this problem, Beijing Olympic Action Plan has stipulated a series of policies, which put reducing and controlling air pollution as well as protecting drinking water sources as its top priority. Meanwhile, the city’s environment has been significantly improved through adjusting the structure of economy, increasing the usage of clean and high quality energy, tightening up emissions standard of air pollutants, and strengthening environmental protection efforts. By 2008, the concentration of sulfur dioxide (SO2), nitrogen dioxide (NO2), and ozone in the urban atmosphere will meet WHO Air Quality Guidelines, and suspension density will meet the standard of the developed countries, which makes Beijing qualified to host the Olympic Games. The year 2007 was critical in terms of Beijing fulfilling its promise to reduce and control air pollutants when bidding for the Olympic 9 Wu Jingjun, speech at the news briefing of “2008 Engineering and Construction, Beijing,” March 28, 2007. 10 Beijing 2008 Project Construction Headquarters Office, “Swedish King Visited Olympic Stadium,” July 20, 2006. 11 Yao Xin, “The 7th World Conference on Sport and Environment Concluded, Partners and Future Actions Were Defined,” October 29, 2007, http://www.beijing 2008.cn/.

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1998

1999

2000

2001 2002 2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

100

114

177

185

229

234

237

245

203

219

Source: Reports from Beijing Daily and Beijing Evening News. Note: “Blue Sky Days” refer to days with relatively good air quality in Beijing.

Games, and the city has made gratifying progress. On December 31 2007, the air quality of Beijing was moderate. In 2007, there were 246 days when the air quality in Beijing was moderate or good, accounting for 67.4 percent of the year, and 5 days or 1.4 percent more than the previous year. To be specific, there were 32 days when the Air Quality Index (AQI) was good, 5 days more than 2006, accounting for 8.8 percent in the whole year. Another 214 days, or 58.6 percent were considered moderate. Almost thirty percent of the days, or 107 days, were slightly polluted, 9 days were lightly polluted, and 3 days heavily polluted. There were 12 less lightly or heavily polluted days than the previous year. Of the 119 days that hit the standard, there were 118 days when the inhalable particles were the major pollutants, with a rate of 99.2 percent.12 Thanks to the effective measures and remarkable improvement, Beijing was awarded the “Special Prize for Air Quality Improvement” and “Clean Vehicles Prize” at the third Paris Air Quality Conference that was convened from November 9 to 11, 2007. Beijing has worked to clean up its air since 1998, with a total investment of 120 billion RMB, implementing more than 200 projects divided into 13 phases. Reducing and controlling soot, car exhausts, industry pollutants, and dust have been put on the top of the agenda. Beijing accelerated its economic restructuring, economic growth mode transformation, and taken positive steps to move factories with heavy pollution out of Beijing. By the end of 2006, Beijing had shut down 23 cement kilns, 149 lime plants, about 100 brick-production lines and gravel pits that clog the air with particulates, more than 190 factories were moved out of the capital. Beijing Coking and Chemical Works stopped production, reducing SO2 and soot emissions by over 7,500 tons and 7,300 tons, respectively. Five coal-fired plants, Gaojing Electric Power Plant,

12 Beijing Meteorological Bureau, “Air Quality Monthly Report for December 2007,” December 31, 2007.

green olympics and environmental improvements in beijing 143 Guohua Power Plant, Jingneng Thermo-Electric Plant, Jingfeng Gas Turbine Power Generation Company, and China Huaneng Corporation finished desulfuration, dust removal, and denitration projects by 2007. Shougang Group (首钢) has stopped the production of its No. 2 coke oven and No. 5 blast furnace. In order to curb coal smoke pollution, Beijing has taken active steps to improve its energy structure, strengthened its efforts to coal smoke pollution control and reduction, and pressed ahead in switching fuel “from coal to gas” in urban areas and “from coal to electricity” in one-story houses and hutongs. In 2006, the natural gas consumption of Beijing amounted to 3.8 billion cubic meters; by the end of 2007, 16,000 pollution-spewing coal-fired boilers with coal consumption less than 20 tons a year were switched to cleaner energy resources like natural gas. Meanwhile, 44,000 coal-fired stoves and furnaces have been refitted to use clean energy. The capital reduced its coal consumption by 6 million tons and SO2 and soot emissions by 48,000 tons and 26,000 tons respectively. Exhaust from vehicles comprises 40 to 50 percent of Beijing’s air pollution. Beijing has heightened its efforts to reduce exhaust as the number of vehicles is growing swiftly. Heavy-emissions vehicles have been scrapped, more stringent emissions standards have been set for new cars, and the implementation of different phases of the standards were achieved two years ahead of the national average level.13 III. Traffic Strategies during Olympic Games By May 26, 2007 vehicle ownership in Beijing exceeded 3 million, with the average household ownership of 0.68. It took Beijing nearly half a century to increase its vehicle number from 2,300 in 1949 to one million in May 1997. In August 2003, the number reached two million over a period of six years. However, within the four years that followed the number grew from 2 million to 3 million. It’s estimated that by August 2008, when the city holds the Olympic Games, there will be 3.3 million vehicles in Beijing. The sharp increase of vehicles

13 Zhang Miaomiao, “Beijing’s ‘Blue Sky Project’ Has Gone through 2007, the Efforts will Continue,” December 15, 2007, http://www.xinhuanet.com/.

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exacerbates Beijing’s air pollution as well as the traffic congestion, which has aroused widespread concern. A. Speeding up Olympic Traffic Construction With the 2008 Olympic Games approaching, Beijing accelerated construction on a comprehensive scale, including vigorously developing its public transportation system, constructing subway and rail lines, and adopting measures to relieve traffic jams. From 2003 to 2007, Beijing considerably increased its urban traffic carrying capacity by building 669 kilometers of city road and 162 kilometers of expressway, and upgrading 8,770 kilometers of roads. Also, 67 kilometers of subway and railway lines were built, bringing the subway and rail system up to 142 kilometers of track. Included in these projects were extensions to the Capital International Airport and Beijing South Railway Station, the first phase of subway Line 10 (including the Olympic Branch Line), a highway to the airport, and roads around the Olympic venues. Six expressways, including the second channel of the capital airport and Anli Road, the large-capacity fast bus lane, will also be completed.14 The longest Olympic road, the 20-kilometer Baima Road connecting Beijing Olympic Center and Shunyi Olympic Rowing-Canoeing Park have opened to traffic.15 B. Traffic Test during 2007–2008 “Good Luck Beijing” Sports Events In August 2007, IOC President Roger said that if the air quality of Beijing could not reach the IOC’s standard, some endurance events like long-distance cycle races would have to be postponed. BOCOG gave their response. On August 6, Yu Chunquan, Secretary of the Transportation Department of BOCOG declared that Beijing would implement a traffic limit, thus cars with odd-numbered license plates and even-numbered registrations were banned from the road on alternating days. During the “Good Luck Beijing” (好运北京) sports events from

14 Xinhua News, “Olympic Related Event Transportation and Mass Transit will Achieve Harmonious Operation in Beijing,” January 21, 2008, http://www.xinhuanet .com/. 15 BOCOG, “Countdown to Traffic Construction for the Olympic Games: The longest Olympic Road of Beijing Opens to Traffic,” August 10, 2007, http://www .olympic.cn/.

green olympics and environmental improvements in beijing 145 August 17 to 20, Beijing tested its ability to carry out traffic control and air quality tests over a four-day stretch. After the test, BOCOG announced, “It’s clear that we will be able to ensure good air quality during 2008 Olympic Games judging by the experience of this fourday testing.” This trial period also provided reliable scientific basis for further efforts to reduce exhaust gas pollution.16 During “Good Luck Beijing” sports events, car owners with license plates ending in an even number were permitted to drive only on even-numbered dates, and vice versa. Meanwhile, a test on the effects of this air quality experiment was carried out, and the collected data revealed that a partial ban on vehicles would greatly improve air quality. Compared with August 16, the day before the ban, the daily average concentration density of major vehicular pollutants was reduced to varying degrees, ranging from 15 to 20 percent. In addition, during the four-day testing, the speed of pollution accumulation slowed significantly. The partial ban on vehicles also exerted positive effects on traffic conditions. First, traffic circulation was vastly improved. During the test, the traffic flow on main roads was 3,370 cars per hour, 30.6 percent less than the previous week, with an average speed of 43 kilometers per hour, up 30.3 percent. Second, traffic order was dramatically improved. Traffic violations decreased and no serious traffic accidents happened during the four days. Third, event transportation was guaranteed and all the events were carried out smoothly. It is not easy to restrict vehicles from other regions in order to cut traffic flow during the Olympic Games. The Ministry of Public Security (公安部) attached great importance to this issue, broadcasting the announcement to branch police offices throughout China. It also convened a special meeting to coordinate with transportation departments of six neighboring provinces to restrict vehicles from entering Beijing. Supervision teams were dispatched to different regions to make sure the measures were being implemented. Checkpoints were set up on major roads leading to Beijing and drivers were persuaded to return home.

16 BOCOG, “Press Briefing of Environmental and Traffic Testing during the ‘Good Luck Beijing’ Sports Events,” August 21, 2007, http://www.olympic.cn/.

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Thanks to these measures and the cooperation of the neighboring regions, vehicles entering Beijing decreased by 65 percent.17 C. Green Commuting: Public Transportation as a First Choice Public transportation is a persistently effective and environmentally friendly way of travel. Beijing has taken the lead in offering the cheapest public transportation in China. Since January 1, 2007, the ticket price for all buses in Beijing (except air-conditioned buses heading with Number 9) have a fixed start cost of one RMB. Adult passengers with a public transportation IC card can enjoy a 60 percent discount, while students will enjoy 80 percent off with a student IC card. Since November 7, 2007, when Beijing Subway Line 5 was opened to the public, the subway ticket price used a single price system with the fee falling from three RMB to two RMB. Beijing thus has become the city with the cheapest subway ticket in China. IV. Greening of Capital City According to the demand of “Green Olympics, Eco-city,” the Beijing’s environment was greatly improved. In June 2007, the Capital Greening Committee and Beijing Gardening and Greening Bureau held a joint news conference and announced that Beijing had basically accomplished the seven standards of city greening that were promised to the world when it bid for the hosting right of the XXIX Olympic Games. According to the report, “the whole city was enclosed by green mountains with beautiful scenery. The downtown area was encircled by forest while the rural area was immersed in a sea of green field.”18 A. Forest Coverage Rate of the City Reached Approximately 50 Percent At the end of the year 2000, the area of woodland in Beijing was 93,000 hectares with the forest coverage rate 41.9 percent. By the end of 2005, the whole area of woodland in the city reached 1,054,000 Window of the Capital, “Press Briefing of Environmental and Traffic Testing during the “Good Luck Beijing” Sports Events,” August 21, 2007, http://www.beijing .gov.cn/. 18 BOCOG, http://www.olympic.cn/, June 17, 2007. 17

green olympics and environmental improvements in beijing 147 hectares and the forest coverage rate was 50.5 percent. In 2006 and 2007, the woodland of Beijing continued growing in area and the forest coverage rate rose to over 51 percent. B. Forest Coverage Rate of the Mountainous Area Reaches 70 Percent The mountainous area in Beijing makes up 62 percent of the total area of the city. After years of forestation and greening, the forest resources in the mountainous area have increased rapidly. In 2000, forest coverage rate in the mountainous area was 57.23 percent. This figure climbed to 67.85 percent till 2004. In 2005 and 2006, the area of planted forest in mountainous region increased by over 16,000 hectares. The total area of woodland amounted to more than 897,000 hectares with a coverage rate of 69.52 percent. In 2007 the forest coverage rate is expected to reach 70.49 percent. C. Three Green Ecological Protective Screens are Formed By the end of 2006, the green ecological protective screens in mountains, plains and downtown areas had been mostly completed and the aim of green-encircling Beijing was achieved. D. Twenty-three Thousand Hectares of Greenbelt Built along “Five Rivers and Ten Roads” The construction of the greenbelt along “Five Rivers and Ten Roads” (五河十路) is a key greenbelt project on the plains of North China. The “Five Rivers” are, namely, Yongding River (永定河, Chaobai River (潮白河), Dasha River (大沙河), Wenyu River (温榆河), and North Canal (北运河). “Ten Roads” include eight major roads, namely, Jingshi Road (京石路), Jingkai Road (京开路), Jingjintang Road (京津塘路), Jingshen Road (京沈路), Shunping Road (顺平路), Jingmi Road (京密路), Jingzhang Road (京张路), and the Erhuan Road (公路二环). Besides, two major rail lines, Jingjiu Railroad (京九铁路) and Daqin Railroad (京九铁路), are also included. The “Five Rivers and Ten Roads” greenbelt is 1,000 kilometers long, covering 12 districts and counties, and 98 villages and towns. The greenbelt project started in 2001 and now the promise of constructing more than 23,000 hectares of greenbelt along the “Five Rivers and Ten Roads” was fulfilled.

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E. Greenbelt Constructed in Downtown Areas By the end of 2006, the total area of greenbelt around Beijing reached 12,640 hectares with over 30 million trees and shrubs. The mature plants in the greenbelt have formed an ecological screen encircling the city. F. Green Coverage of the City Reaches More Than 40 Percent Beijing’s green coverage was only 36 percent in 2000. By the end of 2006, green coverage exceeded 42.5 percent, including more than 160 green plots in parks with an area of more than 700 hectares, which improved the environmental quality of the region and provided more recreation areas for citizens. According to urban greening requirements, Chang’an Street and the Second, Third and Fourth Ring roads and other major avenues of the city were further beautified and decorated with grass and plants. G. Nature Reserves Comprise Eight Percent of the Total Area of the City Beijing has increased the momentum of environmental construction and the protection of wild animals and plants. There are 20 nature reserves established in the city with a total area of 134,200 hectares, 8.18 percent of the city area. The aim in the Olympic-bidding reports that “the area of nature reserve makes up no less than eight percent of the total area of the city” was fulfilled. At present Beijing’s nature reserve screens for the protection of different types of forest and wild animals have been established in Pugui, Baihua Mountain in the West, Songshan Mountain, Yudu Mountain, Labagou Mountain, Yunmeng Mountain and Wuling Mountain in the North, and Sizuolou Mountain in the East. On the plain a nature reserve network of wetland including reservoirs, ponds and rivers is formed, including Yeya Lake, Hanshiqiao River, Juma River, and Huaisha-huaijiu River. However, in the process of extensive greening construction, some emerging problems should receive adequate attention. For example, in recent years, the pace of construction in Beijing accelerated and the number of construction projects increased enormously. As a result, the destruction of ancient trees is a common occurrence. According to the statistics of the general survey of ancient trees in 2005, there are more than 30 varieties of ancient and famous trees that are over one hundred-years old in Beijing. There are a total number of 40,449

green olympics and environmental improvements in beijing 149 trees, among which 5,896 are first-degree protected trees and 34,553 are second-degree. The figure has shrunk by nearly 10,000 since the 3rd general survey of ancient trees in 1998 recorded 50,000 trees, a drop of 500 trees a year.19 At the same time, the greenbelt coverage rate of newly finished construction projects of recent years does not meet the standards. Some greedy developers use underhanded means to reduce or take up lawns which results in a shrinking of the greenbelt. Public opinion has severely condemned these actions. In 2005, according to the authorities concerned, in the sample review of greenbelt coverage rates among the 28 recently finished projects, 23 failed to meet the required standard, which accounted for 82 percent and resulted in a total loss of 65,727.1 m2 of greenbelt. This is a relatively new phenomenon. Calculated and synthesized by this proportion, the area of green plots lost per year in Beijing can reach about 293 hectares, which is 4.3 times larger than Beihai Park. Also, 38 golf courses built in Beijing without the governmental examination and approval take up a great proportion of public greenbelt.20 Some experts believe that excessive deforestation and occupation of green space are closely related to the crippling of the inspection departments. Many articles in Beijing City Greening Regulation released on July 1, 1990 are no longer suitable to meet the needs of social development. For example, the examination and approval department is not responsible for follow-up and the supervision and inspection department has no authority to punish violators. There are no articles on inspection and punishment for violators to guarantee the greenbelt coverage rate. Thus, the system needs to be overhauled. V. Water-Diversion Project: Water Shortage in Beijing After years of drought, Beijing’s summer rainfall in 2007 was 30 percent less than the normal rainfall rate. The water retained in Miyun Reservoir (密云水库) and Guanting Reservoir (官厅水库) were was greatly reduced in comparison with 2006. As a result, water diversion faces more difficulties. At present, Miyun Reservoir holds 995,200,000

19 20

Outlook Weekly, “The Secret Worry of ‘Green Olympics,’” January 9, 2007. Ibid.

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cubic meters of water and Guanting Reservoir retains 101,160,000 cubic meters of water, an 82,550,000-cubic-meter and a 34,340,000-cubicmeter reduction respectively compared with the corresponding period of last year. To ensure the water supply during 2008 Beijing Olympics, Hebei Province (河北) and Shanxi Province transferred 20,000,000 and 25,000,000-cubic-meters of water to Beijing at the end of September and October, respectively. This is the fifth time that Hebei and Shanxi Province massively transferred water to Beijing after a concentrated transfer from Cetian Reservoir (册田水库) of Shanxi Province to Guanting Reservoir of Beijing in 2003. The total volume of water transferred to Beijing in four previous events amounted to more than 300,000,000 cubic meters, which to a certain extent, eases the strain of ecological and industrial water needs in Beijing, and keeps the balance of water resources between different drainage areas. In 2005, the volume of water that these two provinces transferred to Beijing exceeded 120,000,000 cubic meters.21 However, it should be noted that Hebei and Shanxi Province also have extreme water shortage. Just like Beijing, these two provinces belong to the eco-fragile Hai (海河) River drainage area. After eleven years of continuous drought conditions, over 10,000,000 mu (about 667,000 hectares) of fields were damaged in 2007. For example, the City of Zhangjiakou of Hebei Province (河北省) suffered a serious drought last spring and summer, more than 30,00000 mu (about 200,100 hectares) of crops had a total harvest failure; 32 small-sized reservoirs dried up and more than 90,000 people were afflicted with a lack of drinking water. As the water source of Miyun Reservoir in Beijing, Chichen County and Guyuan County of Zhangjiakou City, Luanping County and Fengning Manchu Autonomy County of Chengde City (all of them are in Hebei Province) launched a project to save more water resources. Through this program, 30,000 mu (about 200 hectares) of rice was changed into less water-intensive corn, which can save tens of millions of tons water for Miyun Reservoir at the lower reaches. However, according to the statistics of Guyuan County, a peasant will lose 1,000 RMB once s/he reforests one mu of cultivated land. The people

21 Beijing Water Authority, “Despite its drought for 11 years, Hebei Province continued to transfer water to Beijing, in order to ensure the Olympic water supply,” September 28th, 2007, http://www.bjwater.gov.cn/.

green olympics and environmental improvements in beijing 151 in Hebei and Shanxi provinces have made great sacrifices to ensure the water supply of Beijing. Only when the situation of water shortage and environmental degradation in North China is effectively changed, can the people in these two provinces really enjoy an adequate supply of water. This long process will require more governmental input and greater public awareness.

HOW FAR IS BEIJING FROM BEING AN ECO-CITY? Feng Yongfeng

Beijing faces a number of challenges in becoming an eco-city, including mass participation, trash sorting, air pollution control, water shortage and water system management, and the restoration of biodiversity. Beijing should take advantage of the Beijing Olympics to instill new values and concepts as well as establish new mechanisms to improve the environment. Key words: Beijing, Beijing Olympics, waste, urban ecology

Some people regard 2008 Olympics as the best incentive to improve the environment of Beijing. Yet it is not out of concern for Olympics alone that Beijing decided to improve and restore its environment. The primary aim of building an eco-city in Beijing is to ensure the safety and health of local residents. However, Beijing should take the golden opportunity of the Olympics, revise its strategies on environmental improvement and ecological restoration, launch a series of activities, shape new values and concepts, and establish effective mechanisms for building an eco-city. I. Urbanization vs. Environmental Protection On the last day of 2007, people living in the Wangjing Nanhuxiyuan residential complex of Beijing looked out of their windows at a work site with deep concern. It was said that a transformer substation was being built there. Everybody in this city wished he could live beside lawns, a natural stream, or a small lake, tranquil and clean. However, such a wish was nothing but a luxury for residents living in Beijing. This densely populated city has little room for grass or other forms of green space. Instead, empty spaces are being taken up by public toilets, bus stops, transformer substations, and trash collection stations, causing local residents to worry about their living environment. In 2007, the smell from the Gaoantun Landfill was so strong that those living in a complex 3 kilometers away could not sleep well at night. Additionally, nearby the construction of a waste incineration plant was

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underway, which would be one of the four largest waste incinerators in Beijing. Meanwhile a big project of low-rent housing was being built immediately side the Gaoantun Landfill. People wondered how the residents would react when they moved into their new apartments with a strong smell floating in the air. Dr. Xu Zhiyong, a legal expert and deputy of the People’s Congress of the Haidian District, was particularly concerned about the project of the Green Lake Wetlands in the north of the region. Being a key urban wetlands project listed by the Ministry of Construction, why is the Green Lake Wetlands still closed? While the Haidian Government promised to invest 2 billion RMB in developing the wetlands, the developer is a company. Why? With these questions, he began to investigate the project. After the investigation, he and many other deputies jointly proposed to open the Green Lake Wetlands to the public as soon as possible and allow the public to own the benefits of the investment. Yu Kongjian, professor of the Graduate School of Landscape Architecture, Peking University, was deeply involved in the debate on whether the Yuanmingyuan Park, also known as the Old Summer Palace, should be fully restored. He argued that it should be open to the public free of charge and that the public should have their say on the issue of its restoration. Only in this way can its historical, educational, and natural values be retained. Perhaps it could even become part of the campuses of Peking University and Tsinghua University. The above issues prove that urbanization has enhanced the public’s ability to participate in environmental protection. In 2007, in the process of urbanization many problems emerged that caught the attention of almost every Beijinger. More and more people began to show concern for environmental protection. They began to safeguard their rights either for individual self-interests or for general public interest. The environment of many public areas has attracted attention from intellectuals as well as common people. Big cities have abundant public resources. Yet, in the past, these rich resources were enjoyed only by a minority of people, who guard their privilege by hurting the interests of the majority. This situation should be changed immediately. In the past Gaoantun and Liulitun were suburbs of Beijing. They were regarded as rural areas where people normally did not enjoy the rights of urban people. So when landfills were built there, their interests were ignored and voices of opposition were weak. Now with more and more residential complexes being built around these two landfills, new residents moved here from the center of the city. As

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urban people, they have a stronger sense of environmental justice and thus are more capable of fighting against environmental injustice. The management system of public areas should be reformed. As it stands now, the management of public areas was totally in the hands of the local government. The destiny of the Yuanmingyuan Park is a typical example. As this huge imperial garden was burnt to the ground by British and French troops in 1860 and further destroyed by the EightPower Allied Forces in 1900, it is one of the most important historic and cultural sites in the country. Yet, as it is located in the Haidian District of Beijing, it is managed by the local government. Although its value is national, its management is district-level. If people make suggestions on how to protect the environment in the park, their opinions can be easily brushed away as they are “outsiders” who have no right to “interfere” in the affairs of the park. Thus, the key point is to reform and improve the management system. Only when the system is optimized, will it no longer be for the privileged minority. Beijing’s environment will be improved more rapidly only when these kind of hidden problems are detected and solved. II. Trash Sorting At the end of 2006, residents around Liulitun of Haidian District of Beijing found that a large waste incineration plant was going to be built following the example of the Gaoantun Waste Incineration Plant. Worried about the harmful ingredients in the gas generated by the incineration, they protested against the construction of the plant. On July 5, 2007, the residents had a dialogue with the State Environmental Protection Administration on this issue, causing the suspension of the project. From this event, people began to think that the final solution to waste problem lies in sorting and recycling trash. That is, the solution is at the source, rather than building more waste incineration as an end solution. Despite the fact that waste incineration is no longer popular in the world, and environmental NGOs such as the Global Anti-Incinerator Alliance1 are playing an increasingly important role in deterring waste

1 Translators note: Global Anti-Incinerator Alliance’s website: http://www.no-burn .org/.

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incineration, the Beijing Municipal Government still thinks incineration is the major way to solve waste problems. As China entered its Eleventh Five-Year Plan period, Beijing strengthened its efforts to carry out waste incineration, raising the incineration rate from 2% of total waste to 40%, reducing the landfill rate from over 90% to 30%, with the remaining 30% used as compost. Historically speaking, Beijing used to lead the world in terms of trash sorting. It started recycling waste in 1953. According to a regulation on waste recycling issued in 1954, the designated waste for recycling includes plastic materials, lead, oil, copper and steel scraps, waste cotton fabric, waste paper, waste glass, and waste wood. Organizations which own any of the waste above, unless they can reuse it, should sell it to the recycling agency designated by the Beijing Supply and Marketing Cooperatives rather than to the market. On July 12, 1957, the front page of Beijing Daily was occupied by an article entitled “Trash sorting Should Be Encouraged.” Back in the 1950s, Beijing had the most complete resource recycling system in the world. The state-owned waste recycling company was established in 1952. In 1965, the company had over 2,000 stations all over Beijing. In 1996, the number shrunk to 16, and only 5 remained in 1998. In 1955, rural residents started to use waste as compost. In 1956, the practice of domestic waste sorting was tried out, as residents and institutions separated domestic waste into organic and inorganic elements, and cleaning workers picked them up on even and odd days, respectively. However, at the end of the 1990s, the major waste disposal method became casual piling which consequently invaded the land and contaminated the underground water. From 1987 on, Beijing started to build sealed cleaning stations for waste collection and transfer, the number of which reached 823 by the end of 2006.But these stations failed to dispose and recycle the waste in a proper manner. Especially in recent years, with changing life styles and diets, the proportion of packaging is increasing in domestic waste. According to the Beijing Municipal Administration Commission, organic waste takes up 44%, and waste paper, plastics and metal about 37%. However, most of the latter category fails to be recycled and reused properly. Beijing’s waste disposal system has three levels. First and foremost, it is the responsibility of the family, which can sort the waste in the most efficient way as the starting point; second, it is the responsibility of the community, which is effective in intermediate disposal; third, it is

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the responsibility of the city, which functions as the final defense. The problem with Beijing is that it overstresses the responsibility of the city, while ignoring that of the family and the community. To be specific, Beijing’s environmental protection and sanitation groups are only in charge of public areas, while residential complexes are under the control of property management companies. Residents pay cleaning fees directly to the property management companies, which give part of the fees to environmental protection and sanitation groups. Therefore, it is not easy for the latter groups to control the waste disposal methods of residents. Property management companies also lack incentives to manage trash sorting. The incoherent division of responsibilities and obligations leads to the absence of a department in charge. As a result, the government and residents blame each other on the trash issue. According to investigations on waste sorting conducted in the communities of Jiangongbeili, Xuanwu District and Xicheng District, the initiative of the residents is connected to the efficiency of the terminal service system. A resident said, “If the waste we have separated into different categories can be collected and put away by cleaning workers separately, transferred by environmental protection and sanitary groups separately and finally disposed and treated separately, our initiative to sort the waste would be encouraged. In this way the waste can be handled in a proper manner.” Apparently, the intermediate and terminal levels of Beijing’s waste disposal system are not efficient. Since 1988, large numbers of migrant workers from Sichuan, Henan, Anhui, and Jiangsu provinces have come to Beijing to make a living by buying recyclable waste materials from families and then selling them to recycling companies. The materials they collect include waste wood, paper, glass, and plastics. The 160,000 waste collectors from all over China play an important role in sorting trash and recycling in Beijing. Notably, the current waste disposal system does not cover all the waste produced by the residents. The 160,000 migrant workers can only handle half of the total waste of the city. These migrant workers help people form the habit of “selling scraps.” However, the decisionmaking department of Beijing has not taken the role of these migrant workers into serious consideration. Instead, they regard them as a floating population and insignificant peddlers. Even worse, many recycling companies intend to reform and exploit those workers in the name of promoting the image of the recycling industry.

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I have six suggestions for trash sorting in Beijing: First, trash sorting should be promoted in families, organizations, and institutions. Every community should carry out trash sorting under the leadership of property management companies and the monitoring of municipal administrations and environmental NGOs. A chain system should be formed linking the three levels of the family, community, and government. Second, trash sorting should first aim at the disposal of plastic bags. First, the use of plastic bags should be reduced, and secondly residents should be encouraged to remove them from the waste so that organic and inorganic wastes can be classified properly. Third, used batteries should be recycled for the purpose of resource utilization rather than gathered just for avoiding pollution. Fourth, make good use of the existing non-governmental trash sorting system created by migrant workers. Efforts should be made to help them improve their image and social status. Resource utilization should be highlighted in every stage and secondary pollution avoided. Fifth, a disposal system should be established to deal with toxic and harmful scraps among the domestic waste. Sixth, the involvement of various disposal technologies should be encouraged. Special attention should be paid to the waste disposal from the very beginning. Organic waste should be made into compost on the spot. “Zero-emissions communities” should be promoted. III. Water Pollution In early 2007, Beijing Bureau of Water Affairs claimed that the sewage treatment rate amounted to 90% in Beijing. In June 2007, at the Lake Pollution Control Conference hosted by the State Environmental Protection Administration, Beijing Environmental Protection Bureau said that the sewage treatment rate in Beijing had reached 95% and its experience could be helpful all over the country. In 2006, I investigated the water quality of all the rivers and about 100 reservoirs in Beijing. Since March 17, 2007, I began to inspect the water quality of the rivers within the Fifth Ring Road with members of “Happy River Walk” initiated by the NGO Nature University every Saturday. After analyzing water quality and monitoring sewage outlets, I have the following findings.

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First, the water system in Beijing is breaking down. The system is divided into various isolated parts and each one is self-dependent as a result of the decrease of the ecological water system. For example, the water system in the Yuanmingyuan Park is no longer connected with that of Peking University so the Weiming Lake on the campus of the university is now supplied by underground water while other small lakes have been left dry since 2002. From October 2007, 100,000 tons of recycled water is transferred every month from the Qinghe Water Reclamation Plant to the Wanquan River, which connects the water system of the Yuanmigyuan Park and that of Peking University. Water flows from its headstream into the Qinghe Water Reclamation Plant and then back through pipes to where it starts, forming a closed circulation. The situation is the same with the Changpu River beside the Tian’anmen Square and even with the water system in the National Botanical Garden. As a result, the whole water system in Beijing has no life any more. Second, the rate of sewage treatment is not as high as it is said. More efforts are needed to invest in this project. In the past, the watercourses here were supplied by rain and natural springs while they are currently supplied by sewage as a result of the decrease of rainwater and disappearance of natural springs. The longest waste pipe in the world was installed in Beijing but over 3,000 kilometers of pipe still can not collect all the sewage water to send it to the water recycling plant. So sewage water is directly flushed into the moat at its southeast corner; large quantities of water are ejected into the Tonghui River through the outlet beside Dongbianmen Gate, becoming a source of the river. River treatment in Beijing is operated from the centre outwards. It is only efficient within the third ring road. Projects beyond the third ring road needs more emphasis. Third, the ecological conditions along the watercourses are yet to be paid due attention. Sewage treatment is only part of the restoration of a river. The watercourses were straightened and the riverbeds and banks were lined with concrete and stones. Rivers thus became drain pipes, destroying the river ecosystems. Fourth, different sections and different areas are competing for water resources. In the past, in terms of water supply, industry was the most privileged while agriculture ranked second and ecology ranked last. Nowadays, domestic use of water ranks first. Consequently, the whole of North China had to guarantee the domestic use of water in Beijing.

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Demand for water for domestic use does harm to the interests of Hebei Province. For instance, Yunzhou Reservoir supplied water for Beijing for three years at the expense of farmers below the reservoir, who had to sacrifice by stopping plant rice because of water shortages. As a result, besides water conservation and water recycling, priority should be given to controlling the pace of urbanization. Concerning transferring water to Beijing from the Hanjiang River in Hubei Province in the South-to-North Water Diversion Project (南水北调), an expert commented, “What does this mean? It means there is no suitable water source within 1,000 kilometers around Beijing.” Last, the utilization rate of recycled water is still low. Treated water flows back into the watercourses, mixing with untreated water, is thus unable to be reused efficiently. This proves that people need to sharpen their awareness of water crisis. IV. Controlling Air Pollution It seems that Beijing has done everything to control air pollution. It is reported that the five biggest power plants in Beijing had already been desulphurized by the end of 2007. Factories located in Beijing have been closed down, relocated or their production had been limited with the exception of part of the Shougang and Yanshan Petrochemical companies. Thus, it seemed that all the major sources of air pollution had disappeared. In Xuanwu, Chongwen, Dongchen, Xichen districts, residents living in old one-story houses still burn coal for cooking and for keeping warm in winter, but it is said that in all those residential areas electric heating systems would have replaced coal by the end of 2007. However, the most difficult task lies in controlling nitroxide and carbon dioxide emissions. Nitroxide is mainly produced by auto-exhaust and gas stations, while carbon dioxide comes mostly from the burning of fossil fuels. Maybe due to the lack of natural gas, the project of replacing petrol with natural gas in buses has not worked well, and the management of VOC emissions in gas stations has just begun. The subway construction is the primary issue on the agenda of the Beijing government. To improve public transportation, nearly everything was staked on the subway system. Thus, there is still only one Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) line and a “Bus Priority” lane has not been implemented on the Third and Fourth Ring Roads which bear the heaviest traffic. More ironically, on September 22, 2007, the International Car Free

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Day, motor vehicles were prohibited only on two streets. One was Wangfujing Street, which happens to be a pedestrians’ street, and the other was Qianmen Street, which is under construction and thus not in use anyway. It is obvious that there is no better solution to traffic problems in Beijing or the air pollution caused by that. In fact, what is lacking is not an effective solution, but the determination to put it into practice. As a result, private cars are increasing with no restrictions on the total number, and no large parking lots have been built along the outer ring roads so that car drivers can park their cars and transfer to public transportation to get to the inner city during rush hour. Compared with the so-called “inner pollution” Beijing is more concerned with pollution from outside. The electric power supply in Beijing comes mainly from thermal power stations in North China. There are four large clusters of thermal power plants, namely North China, East China, South China and Southeast China. To desulphurize the emissions, National Development and Reform Commission made the policy of “closing small thermal power generators.” That means if the power station could shut down small thermal power generating units without desulphurizing their emissions, and with installation capacity of 100 thousand kilowatts and 50 thousand kilowatts, then allowable pollution quotas could be assigned to those critical thermal power generating units with installation capacity of 600 thousand kilowatts, 1.2 million kilowatts, or even 2.4 million kilowatts. These large power-generating units could cut down coal consumption and establish desulphurization facilities. This policy is welcomed by thermal power stations, but the desulphurization of emissions comes at the expense of a dramatic increase in carbon dioxide emissions. In the thermal power generating district of North China, there are a number of thermal power stations in Shanxi, Inner Mongolia and Hebei, working for the electric supply of Beijing. At the same time, they support local coal-firing and melting plants with high energy consumption and pollution. This is a new dilemma for Beijing. As the city for the 2008 Olympic Games, Beijing has set up a regional pollution control system, which includes the pollution source oversight regulation system, the information sharing and feedback institution for the data of pollution source emissions, the data of air monitoring, and air pollution forecast. There have also been conferences of all provinces about controlling and prevention of air pollution. During the Olympic Games, Shanxi Province, Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, Hebei Province,

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Shandong Province, and the City of Tianjin will all assist Beijing in solving the air pollution problem. Nevertheless, after the closing of the Olympics, Beijing will still face serious air pollution from outside. To protect the environment, we should strike a balance between the interests of the public and that of the individual. The best environmental protection measure is to attain the predetermined goal without intervening much with people’s daily life. To this end, the management needs to find out the real problem and the best solutions to it. Even if we can replace petrol with gas, there is still a considerable amount of air pollutants emitted by the private cars and “privileged cars.” Whereas to allow private cars is a protection of individual interests and right, it should be subordinated to the public interests in order to protect the environment of the city. Besides the temporary measures such as traffic control, the most effective method to coordinate the two is to protect the public interests as much as possible while affecting the private interests as little as possible. V. Loss of Biodiversity We have more concerns in terms of Beijing’s environment, including the development of the city using low-carbon energy, the problem of how to make the city livable, how to make green consumption affordable, and how to maintain the credibility of the environmental protection departments of the city government, and ensure the quality of information disclosed. With all these problems, Beijing needs to fight a hard battle to achieve its goal of becoming an eco-city. The more prosperous the city becomes, the more serious the devastation to its natural environment. Although the green coverage ratio of Beijing has reached 40%, that does not mean that Beijing’s environment is healthy. Li Xiaoxi, a retired professor of Air Force Command College, has been working for environmental protection and the “preservation of wilderness” in Beijing. She calls for the protection of the Hanshi Bridge Wetlands in the suburbs of Beijing, the closing of the wild bird market at Yuting Bridge, an end to the anti-seepage project of the Jing-Mi Canal, and the preservation of Yuanmingyuan Park. On the problem of water shortage, she suggests that the government should save water instead of exploring more water sources, and reform automatic flush toilets.

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“We could summarize the reconstruction project in the Yuanmingyuan Park like this: large scale deforestation in the west and complete landscape destruction in the east,” Li remarks, “I believe that we have always paid too little attention to western Yuanmingyuan. In the past, when we entered Yuanmingyuan, we felt as if we were in a forest, but now, it has turned into a desert.” Before the project, Yuanmingyuan had been kept natural partly due to “unconscious negligence” and partly due to environmental protection for half a century. In the 1950s, lots of trees were planted in Yuanmingyuan. They became a secondary forest after 50 years of growth. Under the tall trees, there were 40 to 70 kinds of shrubs and herbs in abundance, all of them typical plants for the plains northern China. The formerly barren hills were covered with 23 kinds of plants such as paper mulberry trees, elms, and painted maples. However, along with the trend of man-made parks and man-made urban green space, Yuanmingyuan was also renovated by covering the hills with lawns, cutting down the indigenous trees and planting new species, for the indigenous plants are “too ordinary and dull” and “the wild trees are growing in a disorderedly manner.” Hai Ting, professor of Peking University, said, “It is recorded that there are 327 species of higher plants in Yuanmingyuan, among which 40 species are cultivated plants, 287 indigenous higher plants, belonging to 80 families and 206 genera. Most of them are herbs of 243 species, accounting for 85% of all the plants. There are 44 species of woody plants, with only 13 species of arbors. Most are mesophytes (58 species), 33 species of hygrophytes, and 41 species of hydrophytes. Diversified species at various stages of growth provide a favorable living condition for birds. Besides, indigenous and natural plants growing on the hills and ruins, scattered here and there without an orderly manner, were the honest display of history. But the park managers intend to destroy all this probably just because they were ‘in disorder.’ ” Yuanmingyuan used to have a perfect water system. However, as soon as the indigenous trees were cut down and the natural vegetation of more than a hundred years had been destroyed, rain could no longer be retained in the soil due to the low forest canopy density. Irrigating man-made forests and laws requires a huge amount of water for irrigation. The managers of Yuanmingyuan have brought the disaster. The ecosystems of urban areas are in the worst condition, and their protection most ineffective. The main approach adopted by the government is to plant trees. It is reported every year proudly that

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per capita public green area is increasing, but indeed there are many problems. We often see people collect the falling leaves in autumn and transport them to the landfill instead of letting them rot under the trees, becoming manure in the soil and preserving water for the trees. The trees are not planted in clusters, and lawns are made in isolation. All of them are separated. Though we have larger green areas, they are actually not interdependent on each other as an ecological system, and are unable to provide shelters or food for birds or animals. Trees and lawns are planted just to please the eye not to form an organic whole. As a result, we actually have driven nature from the city. It seems that the ecosystem is not as important as cultural heritage. As a matter of fact, the ecosystems with a biological diversity is the best “natural heritage.” We could have kept natural growth under overpasses in Beijing. We could have protected the environment in many public squares. We could have preserved parks and courtyards with biodiversity. Unfortunately, human interference has made all this impossible. Biodiversity has been destroyed in the name of modernizing our city. The same things happened on the campuses of Peking University, Tsinghua University, and Taoran Pavilion Park, where there used to be verdant plants. The protection of the biodiversity and indigenous species in the Temple of Heaven is said to be successful. However, in most parts of the Temple of Heaven, either under the pines of one hundred years or under the cypresses of one thousand years, there grows only one imported species of grass. The best place here, named “nursery” by the members of the birds investigation team in the Temple of Heaven, covers only an area of a couple of acres, surrounded by bamboo fences. It is within this small area that we could observe the most birds due to the maintenance of biodiversity, a satisfactory rate of tree density, and relatively less intrusion by visitors. Team members are extremely concerned about any changes that might take place in this area. Looking around the Temple of Heaven, the Yuanmingyuan Park, or even Beijing Botanical Garden, our view is barely obstructed by plants, the simplest yardstick to examine environmental protection. Both birds and animals need a place to shelter from human beings, and that is why it is necessary for them to find plants to hide themselves. If they cannot find such a place, they will leave. In fact, by taking the proper steps, we could do a good job in protecting the environment and biodiversity in these vast sites of cul-

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tural heritage like the Temple of Heaven, the Temple of Earth, the Yuanmingyuan Park, the Summer Palace, the Botanical Garden, and the campuses of Peking University and Tsinghua University. While preserving the cultural heritage, we should protect nature, connecting every element of the ecosystem.

PROGRESS IN ENERGY CONSERVATION AND EMISSIONS REDUCTION Zhao Wengeng

Energy conservation and emissions reduction is the focus of China’s environmental protection in 2007. By carrying out a “combination of measures” such as strengthening environment law enforcement, implementing regional restrictive approval and watershed restrictive approval, making new economic policies and system construction. The government has also checked the blind expansion of high-energy consuming and polluting industries and surplus production capacity, effectively reversing the rising trends of sulfur dioxide (SO2) emissions and chemical oxygen demand (COD). As a result, a turning point has emerged in the work of energy conservation and emissions reduction, but there is still a long way to go with heavy tasks lying ahead. Key words: energy conservation and emissions reduction initiative, watershed restrictive approval

Energy conservation and emissions reduction is the focus of China’s environmental protection in 2007. According to the Outline of the Eleventh Five-Year Plan of National Economy and Social Development (国民经济和社会 发展第十一个五年规划纲要), energy consumption per unit of GDP is expected to decrease by 20% and total emissions of major pollutants by 10% during the period of the Eleventh Five-year Plan (2006–2010). The target for 2006 energy consumption and emissions reduction set by the central government is 4% down in energy consumption per unit of GDP and 2% down in total emissions of major pollutants. As one of the most innovative and strategic measures put forward during the period of Eleventh Five-Year Plan, energy conservation and emissions reduction is becoming the common understanding and united action of the whole Party and nation. In December 2007, National Development and Reform Commission released that energy consumption per unit of GDP in the first three quarters of 2007 decreased by 3% compared to the corresponding period in 2006, and SO2 emissions and chemical oxygen demand (COD) both dropped for the first time, reversing the rising trends in the previous consecutive years. It demonstrates that China has taken a substantial step forward in the construction of a resource-conserving and environmentallyfriendly society. Premier Wen Jiabao called 2007 a turning point year

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in energy conservation and emissions reduction. This is indeed a hard won achievement. I. 2006: Emissions Rising Rather than Falling 2006 is the first year of China’s Eleventh Five-Year Plan (2006–2010). At the beginning of 2007, the State Environmental Protection Administration (SEPA) sent out 15 research teams all over China to supervise and examine the emissions of major pollutants. The findings show that country’s total emissions of SO2 in 2006 reached 25.888 million tons, a 1.5% increase over the previous year; the emissions of chemical oxygen demand (COD) reached 14.282 million tons, an increasing by 1% over 2005.1 According to statistics, energy consumption per unit of GDP fell only by 1.2% in 2006, short of the target to 3%. All the above figures show that China failed to reach all the targets of energy conservation and emissions reduction set for 2006. At the beginning of February 2007, the State Environmental Protection Administration (SEPA) held a seminar on emissions reduction of major pollutants, concluding the work of emissions reduction had achieved initial progress as a whole. In 2006, 104 million kilowatts of power plant desulphurization capacity were constructed. This exceeded the total capacity constructed in the previous 10 years (46 million kilowatts). The construction of sewage disposal infrastructure increased, with 283 new sewage disposal plants raising the sewage disposal rate from 52% to over 56%. Energy consumption per unit of GDP increased by 4.9%, 5.5%, 0.2%, respectively, in the previous three years. In 2006, energy consumption dropped for the first time and the increasing rate of emissions slowed down. The result was not bad. As for the reasons why the targets for 2006 were not attained, it is mainly because industrial structure readjustment proceeded slowly. Heavy industries, especially energy intensive and heavily polluting industries were still growing rapidly. A lot of obsolete production equipment that should be eliminated is still in use. Finally, some regions and enterprises did not implement the laws and standards of energy conservation and environmental Other official statistics show that the national total emissions of sulfur dioxide in 2006 reached 25.944 million tons, an 1.8% increase over the previous year; the emissions of chemical oxygen demand (COD) reached 14.313 million tons, an increasing by 1.2% over 2005. 1

progress in energy conservation and emissions reduction 169 protection strictly, and these policies, even when implemented, need time to achieve a significant result. The fifth session of the Tenth National People’s Congress (NPC) was convened in Beijing on March 5. In a government report Premier Wen Jiabao frankly admitted that the targets set at the start of the year had not been achieved. Zhou Shengxian, Minister of SEPA claimed after the meeting: he “felt like a student who had failed his exam and was shameful to face his teachers, parents and fellow students.”2 In that day’s group discussion, though nobody put blame on him, he bowed to the attendees to show his apology after finishing his speech. II. Forcefully Carrying out a “Combination of Measures” in 2007 A. Central and Local Governments Begin to Pay Special Attention to Energy Conservation and Emissions Reduction Both the central and local governments focused on energy conservation and emissions reduction in 2007, giving unprecedented attention and effort towards the problem. On March 5, 2007, Premier Wen Jiabao pointed out in the work report that eight aspects should be emphasized in energy conservation and environmental protection. First, the standards of energy consumption and environmental protection should be improved and carried out strictly. Second, obsolete production equipment should be eliminated. Third, key industries and enterprises should receive special support and aid. Fourth, the policy system of energy conservation and environmental protection should be consummated. Fifth, the technological advances in energy conservation and environmental protection should be sped up. Sixth, pollution control and treatment and environmental protection should be strengthened. Seventh, legal enforcement and supervision management should be consolidated. Eighth, target accountability of energy conservation and environmental protection should be carried out conscientiously. From the eight measures above, we can see the government’s firm determination to reform, as well as

2 Zhou Shenxian, Opportunity and Option—Deep Reflections on the Songhua Toxic Spill Incident, Xinhua Press, p. 250.

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the comprehensiveness of work and the clear steps of implementation procedures. The resolution was soon applied in practice. On April 27, the State Council held a national television and telephone conference on energy conservation and emissions reduction. Premier Wen Jiabao emphasized that energy conservation and emissions reduction should be regarded as the focal point of strengthening current macro-control, as the breakthrough in readjusting economic structure and transforming the growth mode, and as an important measure to implement scientific outlook on development and construct a harmonious society. Premier Wen pointed out that the sense of pressure and accountability should be further enhanced in order to realize the targets of energy conservation and emissions reduction set for the Eleventh Five-Year Plan, thus fulfilling the government’s promise to the people. He also demanded that the fulfillment of energy conservation and emissions reduction targets should be integrated into the local overall evaluation system of economic and social development, taken as an important aspect to evaluate the performance of government officials and enterprise leaders. Hereafter, the State Council published a comprehensive work plan of energy conservation and emissions reduction and raised 45 specific points for future work. On April 25, Premier Wen presided over a standing meeting of the State Council and established the National Leading Group to Address Climate Change and Energy Conservation and Emissions Reduction with himself as the team leader. On June 3 and June 4, the central government promulgated Comprehensive Work Plan on Energy Conservation and Emissions Reduction and China’s National Climate Change Program. President Hu Jintao made a speech on the topic of coping with global warming at G8 Summit two days later, stating China’s position and opinion. On June 5, the State Environmental Protection Administration made “pollution reduction and environmentally-friendly society” as China’s theme on World Environment Day. On July 9, the first meeting of the National Leading Group to Address Climate Change and Energy Conservation and Emissions Reduction was convened in Beijing. Premier Wen presided over the meeting and made a speech, stressing that the work of energy conservation and emissions reduction should be further recognized in an all-around strategic way and be carried out persistently. On July 26, General Secretary of the CPC Central Committee Hu Jintao presided over a meeting of the Political Bureau of the CPC

progress in energy conservation and emissions reduction 171 Central Committee, analyzing the current economic situation and economic work. The meeting pointed out that preventing economic growth from becoming overheated should be a priority of current macro-economic policy. The blind expansion of energy intensive and polluting industries should be forcefully controlled. Energy consumption and emissions reduction should be kept as an important aspect in readjusting structure and transforming growth modes, trying to make more progress in energy conservation and emissions reduction by optimizing structure, advancing technology, strengthening management, improving mechanism, consolidating legal system and public participation. In October, the thirtieth session of the Tenth NPC Standing Committee voted and approved Energy Conservation Law (revised draft) (节约能源)法 adding another legal weapon to break through the bottleneck of energy and environment. General Secretary Hu Jintao pointed out at the 17th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (中国共产党第 十七次全国代表大会) that the construction of an resource-conserving and environmentally-friendly society should be prioritized along with industrialization and modernization, and that it should be implemented through every unit and every family. He also advocated for improving the legal system and policies beneficial to conserving resources and protecting the environment in order to facilitate the formation of institutions for sustainable development. Finally, he stated that an energy conservation and emissions reduction accountability system should be implemented. In November, the State Council approved the statistics inspection and evaluation plan and methods of energy conservation and emissions reduction issued by related ministers and commissions. The fulfillment of energy consumption reduction and emissions reduction will be integrated into local comprehensive evaluation system of economic and social development. Target realization will be an important aspect to evaluate local government and government officials, and strict accountability and the veto system will be carried out. China’s Central Economic Work Conference held from December 3 to 5, took the enhancement of energy conservation and emissions reduction and environmental protection as an important task of next year’s economic work. Also, promote scientific outlook on development and to formulate a work pattern in which the government takes the lead, the enterprises follow and the whole society push forward together.

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B. “Regional Restrictive Approval” and “Watershed Restrictive Approval” In recent years, energy-intensive and heavy polluting industries in China are increasing at a surprisingly rapid speed. In 2006, Chinese industry’s added value accounted for 49% of the GDP, in which heavy industry’s added value made up more than a half of the industry’s total added value. Six industries such as petrochemical, chemical, building materials, steel, nonferrous metals, and electricity generation accounted for 70% of industry energy consumption. In addition, the growth rate of energy intensive products is even more astonishing. The main products such as steel and aluminum products grew 26.2% and 43%, respectively, in the first quarter of 2007. National electricity consumption grew year-on-year by 14.9% in the first quarter, an increase of 3.2% compared to the corresponding period of 2006, 3.8% higher than the economic growth rate. The industrial added value of 2007 increased by 18.5% in the first half of the year. Moreover, the added value of the six energy intensive sectors increased by 20.1%, 1.6% higher than that of other forms of industry. In order to stop some regions and sectors from ignoring state macroeconomic policies and reverse the energy intensive sectors’ trend of rapid expansion, the State Environmental Protection Administration intensified their efforts in implementing environmental laws, and launched the “regional restrictive approval” and “watershed restrictive approval” campaigns. On January 10, 2007, at the beginning of the year, the State Environmental Protection Administration first carried out the policy of “regional restrictive approval” to put macro-control policies into effect. The administrative regions that applied the policy of “regional restrictive approval” include Tangshan City, Hebei Province, Lüliang City, Shanxi Province, Liupanshui City, Guizhou Province and Laiwu City, Shandong (山东) Province. The enterprise involved four large electricity groups, namely, Datang International Power Generation Corporation., China Huaneng Corporation, China Huadian Corporation, and China Guodian Corporation. To be specific, the measure meant that none of the projects of these corporations and in the four regions would be examined or approved (except those of circular economy), until the areas and corporations thoroughly rectify their projects that were in violation of law. Three months later, all the projects originally in violation of the environmental law met the requirements, and SEPA lifted the ban on the four areas and corporations.

progress in energy conservation and emissions reduction 173 In July, faced with serious water pollution, SEPA carried out the policy of “watershed restrictive approval” in six cities, two counties, and five industrial parks where the violation of environmental laws was serious. Serious water pollution characterized the four drainage areas of the Yangtze River, Yellow River, Huaihe River and Hai River. The regions that applied this policy involved Baiying City, Bayannaoer City, Weinan City, Hejin City (county level), Xiangfen County and Lanzhou Hi-tech Development Zone in the Yellow River (黄河) Basin, Zhoukou City and Bangbu City in the Huaihe River Basin, Handan Economic and Technological Development Zone, Henan Puyang Economic Development Zone and Shandong Xin County Industrial Park in the Hai (海河) River Basin, and Chaohu City and Wuhu Development Zone in the Yangtze River Basin. Meanwhile, a number of enterprises were given serious warnings and ordered to rectify and reform within three months under supervision. Such enterprises included six sewage treatment plants that had not been in operation for a long time, such as the sewage treatment plant in Shenze County, Shijiazhuang City and 32 enterprises that seriously polluted the environment, such as the Pan Gang Group Titanium Industry Co., Ltd and Titanium Dioxide Powder Factory. The implementation of “regional restrictive approval” reinforced the methods of administrative instruments for the environment and effectively reduced illegal actions by applying the environmental accountability system and increasing the cost of breaking the environmental law. “Regional restrictive approval” also restrained the investment craze driven by both the large state-owned enterprises and local governments. Some people commented that the fact that these two strong special interests were given a blow at the same time marked a step forward in environmental protection. “Regional restrictive approval” has gained remarkable achievements. After this policy was applied, Tangshang, an industrial city in Hebei Province has optimized its industrial structure, improved its environmental quality and reduced the total volume of emissions and discharges through “supporting the large and superior enterprises and eliminating the small and inferior ones.” After “regional restrictive approval” was applied to four electricity groups, the closing of small generation units could reduce SO2 emissions by 69,000 tons every year. The regions under supervision reconstructed their polluting enterprises in an allaround way by banning illegal small enterprises, which reduced SO2

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emissions by 84,000 tons, discontinuing the use of obsolete equipment, which reduced SO2 emissions by 30,000 tons, and requiring enterprises that caused serious pollution to improve within a limited time, which reduced SO2 emissions by 7,000 tons. C. Energy-Intensive and Heavy Polluting Industries Should be Curbed from Growing Too Rapidly “Regional restrictive approval” is the most powerful measure of environmental protection bureaus. However, in order to stop environmental deterioration and pollution from dramatically worsening, economic levers should be used much more frequently in addition to administrative measures to prevent the energy-intensive industries from growing too rapidly. This is the key to realizing energy conservation and emissions reduction. Since 2006, the state has issued a series of measures to reduce SO2 emissions by installing desulphurization equipment in existing and newly established coal-fired units and closing small thermal power units. These measures began to show their effects in the first half of 2007. In the power industry, the reduction of SO2 emissions has achieved notable success, for the emissions amount was down by 5.2% compared to the previous year despite the 18.3% increase in electricity production. A series of improvements show the fruits of the measures on energy conservation and emissions reduction. In the first three quarters of 2007, the growth rate of the production and export volume of some products fell after rising. The growth rate of the production of crude steel, cement, calcium carbide, and ferroalloy had a year-on-year fall of 0.8%, 5.7%, 8.4%, and 5.3% respectively. The export volume of copper, aluminum, and lead were down by 59%, 57.1%, and 52.6%, respectively, and steel exports also started falling. According to the plan, in 2007 China will get rid of 30 million tons of obsolete iron smelting capacity and 35 million tons of steel-making capacity. After the realization of these goals, the iron and steel industry of China will save 17 million tons of tonne coal equivalent (TCE), reduce SO2 emissions by 90,000 tons and save 140 million tons of water. On May 23, the State Council issued the Comprehensive Work Plan on Energy Conservation and Emissions Reduction prepared by the National Development and Reform Commission. China quickened its steps in eliminating obsolete production capacity, and the outdated production

progress in energy conservation and emissions reduction 175 of electricity, power, steel, building materials, electrolyzed aluminum, ferroalloy, calcium carbide, coke, charcoal, and flat glass. A series of economic policies was implemented to restrain the growth of highenergy consuming and high emissions industries. In the first half of 2007, China abolished the export tax refund of 553 high-pollution, high-consumption, resources-consuming products, reduced the export tax refund rate of 2,268 products, and started or increased the Interim Duty Rate on Exported Goods of 142 products. Also, it intensified efforts to evaluate projects’ impact on the environment and carried out the “regional restrictive approval” policy. Thus, 12 projects were shut down permanently, and 47 projects that had been started without approval stopped construction or operation. While restraining and eliminating obsolete production capacity, China also formulated measures of financial rewards and capital management for energy-conserving technology, which mainly adopted the method of rewards instead of subsidies to encourage enterprises to renovate technologies. The Ministry of Finance and the National Development and Reform Commission established a system to eliminate obsolete technologies. The National Development and Reform Commission lifted the electricity price of desulphurization units, and made government offices purchase of energy-conserving products, among other policies and mechanisms. Zhang Shaochun (张少春), Vice Minister of the Ministry of Finance (财政部) said that 207 was a critical year for the implementation of energy conservation and emissions reduction policies. This year the Ministry of Finance invested 23.5 billion RMB in supporting energy conservation and emissions reduction. This is indeed unprecedented. D. Construction of Energy Conservation and Emissions Reduction and Green Credit Systems Should Be Promoted Significant progress has also been made in the constructing a system of energy conservation and emissions reduction. In order to promote the construction of a circular economy, China has established the circular economy evaluation index, and 96 units were selected as demonstration units. 1. Veto System On November 17, the State Council approved the “three plans” and “three methods” on energy conservation and emissions

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reduction, jointly prepared by the National Development and Reform Commission, the National Bureau of Statistics and the State Environmental Protection Administration. The three plans are The Plan of Implementing Statistical Index System of Energy Consumption Per Unit of GDP, The Plan of Implementing the Monitoring System of Energy Consumption Per Unit of GDP, The Plan of Examination System of Energy Consumption Per Unit of GDP. The three methods are The Method of Counting Emissions Reduction of the Total Volume of Major Pollutants, The Method of Monitoring Emissions Reduction of the Total Volume of Major Pollutants and The Method of Examining Emissions Reduction of the Total Volume of Major Pollutants.3 The promulgation of the three plans and three methods provides the basis for implementing the energy conservation and emissions reduction initiative, namely, by providing a basis for examining the actual achievements made by government officials and enterprise leaders and implementing the accountability system and the veto system. Therefore, with these concrete plans and methods, energy conservation and emissions reduction is no longer an empty slogan but something that must be put into practice. 2. Government’s Purchase of Energy-Conserving Products On December 12, the Ministry of Finance and the National Development and Reform Commission jointly issued the new “government’s shopping list of energy-saving products.” According to official data, the number of items on the list increased from 4,770 products in 18 categories to 15,087 products in 33 categories. Among them, air-conditioners, fluorescent lamps, television sets, electric water heaters, computers, printers, monitors, toilets, and water nozzles are listed as energy-saving products that must be compulsively purchased by the government. The authorities said that China will improve the policy mechanism beneficial to energy conservation and emissions reduction, strengthen coordination among credit, land, taxes, price and quality control policies, implement stricter conditions of market entry in pivotal regions and industries, and strictly control energy-intensive and low-standard projects.

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The State Council document [2007] Number 36, July 2007.

progress in energy conservation and emissions reduction 177 E. Public Participation Should be Encouraged in Energy Conservation and Emissions Reduction Guided by the scientific outlook on development, energy conservation, emissions reduction, and environmental management are profoundly changing Chinese government officials’ concept of political performance as well as people’s daily habits. In June 2007, the theme of the national “energy conservation publicity week” was “energy conservation, emissions reduction, and scientific development.” Publicity, education, consultation, and seminars of various forms were held across the country. Campaigns such as “establishing energy-conserving enterprises,” “conservation-oriented schools,” “green households,” “environmental conservation action,” and “I am contributing to conservation” were launched. On August 28, the National Development and Reform Commission together with 17 departments, including the Publicity Department of the Central Committee of the CPC, the Ministry of Education, and Ministry of Science and Technology, jointly formulated the National Action Plan on Energy Conservation and Emissions Reduction. This plan includes actions by families, communities, youth groups, enterprises, schools, military barracks, government agencies, and media. The mission is to encourage the entire society to participate in conserving energy and reducing emissions, promoting the formation of a working mechanism combining the government, enterprises, and society. To extend the influence of publicity and to create a good social atmosphere, environmental NGOs have initiated various kinds of activities related to energy conservation and emissions reduction. The enhanced efforts of China in energy conservation and emissions reduction have drawn attention worldwide. “Seeking a ‘win-win’ approach” has become an important topic for environmental cooperation between the international community and China. Chiefs of states and entrepreneurs have stated their standings and international media have been following this issue closely. F. Long Way to Go in Energy Conservation and Emissions Reduction Although China has made marked achievements in energy conservation and emissions reduction and a turning point emerged in 2007, the situation is still grim. Heavy industry in many areas continues to grow. For instance, the six major industries increased sulphur dioxide

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emissions by 20% in the third quarter of 2007. China’s industrial structure with the heavy industry holding the most important position has not been changed. More importantly, with the increasing demand of the domestic market, the rising prices of energy and raw materials in the international market, and the relatively low price of land and labor in China, the costs of resources and the environment have not been emphasized. All this adds difficulty to reaching the goals of energy conservation and emissions reduction. Former Vice Minister of the State Environmental Protection Administration Wang Jirong said, the key is that China has continued the resource- and energy-intensive mode of economic growth. This suggests that local governments have weak executive power, and that conflicts exist between local and central governments, short-term political achievements and long-term interests. The intuitional obstacles are the crux of the matter. In recent years, many of the guiding, restrictive, and incentive policies have not achieved expected results. One of the most important reasons are policies that do not account for the cost of the environment and sets low costs for resources. This leads to low efficiency in the use of resources and no incentive for energy conservation and emissions reduction for corporations. In addition, with the current enterprise evaluation system being contrary to the requirements of energy conservation and emissions reduction, pollution and ecological damage are typical examples of market failure, policy failure, and system failure. We must make it an important public policy to conserve resources and be environmentally friendly. We must formulate sound financial and taxation policies to make up for market failure. Also, we should compensate for the problems caused by the current financial and tax system, which gives too much power to the central government and not enough power to local governments while responsibility for environmental incidents is mainly shouldered by local governments. Pollution and emissions reduction are mostly being dealt with by administrative orders, rather than economic and legal means. Government departments set the target of emissions reduction for the enterprises to carry out. However, enterprises lack the initiative and necessary economic means to make emissions reduction an intrinsic part of the enterprises’ development. Therefore, efforts shall be made to get rid of systematic obstacles; to reform resources property rights management system, pricing system and pollution emissions charging system; to raise the taxes and fees for using resources; to set up and improve the

progress in energy conservation and emissions reduction 179 profit distribution system of initial property rights and trading system of the rights to use resources; to establish a pricing system according to the degree of scarcity, relationship between supply and demand of resources, and environmental cost; to work out an industrial resources and environmental performance standard; and to take incentive and coercive measures to increase the cost of illegal discharge of pollution, and to regulate the enterprises, making them assume social responsibility on their own initiative. Worse still, China’s total COD and SO2 emissions has far exceeded the carrying capacity of the environment, and the natural environment is hardly able to bear the increasing pressure. That is to say, if we stick to the traditional development model, current production, industrial and pollutant discharging standards, even if the emissions of all pollutant sources reaches the standard, the target to reduce the total emissions by 10% is difficult to achieve. Calculations show that if the average GDP growth rate increases by 8% annually and energy consumption per unit of GDP decreases by 20%, by 2010, the national energy consumption will still increase by 18% compared with 2005. The pressure of energy consumption on the environment is growing continuously.4 In addition, another important reason for China’s severe energy crisis is the irrational structure of energy. The use of coal-fired power makes up too high of a percentage. Meanwhile, sharp increase of motor vehicles has led to the excessive consumption of oil. By June 2007, the total number of motor vehicles in China reached 150 million. From January to October 2007, China imported 49% of its oil from abroad, up by 1.7% compared with the same period of the previous year. Once a country’s dependency on foreign oil reaches or passes 50%, the country has entered a period of energy warning. It is not possible to solve all of these problems quickly by short-term economic policies.Some of the restraints on resources and conditions cannot be changed. Hence, China’s energy conservation and emissions reduction and sustainable development will be a long and difficult march.

4 Liu Xiaoxing, “Energy Conservation and Emissions Reduction Initiative: Challenge to Governmental Execution Power.” China Environment Paper, July 23, 2007.

GREEN COMMUTING AND PUBLIC PARTICIPATION Kang Xue

In 2007, Green Commuting became an environmental protection campaign, which had a deep impact on the urban society. Car Free Day was introduced throughout the country. Public bicycles appeared in some cities. Low-cost public transportation initiated in Beijing soon became popular nationwide. All these achievements are the result of wide public participation, the efforts of NGOs and their cooperation with the government. Key words: green commuting, public participation

Green Commuting is defined by the China Association for Non-Governmental Organization Cooperation (CANGO)1 as “a traveling mode that saves resources, enhances the energy efficiency, reduces pollution, and benefits people’s health.” Friends of Nature adds that Green Commuting is to take public transportation such as buses and subway trains, to car pool, to drive your cars in an environmentally-friendly and regulated way, or to walk or bike . . . in an effort to reduce energy consumption and pollution during your journey as much as possible.” In 2007, the Environmental Protection Promotion and Education Centre of Beijing published a brochure asking people to “Drive One Day Less Every Month,” with the definition, “Green Commuting refers to the means of transport that has the least negative effect on the environment without compromising efficiency and is also good for people’s health. It usually includes walking, riding a bicycle, taking public transportation, and driving one car with more people.” The aim of Green Commuting is to make the urban transport “green,” which means to “make walking, bicycling, and taking buses, trains, and subways more competitive, compared to cars.”2

China Association for Non-Governmental Organization Cooperation (CANGO) (中国国际民间组织合作促进会) homepage: http://www.cango.org/english/. 2 World Report of 2007: The Future of Our City. P66, China Environment and Scientific Press. 1

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kang xue I. Car Owners: Drive One Day Less Every Month and Be a Green Commuter

By May 26, 2007, the number of cars in Beijing reached 3,000,000. That was 0.68 cars per household. It has already become a world issue that cars are dominating big cities. Urban people are highly dependent on cars and at the same time are deeply troubled by them. Environmentally conscious car owners must share this feeling. As a result, in the campaign of 2007 China Green Commuting, many car owners became green commuters and voluntarily “drive one day less every month.” A. “Drive One Day Less Every Month” Started in 2006 On May 15, 2006, 112 organizations, including 76 car owners’ clubs, 9 environmental NGOs, 10 news outlets, and 14 college students’ associations, initiated a campaign to, “Drive one day less every month for one more day of blue sky in Beijing.” On June 1, CANGO and the Environmental Defense Fund initiated the National Green Commuting Campaign, with 40 domestic enterprises, multinational corporations, NGOs, and Chambers of Commerce signing the “Green Commitment.” On June 5, World Environment Day, many relevant media reports appeared, including “250,000 Car Owners Are to Drive One Day Less Every Month Starting Today” and “400,000 Employees of Foreign Companies Committed to Green Commuting.” From August 17 to 20, when Good Luck Beijing events were taking place, there were 504 organizations participating in this green campaign, including 407 automobile clubs and car owners’ clubs such as Autohome, PCAuto, and FiatOwners. In this way, those clubs started to take part in the environmental protection campaigns. If you search for “car owners’ clubs green commuting” on Google, you will find hundreds of thousands of results; for “car owners’ clubs drive one day less,” the results will be 7 digits. Those figures are big enough to attract people’s attention to this special group, car owners’ club. The car owners’ club is a new public group. Each brand, sometimes each model has its own club. Car owners get together because of similar interests and common topics that they share by using the same type of car. They will then start to talk about how to save fuel and to reckon on the reasons for traffic jams and air pollution, which will lead them to a common concern about the relationship between cars and the environment. The young generation, which has been

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Figure 11.1: Sticker for “Drive one day less every month” campaign The “Drive one day less every month” sticker is the ID card for people who participate in the program. It is designed by member of a car owners’ club named Wan Fengtang. The logo is a cartoon figure of the number “1,” which runs on the open and green road. This means that the car owners are committed to green commuting, leading a healthy, positive, green, and fashionable way of life. This little sticker on a car means that the car owner accepts the theory and actively participates in the program.

brought up in modern civilization, has one thing in common: they do not favor high-sounding words. Thus, they quickly responded to the goal of “drive one day less every month,” which is not so hard to put into practice. Some of them even developed the habit of driving as little as possible. Even when planting trees in the countryside they travel by large rental cars instead of their own. Through self-education, car owners have benefited the society in their personal behavior, and have found a way for a common citizen to realize his social responsibilities and values of modern civilization. It is important to note that the government played a guiding role in the promotion of the “Drive One Day Less Every Month” campaign. The Environmental Protection Promotion and Education Center of Beijing has done a lot to encourage the campaign, including hosting meetings with car owners, issuing proposals, arranging discussions with experts, and collecting sticker designs. Mr. Ji Lin, Vice Mayor of Beijing, attended some meetings and even dined with car owners. The government’s recognition and support have made the car owners feel very proud. During the period of “Good Luck Beijing” Olympic test games from August 17 to 20, 2007, the mayor of Beijing, Wang Qishan (王岐山), issued a public letter on behalf of the municipal government to all the citizens of Beijing, appealing to them to take the bus, subway,

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or taxi, or simply using their bikes and going on feet when commuting.” This respectful proposal has gained great public support. II. Car Free Day: from Public to Government “Car Free Day” was introduced in Europe in the 1990s as the total number of cars in the world was approaching 500,000,000. The Green Party leader of France, Madame Dominique Voynet, who then was also Minister of the Environment and Regional Planning, initiated a program called “I will not drive downtown,” which got a lot of support in Paris and other 34 provincial cities. On September 22, 1998, people in 35 cities voluntarily stopped driving their cars, making it the “Car Free City Day.” Later, this idea was introduced in many countries in Europe and cities in North America, South America and Asia, making September 22 the “Europe’s Car Free Day” and the “International Car Free Day.” More than 1,000 cities around the world have held Car Free Days. After a short honeymoon with their family cars, car owners in China soon became aware of the bad things about cars and took action. In 2001, Car Free Day was first introduced in Chengdu, followed by promotion of “Car Free Day” in many other cities including Beijing, Shanghai, and Wuhan. In August 2003, Professor Zheng Yefu from Beijing University raised a personal proposal for a “China’s Car Free Day.” He pointed out, “in Europe, ‘Car Free Day’ was originated by the people. The program would not have been successful without the passion and critical thinking of the people. However, the success of this campaign in China is more dependent upon the support and plan of the government. In other words, close cooperation between the public and the government is required. Here is how it works: the public encourages the government to form plans to be carried out by the public under the supervision of the government.” The influence of “Car Free Day” initiatives promoted environmental NGOs was very little until November 2006 when the Ministry of Construction issued, Suggestions on Organizing Chinese Urban Public Transportation Week and Car Free Day, 2007. The Ministry of Construction also decided to launch China’s first urban public transportation week between September 16 and 22, 2007, which would be an annual event. Mayors of over 100 cities including Beijing, Shanghai, Tianjin, Chongqing, and Shenzhen signed Commitment to Urban Public Transportation Week and Car

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Free Day formulated by the Ministry of Construction. Afterward, the activity was held in 108 cities as scheduled. Since then, September 22, the World Car Free Day, has been acknowledged by Chinese urban residents, which is of great significance. The first “Car Free Day” was a big event. Not only did people see news headlines such as “Mayor Takes the Bus” or “Mayor Bikes/Walks to Work,” actual results were also achieved. One day without private cars in 108 cities was expected to help save 33 million liters of fuel and reduce 3,000 tons of toxic gas emissions.3 For example, there were only 10,000 to 20,000 cars inside the first ring road of Kunming on September 22, accounting for only 1/10 of the usual amount. According to statistics, the air quality was improved remarkably as the major pollution indexes related to car gas exhaust dropped in various degrees, traffic flow decreased by 41.1% and the equivalent sound level of road traffic noise was reduced by 2.6dB.4 In the hope of solving the traffic jam problem, Kunming municipal government decided on September 30 to make the fourth Saturday of every month a “car free day,” which would be implemented from October onwards. While it made Kunming the first city to do so all across China, it aroused an extensive dispute on whether it was an innovation or just for show. Hangzhou municipal government made provisions that during the “public transportation week” cars will be banned in some streets on alternate days depending on whether their number plates end in odd or even numbers and during the “car free day” cars were prohibited in certain areas, about which many drivers felt their lives had been interrupted. Some drivers suggested that “Car Free Day” should not become “Private Car Free Day” by using administrative orders to restrict private cars only. Instead, there should be more restrictions on government cars. According to Wang Shizong, associate professor of Public Administration at Zhejiang University, government cars should play an exemplary role in this respect. He pointed out, “In the UK, Singapore and other countries, various measures such as budget control, laws and regulations as well as public monitoring, are taken to exercise rigid control on the use of government cars. Should a government car be found for private use, the person concerned will be

www.xinhuanet.com September 26, 2007. http://paper.people.com.cn/rmrb/html/2008-03/17/node_17.htm October 30, 2007. 3 4

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immediately charged. In China, the number of government cars is huge. According to statistics, a government car runs four to five times more frequently than a private car. Congestion is largely due to government cars.” More people hoped to see a long-term mechanism to restrict the use of government cars being formed along with the introduction of “Car Free Day.” Professor Zhang Xukun believed government cars are bound to decrease in number gradually. He states, “It is the obligation of the public service sector to cut the number and frequency of use of government cars. It also reduces the burden of taxpayers by encouraging civil servants to take public transportation with subsidies. The reduction of government cars is an important way to ease urban congestion and improve the traffic system.”5 Despite the defects, it is fair to say that “Car Free Day” has achieved its original goals of encouraging mass participation and drawing the attention of the governments at all levels. III. Bicycle: from a Show to the Appearance of Public Bikes China used to be known to the world as the “Kingdom of Bicycles.” In the era of cars, people are concerned about the future of bikes. Teenagers showing their bike skills are seen in many ceremonies of activities related to “Green Commuting.” Cyclists are larger in number than car owners and less concentrated. Environmental NGOs are playing a leading role in making biking an important means of green commuting. In 2005, Friends of Nature launched the program “Beijing for Bikes” and completed Suggestions on Improving the Bike System in Beijing and its Implementation (关于完善和落实北京市自行车交通系统), which was submitted in February to the government by Mr. Liang Congjie (梁从诫), co-founder of Friends of Nature and a member of the CPPCC and soon received replies in April from Beijing Municipal Committee of Urban Planning, Public Security Bureau and Traffic Management Bureau. From September 22 to 29 the same year, Friends of Nature organized a “Photo Gallery of Beijing for Bikes” in cooperation with Global Village Beijing , China Environment and Sustainable Develop-

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www.xinhuanet.com September 27, 2007.

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ment Research and Reference Center (CESDRRC) (中国环境与可持 续发展资料研究中心)6 to promote “World Car Free Day.” In 2007, “Beijing for Bikes” is carried on as part of the “Green Commuting” activities. Friends of Nature revised the Suggestions and resubmitted to relevant authorities, calling on the corresponding departments to consider the cycling system as an indispensable part of a sustainable traffic system of Beijing. The departments should, accordingly, build more cycling infrastructure and encourage the citizens to take bikes as their major vehicle. The goal is to incorporate a cycling system well into Beijing’s modern traffic system, in order to achieve harmony and better air quality for better life in the city. China was not alone, as bikes had already become a hit in Europe. Since 2002, 11 European countries have allocated special funds to establish bike lanes; Germany, France, the Netherlands, and Switzerland are planning to establish bike expressways. According to Transport for London, cyclists have increased by 52% since 2000. On July 15 of last year Paris launched a public bicycle rental program called “Vélib,” which meant “free bike” in English. Ten thousand brand-new bicycles were introduced to the city at 750 rental points, with a lending volume of over 50,000 times on the very first day. The city planned to double both the bikes and the rental points, so that citizens can find a rental point within 300 meters on average. London plans to follow Paris’ step and transform the city into a city of bikes, according to Mayor Livingston. The existing 273 miles of bike lanes, half of which were built after 2000, will be extended to 560 miles by 2010.7 On August 19, rental bikes found their place in Beijing during the “Promotion of Public Bikes in Beijing for the Coming Olympics.” It was a non-profit activity organized by a special office under Beijing Municipal Public Security Bureau with 5,000 bikes placed in 31 rental points around Workers’ Gymnasium, Gulou, Xuanwumen Gate, Chegongzhuang and other places. By the 2008 Olympics, 231 rental points with 50,000 bikes will be established near the subway entrances and shopping centers, around transport hubs, hotels and mansions, as well

6 Translator’s note: Established in 1998, China Environment and Sustainable Development Research and Reference Center (CESDRRC) is an NGO that serves as a library and resource center for the public. It is located at the State Environmental Protection Agency office. Homepage: http://www.chinaeol.net/cesdrrc/english/intro.htm. 7 Observations and Reflections, August 31, 2007.

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as inside communities and colleges. If a citizen pays 100 RMB a year, he or she can rent bikes everywhere inside the city. On September 26, the first 20 public bike rental points operated by Beike Blueprint Bicycle Leasing Company (贝科蓝图自行车租赁公司) were established in Beijing. The first point was at Beijing Hotel, which is in the busy downtown. Citizens can pay the deposit and rent with bank cards, and can rent bicycles in one place and return them in another. By September 2007 the company had 32 leasing points in the city, mainly located near subway stops, traffic hubs, prosperous business zones, and office buildings. By the end of 2007, the number of leasing points will reach 100, and by the end of 2008, it will reach 200. The number of bicycles will reach 50,000.8 The media responded warmly to public bicycles, saying that “public bicycles in Beijing should be promoted on a large scale,” but some doubt how far public bicycles in Beijing can go. Though the annual rental fee of 100 RMB is not high, the daily fee of 20 RMB is not appealing compared to buses and taxis. Moreover, bicycles are more likely to be stolen, especially when there is limited number of rental points and safe parking areas. If a bike is stolen, the 400 RMB deposit, enough money to buy two common bikes, will not be refunded. However, there was a breakthrough this year to this problem, which has long been a headache for civilians as well as the police. On the morning of November 30, the first group of bicycles with a “birth certificate” came off the production line. In a sport bicycle factory in Shijingshan District of Beijing, a worker carved two lines of 15-digit codes on a bicycle. A worker said that the numbers show the place and the date of production. New bicycle sales registration system will be put into practice on January 1, 2008, when real names will be required to buy a bike. In 2007, with great public attention and wide participation, breakthroughs were made in some bicycle related issues. However, suggestions put forward in the Friends of Nature, such as to improve the bicycle road design, to guarantee the cyclists’ road right and safety and to improve bike-parking facilities, are yet to be realized.

8

Morning Post, September 27, 2007.

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IV. Public Transportation: Low Fares Leads to the Greatest Wave of Green Commuting To drive one day less is certainly not as long-term as taking public transportation in green commuting. In order to attract more people to public transportation, it requires a better traffic system and the government’s guidance, such as the policy that Beijing adopted to start “a wave of low-cost public transportation” across China. On January 1, 2007, all the public buses (except the air-conditioned buses with 9 as the beginning number) began to charge the same price, starting from 1 RMB. Using a bus card, an adult enjoys 60% discount and a student 80%. It was the beginning of a year of green commuting. On October 5, when Line 5 was put into operation, a uniform fare priced at 2 RMB was adopted in the whole subway network, while it took 3 RMB to travel a single line in the past. Beijing’s subway fare thus became the cheapest in the country. The opening of Line 5 of the subway was a big occasion. It is the first subway line that runs from north to south, passing a number of downtown areas. It takes only 49 minutes to cover its total length of 27.6 km. It became a very important part of Beijing’s subway network and considerably improved its efficiency. Media reports like “Line 5 carries 400,000 passengers per day, 50,000 people more than expected,” “5 lines carried 154 million passengers in two months” and “parking space will be expanded in Tiantongyuan” showed the popularity of Line 5, which was far beyond the expectations of the government. People living along the line who used to drive cars choose to take the subway instead due to its convenience and low cost. In the very month when Line 5 opened, “34.5% people took public transportation and 32% drove cars, which meant that it was the first time in years that more people traveled by public transportation.”9 That is why people say that public transportation in Beijing has now become truly public. This has not come easily. The construction of the first subway in Beijing started on July 1, 1967, and was completed on October 1, 1969. It was open to trial traffic in 1971. Tickets were not sold freely to individuals until September 5, 1981 when the subway was officially

9

Beijing Evening Paper, December 7, 2007.

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opened to the public. Since then, subway construction in Beijing has proceeded very slowly. Recently, Beijing has sped up the construction of its subway and light rail network. On the morning of December 8, at the construction site of Songjiazhuang stop of Phase II of Line 10, a ceremony was held to celebrate the opening of construction of 5 new subway lines, namely Phase I of Line 6, Phase II of Line 8, Phase II of Line 10, Line Yi Zhuang and Line Da Xing. By the time Line 10 and the Airport Express Rail are completed in 2008, the total length of Beijing’s subway and rail system will reach 200 kilometers. A larger goal is to have 561 km of track by the year 2015, when the daily passenger volume will exceed 8 million, much greater than the present 2.5 million. Furthermore, the percentage of people using public transportation will grow from 35% to 45%, with 23% taking subway or light rail, a large increase over the 6% who currently use the subway system. According to China Youth on November 15, “from long-term goals to strategic preferences, from cheap fare to traffic rights, measures taken in favor of public transportation in Beijing are said to have formed a Beijing Model.” Experts are expecting a wave of development in public transportation across the country following Beijing. Indeed, people are looking forward to cheap and efficient public transportation. The year 2007 was full of good news. Following Beijing, many cities like Shenzhen, Wuxi, Xi’an and Guangzhou reduced or were planning to reduce the price of public transportation. Shanghai worked out the Three-Year Plan of Giving Priority to Develop Public Transportation Between 2007 and 2009, and will invest 110 billion RMB to realize it. In the Yangtze River delta, public transportation cards are commonly accepted in cities such as Nanjing (南京) and Yangzhou. There are more than 10 cities in China now using subway and light rail. On December 16, the first high-speed railway between Beijing and Tianjin was completed. According to the Long-term Railway Network Plan, by 2020, China will build high-speed passenger transport access between provincial capitals as well as big and medium-sized cities. Inter-city high-speed railroads will be built in the Bohai Sea Area, the Yangtze River Delta, and the Pearl River Delta. On December 29, 2007 in Shanghai, the subway Line 6, Line 8 (Phase I) and Line 9 (Phase I) were put into operation. Now, there are eight lines in Shanghai with 160 stations and a total length of 234 km, the longest in China.

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The great development of green commuting in 2007 is due to the efforts made by both environmental NGOS and the government. Cooperation between them is the best way to promote green commuting. We should try to understand more of this cooperation in light of new features of the present Chinese society, and make it play a bigger role in other environmental protection endeavors.

PART IV

PUBLIC POLICY AND PUBLIC PARTICIPATION

PROGRESS AND PROBLEMS IN CHINA’S CONSTRUCTION OF AN ENVIRONMENTAL LEGAL SYSTEM Xu Kezhu, Song Wanzhong and Zhu Fen

Environmental legislation in China has progressed with more attention being paid to public participation. The enforcement of environmental laws has been strengthened continuously, but an effective long-term mechanism for rigorous execution is still to be set up. The judicial practice of lawsuits for public interest also appeared. However, enterprises’ observation of environmental laws and public participation in the environmental impact assessments still are relatively poor. Further efforts need to be made. Key words: environmental legislation, enforcement of environmental laws, administration of environmental justice, public participation

I. Progress of Environmental Legislation In 2007, environmental legislation at both national and regional levels is thriving. Two international conventions titled the Convention on Jointly Implementing the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor Plan and Establishing an International Fusion Energy Organization and the Convention on the International Fusion Energy Organization’s Privilege and Exemption in Jointly Implementing the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor Plan were ratified. The Animal Anti-epidemic Law and Energy Conservation Law were amended. Regulatory codes such as Regulations on the Supervision and Monitoring of Civil Nuclear Safety Equipment, Regulations on National Surveys of Pollution Sources and Provisional Regulations on the Disclosure of Government Information were enacted. The State Environmental Protection Administration (SEPA) and other ministries also formulated a series of practical regulations to ensure better implementation of current laws. Explorations and experiments have also been conducted to carry out national and regional legislations. For example, Regulations on the Prevention and Control of Water Pollution along the South-to-North Water Diversion Region in Shandong Province (山东省南水北调工程沿线区域水污染防治条例) is aimed at a particular project, which is the very first of its kind in the history of China’s regional legislation. It provides a legal guarantee for the water quality of the South-to-North Water Diversion Project

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(南水北调).1 After ten years’ of enforcement of hunting prohibition laws in Jilin Province, the number of wild animals has greatly increased. To ensure people’s legal rights while protecting wild animals, Jilin Province issued the Measures for Compensating the Victims Hurt by Wild Animals under Special Protection in Jilin Province (吉林省重点保护陆生野生动物造成人 身财产损害补偿办法), prescribing that the government should “pay the bill” if wild animals hurt people. A. Environmental Protection Legislation Emphasizes Public Participation Generally speaking, China is making great efforts towards environmental protection legislation. The new legislative effort is focused on energy conservation and pollution control. Moreover, great attention has been paid to public participation while government monitoring is being strengthened. There is a palpable trend towards public participation in environmental legislation. The public’s enthusiasm to participate in the legislative process is higher than ever before. Take the modification of the Prevention and Treatment of Water Pollution Law (水污染防治法) for example. Great attention was drawn to the amendment when the National People’s Congress decided to solicit advice from the public. Within a month, more than 2,400 pieces of advice and 67 letters were received from people in different areas.2 In addition, the regulations on public’s participation in the environmental protection are being perfected. Coinciding with the promulgation of the Provisional Regulations on the Disclosure of Government Information (政府信息公开条例), SEPA issued Measures for the Disclosure of Environmental Information ( for Trial Implementation) (环境信息 公开办法(试行)) which regulated the major parties, scope, procedures, and responsibilities of the release of environmental information. It is the first set of comprehensive governmental regulations concerning the disclosure of environmental information after the issuance of Provisional

1 Zhou Yanling and Shen Zhaoling, China’s First Project Legislation Regulations on the Prevention and Control of the Water Pollution along the South-to-North Water Diversion Region in Shandong Province is to be enacted in January 1 next year, Council of China Environment News, December 6, 2006. 2 The Draft of Law for Prevention of Water Pollution Calls for Public Opinion and Participation Xinhua News Agency 9–18–2007.

china’s construction of an environmental legal system 197 Regulations on the Disclosure of Government Information. Public participation in environmental protection took another step forward after the State Environmental Protection Administration (SEPA) released Provisional Measures for Public Participation in Environmental Impact Assessment (环境 影响评价公众参与暂行办法) in March 2006. With public’s rights to information being guaranteed by laws, a more solid foundation for the public’s rights to participate and to supervise in the environmental protection was established. B. Innovations Can Be Found Everywhere in the New Laws Energy Conservation Law In recent years, China has been faced with a severe situation as energy consumption keeps increasing rapidly, while energy efficiency remains low. The new Energy Conservation Law has the following characteristics: (1) Being strategically important. Energy conservation has already become a primary policy in China. Measures have been taken to conserve and exploit energy with a higher priority put on conserving energy. (2) The scope of governmental monitoring has been enlarged. Previous laws mainly prescribed concerning energy conservation in industry. With the development of the economy and urbanization, energy consumption in construction, transportation, and public facilities has increased rapidly, so the new laws regulate energy conservation in those areas. (3) The government shoulders more responsibilities. As the target responsibilities and assessment system for energy conservation have already been set up, energy conservation objectives will be used to evaluate the performance of local government officials through annual reports. (4) “Carrot” goes hand in hand with “Stick.” Apart from provisions on legal responsibilities, two chapters of incentive measures were also adopted by the new laws featuring the improvement of energy conservation technologies, including both legal and market instruments.

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Disclosure of Environmental Information “In every country, the government is the biggest owner and controller of information.”3 Public interest is closely related to environment. The biggest obstacle to public participation in environmental protection is not the lack of awareness, but the lack of timely and accurate information. The issuance of Provisional Regulations on the Disclosure of Government Information (“Provisions” for short) and Measures on Environmental Information (trial) (“Measures” for short) will promote publicparticipation in environmental protection. “Provisions” has the following features: (1) Openness has become the principle: “Provisions” and “Measures” will change the basic rule of “blocking government information,” making government supervision more transparent. (2) The content for disclosure will be more extensive: “Provisions” only ordains the disclosure of government information, but the “Measures” prescribes the disclosure of environmental information not only by government, but also by enterprises. (3) People’s right to know has been guaranteed by laws: Public can report to an upper-level environmental protection bureau if they find a lower environmental protection bureau has not fulfilled its duty to publicize the environment information according to laws. The environmental protection bureau that has received the report should supervise and urge the lower-level bureau to fulfill its obligations. If the public thinks that the environmental protection bureau has infringed on their legal rights they can appeal for the administrative reconsideration. Regulations on National Surveys of Pollution Sources (全国污染源普查条例) In order to achieve the goal of reducing the discharge of major pollutants by 10% during the Eleventh Five-Year Plan, the State Council planned to take the first nationwide pollution source investigation. Regulations on National Surveys of Pollution Sources has provided the legal guarantee for this investigation. Measures for the Administration of Environmental Statistics (环境统计管理 办法) Measures prescribes that environmental statistics will be compiled

3 Zhou Hanhua, Expert Suggestions for Provisional Regulations on the Disclosure of Government Information, China Legal Publishing House, Beijing, August 19, 2003.

china’s construction of an environmental legal system 199 through an integrated monitoring system with different levels taking specific responsibilities. Rewarding and punishing policies, periodical general investigations, regular sampling investigations, and data control have also been implemented. Apart from regulating officials’ right to investigate, report and supervise, the law also prescribes that behaviors such as making environmental statistic forms without approval, refusing and being late to report, counterfeiting and juggling statistic materials, interfering in the officials’ execution, and official corruption will be punished. If the behavior is severe enough to be recognized as a crime, it will be investigated as such. Measures for the Administration of Environmental Surveillance (环境监测管理 办法) The environmental surveillance system is one of the three pillar systems for the discharge of contamination. Measures comprehensively regulates the nature, location, management, norm and punishment measures of environmental monitoring, setting up an institutionalized framework for an advanced environmental monitoring and early warning system, thus further promoting energy conservation. Administrative Measures for the Prevention and Control of Pollution by Discarded Electronic Products (电子废物污染环境防治管理办法) In recent years, discarded electronic products have increased rapidly in China. These Administrative Measures regulate inventory, recycling, and disposal of discarded electronic products, which is propitious for the development of a circular economy aimed at “reducing waste, recycling and converting waste into resources.” II. Enforcement of Environmental Law, Stumbling Forward Law enforcement has always been a problem hampering China’s environmental protection. Despite the great progress made in recent years, a lot of problems still exist. According to statistics from the first of 2007, over 220,000 enterprises were inspected, more than 8,000 illegal enterprises were investigated, more than 1,600 typical cases have been investigated, and up to 170 people in charge have been investigated.4

4 State Environmental Protection Administration Launches Another Attack: 8 Enterprises Marked and Supervised, www.people.com.cn July 12, 2007.

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Important enforcement activities conducted by the State Environmental Protection Administration (SEPA) in 2007 include the following. In February, “regional restrictive approval” was carried out for the first time. Sanctions were levied in Tangshang in Hebei Province, Lüliang in Shanxi Province, Liupanshui in Guizhou Province, Laiwu in Shandong Province, as well as four major electric power corporations: Datang International Power Generation Co., Ltd., China Huaneng Corporation, China HuaDian Corporation, and China Guodian Corporation. In May, the first series of cases concerning environmental law violations in the Songhua River (松花江) drainage area were publicized. Eleven enterprises with severe pollution record were investigated and supervised.5 In July, 6 cities, 2 counties, and 5 industrial zones near the Yangtze River, Yellow River, Huaihe River and Hai River were under “watershed restrictive approval.” Thirty-two polluting enterprises and 6 sewage treatment plants within the river basins were investigated and supervised.6 China has made continual improvement in environmental protection. However, we should be aware that the “legal enforcement campaigns” can be effective for a short time but cannot last. Environmental problems cannot be solved with one or two mass-based campaigns. Therefore, a scientific environmental protection mechanism should be built up to ensure rigorous enforcement of environmental laws become a regular practice. Another problem is that local environmental protection bureaus fail to find out the problems in their daily work, which sends a message that the bureaus are not working hard to do a good job. The reasons for this, other than the staff are not highly qualified, are chiefly that the bureaus are not independent because of the interference from local governments, and that environmental protection bureaus do not have enough authority to accomplish their tasks. Unlike industry and commerce bureaus, they do not have the power to freeze funds, confiscate assets, have a lien, or make a forced allocation. Some resolutions have

5 State Environmental Protection Administration releases the first serious of environmental violation cases in 2007 www.chinanews.com May 12, 2007. 6 State Environmental Protection Administration carries out “River Basin Monitoring” in the four major river basins, 38 enterprises have been supervised, www .Chinanews.com July 3, 2007.

china’s construction of an environmental legal system 201 to be carried out by the court resulting from the lack of authority to enforce regulations through coercive means or set deadlines for supervised enterprises. This greatly harms the environmental protection bureau’s morale and efficiency. In order to eradicate such obstacles and better enforce China’s environmental laws, we suggest improvement in the following ways. First, raise awareness of enforcement among environmental protection legal execution personnel. Make pro-law-enforcement into prelaw-enforcement. Closely follow the environmental impact assessments system. Be good gatekeepers to prevent industries’ infringements from happening. Moreover, legal enforcement personnel should enrich themselves with a better understanding of environmental laws and become more qualified to enforce the law. Second, emphasize the local government’s responsibility in environmental protection. Set up a feasible mechanism to match infringement with responsibility and punishment. Include environmental protection accomplishments as one of the standards to assess officials, which will in turn be used to promote or dismiss officials. Third, revise the current environmental laws, regulations, and rules. Give more power, including coercive power, to environmental protection bureaus. For example, ever since August 1, 2007, Ningbo City (宁波市) in Zhejiang (浙江) Province officially put in force the Regulations on Pollution Prevention and Control of Ningbo City (宁波市环境污染防治规定) in which it clearly rules that environmental protection bureaus have the power to have a lien upon or confiscate relevant facilities and assets of those units that have polluted the environment. III. Administration of Environmental Justice: Commonweal Lawsuit Appears Administration of justice is also called the application of laws. It refers to specific activities used by the national judicial system to deal with lawsuits according to legal jurisdiction and procedures. It is the last protection for the environment. In recent years, China’s rapidly growing economy has been accompanied by serious environmental problems. Meanwhile, people’s awareness of environmental protection is growing, as shown by the increasing number of petitions being filed. During the first half of 2007, SEPA received 249 visits, a 26% increase compared with the same period of

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the previous year.7 During the same period, Shanxi Province received 4,039 petitions regarding environmental problems, a 27% increase. Moreover, the Shanxi EPB was visited 117 times by people making in-person complaints, a 58% increase.8 Similarly, Ganzhou City of Jiangxi Province received 326 complaint petitions, an increase of 31% compared to the same period in 2006. This equals to the total number of petition letters in the whole year of 2004.9 Despite the great increase in environmental disputes, environmental lawsuits have not grown accordingly. The reason is that there are many obstacles in the administration of environmental justice. First, high legal fees, lawyer charges, and appraisal costs keep pollution victims away. Second, many pollution activities do not directly harm a certain civic person or juridical person, so there is no appropriate prosecutor according to China’s Lawsuit Law. Third, enterprises which pollute the environment are usually “pillars” of the local economy, and “contribute” greatly to local finances. So local governments usually interfere with the judicial procedure for the sake of local economic growth. Local courts refuse to accept environmental lawsuits or proceed in favor of polluting enterprises in order to protect the local economy. Fourth, the judicial personnel do not have enough knowledge of certain environment laws, which affects the fairness of the administration of justice. For example, China’s law clearly rules that, “Concerning lawsuits that claim for damages caused by environmental problems, the responsibility of presenting evidence lies in the defendant, who should prove that there’s no cause and effect relationship between its actions and results.”10 However, in practice, many judges still consider presenting evidence to be the responsibility of the plaintiff, which puts the plaintiff in a very disadvantageous position. Fifth, the difficulties in law enforcement keep successful environmental lawsuits from being carried out. The victims of pollution are in a weaker position than polluting enterprises in lawsuits. Also, environmental NGOs and the public can not be a party in lawsuits, unless they are the aggrieved party, because they lack the qualification for prosecution. This is a great loss to China’s The pain of pollution in the villages, Xihua Net, August 24, 2007. Report on complaint letters concerning environmental problems of the first half of 2007s, Shanxi Environmental Protection Bureau, August 10, 2007. 9 The increase of our city’s complaint letters concerning environmental problems deserves more attention, Ganzhou Environmental Protection Bureau, September 3, 2007. 10 Regulations on evidence in the civil lawsuits by the Supreme People’ Court, third term, fourth clause. 7 8

china’s construction of an environmental legal system 203 environmental protection. Therefore, it is necessary to learn from other countries to improve the theory on the prosecution qualification and build up an environmental commonweal lawsuit system as soon as possible. We are glad to see that the practice of environmental commonweal lawsuit has taken place. In November 2007, Jiangxi High People’s Court and Jiangxi People’s Procuratorate held a joint conference and decided to begin a trial commonweal lawsuit against activities harming the natural environment, polluting environment and illegally seizing public wealth.11 On December 10, 2007, the Office in Charge of Two Lakes and One Reservoir in Guiyang (the capital city of Guizhou Province) prosecuted Guizhou TianfengHuagong Corporation for discharging polluted water. This is the first environmental commonweal lawsuit case in Guizhou Province.12 A common citizen of Xiamen (the capital of Fujian Province (福建省)) named Lin Lei prosecuted three bus companies in Xiamen because their buses’ emissions harmed people’s health, and asked for one as compensation.13 An environmental commonweal lawsuit is where, for the sake of protecting the environment, everyone has the right to prosecute against those deeds harmful to environment and natural resources in the People’s Court. “Everyone” here should include the procuratorate, environmental protection bureaus, and individual citizens. That the staff of procuratorate bureaus could begin environmental prosecution has its merits: procuratorate staff are familiar with laws and can use laws properly and effectively to protect the interests of the nation and the society. Besides, procuratorate bureaus are disinterested, which can guarantee the success of commonweal lawsuits. Environmental lawsuits started by environmental protection bureaus also have their strengths. These organizations have expertise, experience, necessary human resources, and financial support. They are also passionate about environmental protection, which could be translated into stronger social impact. In addition, since environmental protection bureaus are qualified by their stated responsibilities to bring lawsuits,

11 “Three sorts of cases will be taken as commonweal lawsuits by the procurator bureaus,” Jiangxi Daily, December 2, 2007. 12 “The first environmental commonweal lawsuit of Guizhou Province proceeds to the judicature procedure,” Guizhou Daily, December 12, 2007. 13 “ ‘Black-tailed’ buses in Xiamen go on high horses, a citizen issues environmental commonweal lawsuit,” China Environment Post, December 10, 2007.

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they are not on behalf of their own interests. However, because they may abuse their power, their power to punish should be limited. Only when environmental protection bureaus and procuratorate bureaus do not issue a commonweal lawsuit can a citizen issue an environmental commonweal lawsuit in his/her own name. This restriction is to keep environmental commonweal lawsuit from being misused and lead to waste of judicature resources. IV. Enterprises Must Obey the Law: It is Their Legal Obligation China’s Environmental Protection Law rules that enterprises have the obligation to protect the environment, stating, “every social unit and every citizen has the obligation to protect the environment.” In order to keep new polluting sources from coming into being to realize the “prevention first” principle, construction projects must be assessed in terms of their environmental impacts. It rules that whenever a construction project is to be built, renovated, or enlarged, a report on its influence on the environment must be provided. Only after the environmental protection bureaus and other concerning offices approve of such reports can proposed projects be designed. Moreover, the environmental protection facilities used in proposed projects should be designed, constructed, and put into use at the same time with the main construction. This is the so called “three synchronies” (三同时) system.14 Enterprises are required to submit pollution discharge reports, discharge according to environmental protection standards, and pay pollutant discharge fees. Enterprises should carry out their environmental protection obligations according to laws. Table 10.1 shows that China’s enterprises failed to do a good job in obeying environmental protection laws. The EIA system and “three synchronies” system have not followed. Pollution discharge is common, but discharge fees are not paid in a satisfactory way. In addition to weak awareness of environmental protection on the part of enterprises, there are several reasons to account for the above condition. There is a misunderstanding among enterprises that compli-

14 Translator’s note: “Three synchronies system” refers to designing, constructing, and commissioning of environmental facilities undertaken concurrently with the main construction phase of a project.

china’s construction of an environmental legal system 205 Table 10.1: Results of SEPA’s environmental inspection in July 2007 Inspected Enterprises

Strategic EIA Approval Overview

Three Synchronies (三同时)

22 enterprises in Baiyin, Gansu Province 24 construction projects in Lanzhou Hightech Industrial Development Zone

Pollution Discharge Fees

15 enterprises exceed pollutant discharge standards 16 did not go through strategic EIA approval process

10 enterprises in 9 enterprises Bangfu, Anhui violate the Province strategic EIA,

9 enterprises violate “three synchronies” regulations,

23 enterprises in Chaohu

107 enterprises in Wuhu Economic Development Zone

Pollution Discharges

No enterprise complies with discharge standards; water in five urban sewage systems below standard 7 enterprises secretly discharge polluted water

58 did not go 60 of 76 did through strategic not go through EIA approval environmental approval process implementation rate is 21%

23 enterprises in Zhoujiakou, Henan Province

Secretly discharging pollution and exceeding quotas is common 15 enterprises exceed discharge limits

61 enterprises in Puyang Economic Development Zone

34 are without strategic EIA approval, strategic EIA implementation rate is only 44%

30 construction projects in Xixian, Shandong Province

19 are without strategic EIA approval, strategic EIA implementation rate is only 36.7%

implementation rate is zero

Most of the enterprises have never paid pollution discharge fees

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Table 10.1 (cont.) Inspected Enterprises

Strategic EIA Approval Overview

Longmen Group and Yuncheng Coking Plant in Shanxi Province

700,000 tons / year of environmentally friendly coking technical transformation project is without strategic EIA approval

China Aluminum Corporation Shanxi branch

800,000 tons / year project is without strategic EIA approval; unauthorized operation

Three Synchronies (三同时)

Pollution Discharge Fees

Wastewater over discharge limits

11 enterprises in Xiangfen County

9 violate the discharge standard, violation

21 enterprises in Bayannao’er, Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region

15 are without strategic EIA approval, strategic EIA implementation rate is only 71%

Violation rate is 71%

18 enterprises in Weinan, Shanxin Province

12 are without strategic EIA approval,

Violation rate is 67%

71 enterprises in Handan Economic Development Zone, Hebei Province

Pollution Discharges

58 enterprises are without environmental protection check and accept process

Source: Office of the State Environmental Protection Administration Central Office document [2007] No. 75–82

china’s construction of an environmental legal system 207 ance with the strategic EIA system, “three synchronies” system, and paying discharge fees are not legal obligations but rather the social responsibilities of enterprises. In fact, each and every enterprise must comply with the provisions of environmental laws. If an enterprise’s is not in line with the country’s environment laws and regulations, but exceeds their standards, then it is carrying out its social responsibility. Another important reason for enterprises’ infringement is that fines are not high enough. The cost of complying with laws is higher than that of violating laws, which leads to unfair competition between enterprises. That dampens the enthusiasm of enterprises to adopt environmental protection measures. Therefore, in addition to constantly enhancing enterprises’ environmental protection awareness, heavier economic sanctions should be imposed to increase the cost of violating environmental laws. V. Progress in Public Supervision A. Implementation of Environmental Impact Assessment System On April 12, 2007, a 220 kV power line tower was established 20 meters north of Cuitichunxiao community in the northeastern section Beijing Olympics Park. This immediately aroused local residents’ dissatisfaction. The project under construction is transmission lines from the North 500 kW Substation to the Olympic Village. Upon completion, it would provide electricity for 2008 Beijing Olympic stadiums and surrounding residential areas. On April 15, in answer to strong opposition from district residents, the neighborhood committees hastily posted a so-called “construction notice.” The inscribed date was April 14. The fear of community residents attracted media attention. Community residents resorted to contacting the Center for Legal Assistance to Pollution Victims (污染受害者法律帮助中心).15 With the help of the Center, they submitted “a request for the Beijing Environmental Protection Bureau to publicize the environmental impact of Olympic Village 220-kilovolt power transmission project.” The dispute was ultimately resolved by changing the construction of the power lines.

15 Translator’s Note: Center for Legal Assistance to Pollution Victims homepage: http://www.clapv.org/new/en/.

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A survey showed that a lack of public participation triggered this incident. Such a major construction project’s environmental impact assessment was published in the form of “environmental impact assessment form” instead of “environmental impact assessment report.”16 Moreover, it did not solicit the views of the public, which exposed the weakness of relevant provisions. The public’s right to participate and to supervise needs to be guaranteed by laws and regulations that are more explicit. It is thus suggested that certain changes should be made concerning environmental impact assessment regulations: “an environmental impact assessment report which fails to implement public participation will not be approved. For units that misrepresent public opinion or make false records of public opinion, or construction units that refuse to adopt the reasonable views of the public, punitive measures such as imposing fines will be taken.” Only in this way can the deterrent force of the law be ensured to guarantee public participation in environment assessment. Administrative Procedure Act, and Measures on Public Participation in Environmental Protection should also be introduced at an appropriate time to provide relevant provisions for the protection of public rights. B. Emphasis on Solving Environmental Disputes through Negotiation From the cases dealt with by the Center for Legal Assistance to Pollution Victims, most of the victims have reported to environmental protection agencies and government bureaus. Yet the disputes remain unresolved. The Center appeals to either administrative processing or judicial means to resolve these environmental disputes. Some cases have been resolved. Generally speaking, however, the success rate (or proper solution rate) is only 30–40%. Using legal means to resolve environmental disputes still faces many difficulties. In response to the reality of constant environmental disputes, it should be prescribed that negotiations should be one of the major means of resolving environmental disputes. As is learnt from practices abroad, public participation in environmental legislation, policies and environmental disputes should be clearly prescribed in laws or regula-

16 According to the Provisional Measures on Public Participation in Environmental Impact Assessment, public participation only applies to construction projects that need environmental impact reports.

china’s construction of an environmental legal system 209 tions. The development of environmental protection NGOs should be guaranteed to promote both public participation in solving environmental disputes and the legalization of administrative procedures. Learning from Germany, Japan and China’s Taiwan, a special environment Disputes Act should be enacted, providing regulations concerning institutions dealing with environmental disputes, their jurisdiction, and procedures. Environmental disputes thus could be solved through specialized institutions in a timely, efficient, and peaceful manner. More specific administrative measures should be added to include not only mediation, administrative processing, but also arbitration, negotiation, discussion, and other forms. C. Solving NGOs’ Registration Problem In April 2007, Green House of Pingnan County, Fujian Province (福建省) won the 2007 SEE • TNC ecology award for its protection of the natural ecology and the living environment of the villagers. No one expected that it would close in September 2007. Beginning in 2002, Zhang Changjian began a five-year “battle to protect the environment,” and organized an environmental litigation case with the largest plaintiff group in China—1,721 plaintiffs sued Rongping Chemical Plant in Pingnan County for pollution. With the help of Center for Legal Assistance to Pollution Victims of the Chinese University of Political Science and Law, the case was a success, gaining wide social acknowledgment. The People’s Supreme Court concluded the trial work of the past five years and elected ten significant cases of environmental Protection. Zhang Changjian’s case was among them. In the process of the lawsuit, the 1,721 plaintiffs set up an organization—the Pingnan Green House. On September 26, 2007, Zhang ChangJian received compensation of 684,178.2 RMB from Rongpin Chemical Plant. Three days later, Pingnan Green House was banned by Pingnan County Civil Affairs Bureau. The reason is that Pingnan Green House was an unregistered organization that carried out unauthorized activities, which is against Article 3 and 35 of “Regulations on Registration and Administration of Social Organizations.” The underlying reason is that an NGO must be linked with an administrative authority to be registered. Pingnan Green House was not registered because it was unable to find an administrative authority that would register it. The fact that it is very difficult to register an NGO is not only faced by Pingnan Green House. China is experiencing restructuring to achieve

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“a small government and a big society.” Such restructuring inevitably demands that the government give the public more space for activities. In the process of revising Regulations on Registration and Administration of Social Organizations and Regulations on Registrations and Administration of Private Non-profit Organizations, the status quo of government transitioning and civil society building should be taken into consideration. The government should encourage the development of NGOs so that they could assist the government in law enforcement and supervision. At the same time, it is necessary to revise the Environmental Protection Law, Procedural Law, and other laws to allow NGOs to participate in environmental commonweal lawsuits, which will help solve environmental problems.

GREEN CREDIT POLICY IN CHINA Yu Xiaogang

China’s “Green Credit” policy is an innovative way to include social and environmental impacts when financing projects. A milestone for China’s financial industry, the Green Credit policy should ensure that China’s overseas investment is done in a sustainable way. Furthermore, the emergence of the Equator Principles and their subsequent adoption by leading financial institutions shows that social and environmental impacts must be considered along with financial risk assessments. Finally, NGOs can play a vital role in ensuring that investment in China and abroad is done in a sustainable and equitable manner. Key words: finance, green credit policy, Equator Principles

At the end of July 2007, the State Environmental Protection Administration and People’s Bank of China announced their joint efforts to limit loans to polluting enterprises and mitigate financial risks. Known as the “Green Credit” policy, this joint effort represents a milestone in China’s environmental protection endeavor. I. “Green Credit” Policy in China Over the past few years, we have witnessed a rising number of serious environmental and social problems due to backward technology and improper project planning. The social and environmental costs as well as financial losses caused by these projects have attracted attention from both the Chinese government and public. For example, in the 1990s, the Chinese government decided to close down all redundant, high energy-consuming and heavily polluting small enterprises along the Huaihe River. This resulted in non-performing loans of more than 1 billion RMB for China’s agricultural financing institutions. In January 2005, 30 construction projects involving a total investment of nearly 118 billion RMB were suspended by the State Environmental Protection Administration because they failed to pass the Environmental Impact Assessment. Among them, the total investment in the Jinsha River Xiluodu Power Station Project alone was up to 44.6 billion RMB,

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just a little less than the investment in the Three Gorges Project.1 The suspension or cancellation of these mega projects would definitely have a huge impact on bank loans. However, there are also good examples showing that earlier attention to possible negative environmental impact of some projects and necessary measures taken to address it have reduced financial losses. For example, the World Bank has financed more than 20 projects in Chongqing Municipality involving water supply and sewage treatment, garbage landfill, transportation, dykes and dams for flood control, and small-scale urban development. The total investment amounts to hundreds of millions of US dollars. These projects are the first batch of World Bank pilot projects to apply the Equator Principles in China.2 Guided by the Equator Principles, the World Bank sets up a project supervisory and advisory committee with members such as NGO representatives, researchers, accountants, teachers, village cadres, and retired people. The committee offers supervision, monitoring, and advice for the projects under the guidance of an international project consulting company. The committee is chaired by the head of Chongqing Municipal Environmental protection Volunteers’ Association. Members of this committee have taken their responsibilities very seriously. They visit the construction sites, talk with stakeholders, and hold public meetings to assess the social and environmental impacts of the projects. They have found many problems, including poor project quality, damage to forest vegetation and a dinosaur relic preservation site, forced relocation of local people, improper removal of wells and drinking water sources, and failure to offer compensation for expropriated land. Other problems include low compensation for relocation and poor quality homes for the relocated people. Sometimes new homes are not ready several years after the old buildings had been torn down. All these problems have made life difficult for those relocated people and aroused their dissatisfaction, which has led to some mass incidents and conflict. The committee reported what they have found to the local governments and the World Bank in time, and as a result problems

1 The press conference of State Environmental Protection Administration, November 3, 2005. 2 Translator’s note: The Equator Principles are are based on the International Finance Corporation (IFC) performance standards on social and environmental sustainability, and on the World Bank Group’s Environmental, Health and Safety general guidelines, and are intended to guide financial institutions when financing projects.

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were solved. This has effectively reduced the negative effects of these projects. Meanwhile, this committee also reported problems found in the Asian Development Bank (ADB) projects in Sichuan. These problems include failure to solicit public opinion regarding the site and design for relocation homes, poor quality of relocation homes, lack of necessary facilities such as gas lines, public toilets and garbage disposal points, poor sewage disposal systems, and poor roads. The committee has proposed corrective measures to solve the problems. Here is another example. Worried that the World Bank river improvement project in Nantai Island in Fuzhou City might destroy thousands of mu (Chinese unit of area, 1/15 of a hectare) of wetlands, the World Bank spent more than two years negotiating with the local government and finally saved this wetland, which has huge ecological and economic significance to the local people. The Asia Development Bank (ADB) irrigation projects in Shanxi, Wenzhou City, and Zhejiang Province also did a good job in relocating people. The satisfaction rate reported was up to 89%. China is quickly becoming a major investor in big development projects in the world and this is another reason to implement the “Green credit” policy. Chinese investment goes to countries in Southeast Asia, Africa, and Latin America. Most of these projects, such as extractive industries (e.g., petroleum, natural gas, and mining), dams and power projects, and other large infrastructure projects, involve operations that have huge environmental and social impacts. Due to the lack of a well-established environmental and social policy designed for overseas investment, some investment projects have produced negative environmental and social impacts. For example, several Chinese financial institutions and companies jointly developed 18 oil palm plantations in the center of Borneo, with an average area of 100,000 hectares per plantation. This project has negatively affected 7 local rivers as well as the habitat for 200 bird species, 150 reptile species, and 100 mammal species. Here is another example. China International Ocean Shipping Container Corporation was lumbering hardwood in Suriname in South America and its operations had a bad effect on the local black community. China Machinery and Equipment Import and Export Corporation (CMEC) invested 3 billion US dollars to construct an iron mine, a port, a railway, and two dams in Gabon. These operations have affected the nature reserves for gorillas and chimps in western Africa. Talking about the negative impacts of Chinese projects on the local environment and communities,

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Mr. Paul Wolfowitz, President of the World Bank, warned in 2006 that major banks in China must comply with the “Equator Principles” and refrain from making the same mistakes as France and America did in Africa.3 To cater to the need for domestic and international environmental and social development and to help China’s financing industry conform to international rules, the Green Credit policy is being initiated in China. In the past, China Development Bank was the only bank in China to have independent financial policies with an environmental concern. China Import and Export Bank had an environmental protection policy, but did not make it known to the public. In mid July 2007, a document, Opinions on Implementing Environmental Protection Policies and Rules and Preventing Credit Risks, was jointly prepared by the State Environmental Protection Administration, Bank of China and China Banking Regulatory Commission. According to the document, environmental protection authorities at all levels should seek out and punish those projects that fail to obtain necessary approval before the construction begins or fail to build environmental protection facilities before entering into commercial operation, and then inform the public of the penalties. Financial institutions should keep close contact with the environmental protection authorities and exercise caution when extending loans and monitoring the use of loans. New projects that fail to pass environmental impact assessment or fail to build sufficient environmental protection facilities are not entitled to any form of new credit from the financial institutions. Existing projects that have problems such as discharging untreated pollution, excessive discharges, failure to obtain discharge permits, discharge of pollution not prescribed by the permit, or failure to make improvements before the given deadline are entitled only to limited credit. The Opinions recommends taking a series of joint measures. First, environmental protection information should be shared. The State Environmental Protection Administration and Bank of China have jointly issued documents asking for the inclusion of environmental protection information in the credit information database for business enterprises. Second, commercial banks should use the environmental protection performance of the enterprises as one criterion when extend-

3 The President of the World Bank, quoted from an article on China’s loans to poor countries from the Financial Times (UK), October 10, 2006.

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ing loans. They should see this as their social responsibility to protect the environment and to mitigate credit risks. Third, joint meetings should be convened regularly with participants from environmental protection authorities and financial supervisory bodies. Fourth, China Banking Regulatory Commission (中国银监会) will provide commercial banks with a list of companies that have been punished by the State Environmental Protection Administration. Following the Green Credit policy, the State Environmental Protection Administration will cooperate with the Ministry of Finance, China Insurance Regulatory Commission, China Securities Regulatory Commission, and other authorities to do policy research and experiments on green taxes, green insurance, and green securities before relevant policy decisions are finally made. On the Green Credit policy, some experts point out that we should make the Opinions more powerful and feasible. To have the Equator Principles and the Green Credit policy are not enough. We also need other matching policies and measures. For example, we should work out laws to ask commercial banks to disclose information about investment projects so that they can be put under the supervision of shareholders and the whole society. When amending the Commercial Bank Law and the General Principles on Loans, we should add words to say that borrowers must comply with environmental requirements. Second, some listed banks in China can take the lead in launching a Green Credit campaign to promise the shareholders and the public that they will honor their social obligations. This will help them establish a good public image both at home and abroad. Third, it is not enough for banks and financial institutions to rely on reports from environmental protection authorities. They should set up their own environment and social security departments as soon as possible. They should adopt their own internal social and environmental protection policies and auditing policies and build their own database to keep track of environmental protection labels, investment activities, production, consumption and pollution discharges of the enterprises. They should pay particular attention to those “two-high” enterprises which feature high-energy consumption and high discharge of pollutants, and set loan limits accordingly. Fourth, currently in China, loans are offered for at least five to ten years, during which the national environmental policies might change, and the banks might not have enough channels to provide information to the public. It is still very difficult for banks to make their judgment based on their own policy research and market research. This requires a third party to undertake professional

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assessment work. According to the experience of foreign financial institutions, banks could ask loan applicants to prepare a report on the possible environmental and social impact together with corresponding solutions. This kind of information required by the banks can be more specific and targeted than general environmental assessments. If the project involves very complicated environmental and social impacts, the loan applicants can ask a professional third party to prepare this report and submit it to the bank for examination. This will help the bank to decide whether to approve the loan or not. Fifth, we should quicken our steps to formulate laws regarding government investment, overseas investment, and business investment approval and documentation as well as green policies on the issuance of stocks and bonds, industrial funds, land use, taxation, and price. Sixth, we should offer guidance, early warning and regulatory assistance to private capital. Seventh, the government can consider introducing a sustainable development index for Shenzhen and Shanghai stock markets and set up green risk capital. When the market conditions become mature, we can set up a green fund that can directly participate in market dealings. II. Equator Principles in International Financing The Green Credit policy of China was born amidst a complex international background. In the past, projects with negative social and environmental impacts often received support from financial institutions whose main concern was economic returns. This has aroused opposition from all social sectors including NGOs. For example, Citibank was criticized for a series of such investment projects. In 2000, Hunt, an American petroleum company and SK, a Korean company, invested US $1.6 billion in the Camisea gas project in Peru. Over 75% of the project site was located in the indigenous region. During the first 18 months of the operation, there were 4 accidents of gas pipes breaking and at least 3 major leaking accidents. In May 2004, the epidemiology office of the Health Ministry of Peru confirmed in a report that 22 indigenous communities and many agricultural communities were suffering indirectly or directly from negative impacts, including disappearance of fish species, landslides and infectious diseases. As a financer of this project, Citibank was severely condemned by many environmental NGOs under the leadership of the Rainforest Action Network.

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The construction of Kotopanjan Dam in Indonesia financed by the Japan Bank for International Cooperation ( JBIC) also received public criticism due to the improper relocation of local people and damage to local water resources. The San Roque Dam financed by JBIC in the Philippines received similar criticism for depriving the local ethnic minorities of their basic means for survival. JBIC had to cancel its sewage treatment project midway in Samutprakan of Tailand because it failed to assess the possible impacts on local fisheries before the project began, and as a result received severe criticism. Sakhalin No. 2 petroleum and gas project in Russia financed by the Credit Suisse First Boston (CSFB) was sued by Russian environmental NGOs for threatening endangered gray whales and damaging the habitats of rare fish and bird species. The protests from local people and international NGOs forced the Asian Development Bank No. 2 hydropower project in Nam Theun of the Laos to be postponed for ten years. Seeing major development projects across the world doing harm to the environment and societies, people began to realize the responsibility of financial institutions. In January 2003, the Collevecchio Declaration was released by civil society groups, which put forwards six principles for financial institutions. These principles include sustainability, do no harm, responsibility, accountability, transparency, and sustainable markets and governance. This Declaration is very important to the Equator Principles and in fact has become the criteria for civil society groups to assess the performance of financial institutions when dealing with environmental and social problems. In July 2003, 10 world-known commercial banks from 7 countries including Citibank, Algemene Bank Netherlands (ABN-AMRO), and West LB voluntarily took the lead in promising to conform to the Equator Principles, a benchmark for sustainable development in the financial industry. Then, Hong Kong and Shanghai Bank Corp. (HSBC), Standard Chartered Bank, Bank of America and other famous banks followed suit. In 2003, the Common Approaches on Environment and Officially Supported Export Credits was signed and adopted by export credit agencies all over the world. Thus far, over 40 commercial banks have committed themselves to the Equator Principles. They run businesses in over 100 countries and have over 80% of the market share in project financing in the world. Many banks in developing countries have also considered environmental and social impacts when doing risk assessment for loans.

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The Equator Principles, as a benchmark to determine, assess, and manage environmental and social risks in project financing, was developed by major financial institutions in the world according to the policies and guidelines of International Finance Corporation (IFC) and the World Bank. The specific provisions and conditions that banks need to meet when making investment decisions include the following ten principles: Review and Categorization Social and Environmental Impact Assessment Applicable Social and Environmental Standards Action Plan and Management System Consultation and Disclosure Grievance Mechanism Independent Review Covenants Independent Monitoring and Reporting Equator Principles Financial Institution (EFPI) Reporting The banks committed to the Equator Principles should also develop their own “green” rules, guidelines and handbook, set up an office for environmental and social sustainability, and recruit advisors to address environmental and social issues. In order to conform to the Equator Principles, Citigroup has adopted a comprehensive environmental policy, developed new investment standards, offered capacity building training to its employees and partners, and developed and revised its environmental and social policies. In 2005, Citigroup approved 3 out of 21 projects that had significant potential environmental hazards and implemented the projects strictly according to the Equator Principles and relevant risk management policies. In 2004, the Sustainability Risk Management Team of HSBC released its first investment guidelines—Guideline for Forest Land and Forest Products. It went on to release guidelines for sectors such as freshwater and chemicals, as well as risk policies for industries such as energy, minerals and metals. In the risk management policy for the energy industry, HSBC is not offering loans to borrowers that may cause environmental hazards in places such as UNESCO World Heritage sites, wetlands on the Ramsar List of Wetlands of International Importance, tropical rainforests, and other important natural habitats.

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The Equator Principles is a milestone in the history of international financing because it formulates the baseline of environmental and social concerns for international project financing and successfully puts them into practice. The implementation of the Equator Principles has mitigated possible negative environmental and social impacts and helped reduce investment costs and improve investment returns. Although problems exist in its implementation and some EPFIs are not complying fully, the Equator Principles represents the future trend of international financing and some banks have committed themselves to more strict environmental policies. III. Environmental NGOs in China and the Green Credit Policy NGOs in China started to participate in and supervise projects invested by financial institutions in the 1990s. Sichuan Ertan Hydropower Station is an example. Based on results of the joint investigation by environmental volunteers and the Ertan Branch of the Construction Bank of China on the forest resources at the upper reaches of the Yalong River, the concerned authorities decided to stop logging activities in the upper reaches of the Yalong River. This area had produced 800,000 cubic meters of lumber annually. The authorities also suspended the construction of wood transporting facilities at the Ertan Hydropower Station, thus saving 300 million RMB. In 2001, Chongqing Municipal Green Volunteers’ Union (CQGVU) sent a letter to the Chongqing Branch of the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China calling for the suspension of loans to the environmentally-unfriendly ropeway project on Jinfoshan Mountain. In July 2003, CQGVU called again on the municipal government to suspend the 300,000 kW technical renovation and expansion project of Jiulongpo Power Station in order to protect air quality in the urban area of Chongqing. Later this project was cancelled because it failed to pass the environmental impact assessment by the State Environmental Protection Administration. Shanghai Pudong Development Bank terminated the loan contract worth 20 million RMB. In 2002, Green Watershed (云南绿色流域), an NGO in Yunnan Province (云南省), launched an investigation into the Manwan Power Station financed by China Development Bank and the power transmission project in Dachaoshan Power Station financed by Asian Development Bank. It

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also translated and published the Japan Bank for International Cooperation Handbook for New Environmental and Social Guidelines jointly prepared by Mekong Watch and JBIC in 2004 in order to help NGOs in China know more about the success stories in the world. This handbook carefully explains how JBIC honors its environmental and social obligations and how the public plays a supervisory role. At NGO meetings and training courses, Green Watershed also called on NGOs to pay close attention to the social responsibility of financial institutions. In October 2006, it got a chance to introduce Chinese environmental NGOs to the concept of green credit and the role of NGOs at the Environmental NGO Conference sponsored by All-China Environment Federation (环球中国环境专家协会). In early December 2006, the International Conference on Finance, Environment, and Harmonious Society was held in Beijing under the joint sponsorship of Friends of Nature, Mekong Watch, and Oxfam Hong Kong. It was the first international symposium related to the Green Credit policy in China and provided China’s government officials, NGOs, and academia a chance to learn more about this concept. During the conference, environmental NGOs in China pointed out that the Green Credit policy should be applied to multiple parties in China, including domestic banks and commercial banks, foreign commercial banks, and multilateral development banks. It is easy to supervise them since the impact of the projects financed by them are close to the Chinese public. Second, this policy is also applicable to the overseas investment activities by Chinese banks. However, this requires good communication channels between Chinese NGOs, international NGOs, and local NGOs in the host countries. They will work jointly to supervise China’s overseas investment, make China’s policy of “going out” more sustainable, and contribute to the construction of a harmonious world. NGOs should call upon the government to improve the evaluation and approval procedures concerning project investment, while also calling upon financial institutions to honor their social obligations. NGOs can even help banks to create a self-regulating environment and formulate social security policies. The Green Credit policy has opened another door for environmental NGOs. However, it needs public participation and NGOs can play its own role in this regard. Governments and banks should not only disclose information on environmental and social impacts, but also offer necessary conditions including information disclosure, necessary financial support, and equal dialogue mechanisms. Meanwhile, capacity

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building for NGOs must be put on the agenda. To encourage the adoption of the Green Credit policy, NGOs should learn more about the banking and financial sector, including the decision-making process, risk management, and macro development concepts behind the investment. Overseas investment involves a high degree of complexity due to its close link with diplomatic affairs and NGOs must learn more about diplomacy and the national interests of different governments.

CHALLENGES FOR STRATEGIC ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT ASSESSMENTS Qie Jianrong

Strategic Environmental Impact Assessments have supposedly been mandatory for several years but their implementation has met with a number of difficulties. Controversies around two projects, the Haicang PX Project in Xiamen and the Liulitun Waste Incinerator Power Project in Beijing, highlight some of these challenges. Strategic Environmental Impact Assessments in China have thus far suffered from hierarchical problems in the government, conflicts of interest, and deficient legislation. Key words: Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA), Strategic EIA, pollution

In contrast to an individual project-specific EIAs, strategic EIAs aims to ensure a healthy ecology for residents by setting out preventive and remedial measures to achieve ideal geographical distribution and proportions of the different factors of production, and minimize their cross-interference. The strategic EIA relies on intensive analysis of the specific planning district’s environmental and resource capacity, as well as a scientific evaluation of the correlations and cross-interferences between each factor. For example, if a planning district contains highways, residential areas, schools and factories, the strategic EIA investigates whether each of these is properly located, whether residential areas are threatened by traffic noise, and whether factory production will affect schools. Unlike other environmental laws, the strategic EIA thus concentrates on pollution prevention, rather than treatment, and aims to eliminate pollution at its source. Under the Environmental Impact Assessment Law of the People’s Republic of China (中华人民共和国环境影响评价法), effective as of September 1, 2003, an environmental impact assessment is mandatory as part of land-use, regional, river basin, and maritime area planning as well as ten other types of special planning. The State Environmental Protection Administration (SEPA) started performing strategic EIAs in 2005, and stated that besides pilot schemes, it was soon due to start work on related legislation, notably the Strategic EIA Regulations, which was slated to see the light of day in 2007. This was not how things turned out, though. On November 3, 2007, Pan Yue, SEPA Vice Minister, revealed what had actually been going

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on with this legislation at an international workshop on “Strategic Environmental Impact Assessment in China” in Beijing. He claimed that while SEPA had started the process for the Regulation two years ago, bureaucratic turf wars and the blinkered outlook of some local officials had stymied the Regulation’s progress for the near future. He appealed to public opinion for support in pushing the Regulation through. Major public protests over a series of controversial projects in 2007 have highlighted the disastrous results of not having strategic EIAs for projects at the planning stage. These controversies include the Xiamen Haicang PX petrochemical plant and Beijing’s Liulitun waste incineration project. Progress on strategic EIAs, for their part, has been inching forward at the same time as these landmark events. I. Grave Consequences of Urban Planning Irregularities Two negative pieces of news caused a sensation in 2008, setting a milestone in the strategic EIA rollout process. These were the Xiamen Haicang PX Project and Beijing’s Liulitun waste incineration project, both of which proceeded without a strategic EIA. These ultimately led to strong public opposition and large protests, as well as widespread debate. A. Xiamen Haicang PX Controversy Shockwaves were caused by a proposal to the annual session of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) in March 2007 by Zhao Yufen, a member of the Chinese Academy of Science (中国科学院)s, demanded relocation of the Xiamen Haicang PX Project (厦门海沧PX项目). This “hot-ticket CPPCC bill of the year” took aim at the largest single investment Xiamen had ever attracted—10.8 billion RMB (about 1.4 billion dollars) from Tenglong Aromatic PX (Xiamen) Co. Ltd, which stood to become China’s biggest PX project with expected annual revenues of 80 billion RMB (10.77 billion dollars). However, because the project was improperly located and involved severe hazards, there was fierce resistance from both local residents and some CPPCC members. The bill highlighted the Haicang PX plant’s proposed location: just seven kilometers from downtown Xiamen and from the nationalgrade Gulangyu Scenic Spot. Moreover, the project would have been

challenges for strategic environmental impact assessments 225 a mere four kilometers from a middle school and a dormitory home to 5,000 students. Over 100,000 people live within a 5 km range, with the nearest residential area less than 1,500 meters away. Most of the Jiulong River Estuary, the entire Western Xiamen Sea, and one-fifth of Xiamen Island are within a 10km radius. Its dedicated sea terminal would have been in Xiamen National Nature Reserve, which protects rare marine species including the prized Chinese white dolphin, egrets, and amphioxus fish.1 The PX plant would present a high poisonous leakage and explosion hazard. Any serious accident at the plant, or a natural disaster such as a typhoon, earthquake, or tsunami, would have lead to a massive human disaster. On May 30, 2007, the Xiamen Municipal Government announced its decision to put the chemical project on hold. On June 1, thousands of local residents took to the street to protest against the PX project. A June 7 news release on SEPA’s website stated that the Xiamen Municipality should immediately start a strategic EIA, and quoted Vice Minister Pan Yue as saying that China’s current environmental problems generally stem from irrational site choice and structural problems, due to the fact that policies and planning processes have seldom taken environmental and resource factors into account. The Xiamen Haicang PX Project was the epitome of this. The project had passed a strategic EIA as early as February 2005, and seemed to be considered as meeting environmental standards. Ultimately, however, SEPA found increasing geographical conflicts between the Haicang industrial development and Haicang New Town. The southern district of Xiamen where the PX plant was to be built had become a petrochemical industrial zone, whereas the mainly residential Haicang New Town had also been included in the planning for this district. This geographical proximity increased the risk of the individual PX project. SEPA had thus required Xiamen Municipality to conduct a strategic EIA of Haicang New District and the South Xiamen Industrial Zone, but due to slow progress of the same, SEPA ended up having to suspend all petrochemical projects in the district. At the request of the city government, SEPA stated it would appoint environmental experts to carry out the strategic EIA, involving a thorough analysis of the city’s environmental capacity, development

1 “Controversy over Xiamen 80-billion-yuan petrochemical project: 105 CPPCC members sign relocation proposal,” online from http://www.eastday.com/

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orientation, overall layout, and ecological divisions. If petrochemical projects including the PX project failed the strategic EIA’s requirements, they would be reconsidered. In July 2007, the Chinese Academy of Environmental Sciences was entrusted by the Xiamen municipal government with carrying out the strategic EIA. On December 5, the ten-day “public participation” phase began following the release of the environmental assessment report. On December 13 and 14, the Xiamen government hosted two public hearings in which over 85% of the 99 citizen representatives voted against the project. Under immense public pressure, the decision was made early in the next January to relocate the PX plant. B. Beijing Suspends Liulitun Waste Incineration Power Plant Project The Liulitun Waste Incinerator Power Plant Project broke ground in Haidian District on April 2007. In addition to the foul odor of the Liulitun landfill site, residents in that neighborhood would thus also have to breathe in the carcinogenic dioxins emitted by the proposed waste incinerator. They cast doubt on the strategic EIA report of the program and complained repeatedly to authorities over the construction of the incinerator. On March 14, 127 Liulitun residents jointly submitted an Administrative Reconsideration Application to Beijing Environmental Protection Bureau for the authorities to rescind approval of the strategic EIA of this project. As early as 1995, Beijing Environmental Protection Bureau concluded that it was not environmentally desirable to create a landfill site at Liulitun, and rigorously prohibited the burial of refuse without precautionary measures. The area within 500 meters of the landfill periphery was declared unsuitable for permanent residences, and existing facilities within the area were to be relocated. However, instead of fulfilling the demands of the environmental protection bureau, local authorities approved several residential projects, thus changing the environmental functions of the area. According to China’s Standard for Pollution Control on Landfill Sites for Household Refuse, municipal household garbage landfill sites must not be located in densely-populated, groundwater-supplying, flooded, or silted areas. Furthermore, Notice on strategic EIAs for biomass power generation projects ( June 1, 2006) from SEPA and the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) specifies that new household garbage incineration power plants should not be built upwind (in prevailing wind terms) of

challenges for strategic environmental impact assessments 227 built-up and planned areas of large and medium-sized cities and other large concentrations of residences. The proposed Liulitun Waste Incinerator Power Plant Project was within an environmentally sensitive area. Key issues, such as the sanitary safety perimeter, the local environment’s carrying capacity, and the project’s geological conditions to name but three, needed careful discussion. The onus was thus on the Beijing Environmental Protection Bureau to reach a legitimate, democratic, and scientific verdict based on the judgment of a wide range of specialists and especially upon public opinion. On June 7, SEPA announced its final administrative reconsideration decision on the Liulitun project, suspending it pending the conclusions of further discussion and hearings. SEPA also demanded broader public participation in the whole process. Insiders say that authorities have not yet approved the waste incineration project. C. Painful Lessons from Planning Irregularities These are not isolated incidents. The Xiamen Haicang PX Project and the Liulitun Waste Incinerator Power Plant Project point to a widespread phenomenon. An extensive pattern of economic growth has seen inadequate consideration devoted to sustainable development of the environment and resources. Strategic EIAs have been neglected, and local governments lack cooperation and coordination in regards to regional and river basin development. Energy-intensive and polluting industries have been planned or developed in many places around China. Consequently, people’s health and safety, as well as sustainable economic and social development, are now threatened by an increasingly acute conflict between urbanization and industrial zoning priorities. The Songhua River (松花江) toxic spill in 2005 was also a typical case. A series of explosions on November 13 at the No.101 Petrochemical Plant in Jilin City, Jilin Province created an environmental disaster that made global headlines. A mass of toxic chemicals, primarily benzene and nitrobenzene, was released into the Songhua River, and polluted trans-national rivers. Yet another painful lesson is the polluted Tuojiang River. SEPA conducted a national environmental risk review of chemical and petrochemical plants in the wake of the Songhua River crisis, covering 7,555 plants and over one trillion RMB of investment (about 125 billion U.S. dollars). Of these, 81% were found to be located along rivers and lakes or in densely populated areas, and 45% posed major

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environmental risks.2 The poisoning of the Songhua River was thus more inevitable than accidental. Regional environmental risks stem from a lack of consideration of environmental factors at the planning stage in China’s chemical and petrochemical industries. As long as this kind of planning and site selection persists, environmental risks will remain. Similar problems are common among other industries as well. For example, 26 of China’s 75 major steel factories are in autonomous municipalities or provincial capitals, and 34 are in major cities (over one million people). Tensions are rising between heavy industry and quality of life in major cities. For example in Wuxi (无锡) city, there are on average 10 industrial sites per square kilometer. In Ordos alone in Inner Mongolia, there are four coal chemical plants with the same function, while many more duplicate plants are under construction in the neighboring provinces of Shaanxi and Ningxia. Neglect of environmental factors in planning and development is common in most cities in China. Inconsistent planning in many cities has led to the mixing of industrial and residential zones. The number of environmental disputes resulting from improper planning has been increasing since 2007. The only way out of this situation is to enforce strategic EIA requirements in urban planning and development. II. Slow Rollout Progress for Strategic EIAs A. Still Mired in Difficulty after Two Years of Effort Strategic EIAs began to be taken seriously and promoted widely by the government in 2005. SEPA Vice Minister Pan Yue told that year’s Green China Forum that the era of planning without strategic EIAs was coming to an end. China was due to roll out strategic EIAs at various levels for 10 specific types of planning ranging from industry, agriculture and forestry to energy and resources, urban development and transportation.3

The 7,555 chemical and petrochemical plants involve more than one trillion yuan of investment (about 125 billion U.S. dollars). 45% of them are major source of risks. Their locations pose grave environmental risks. China Environment News, July 12, 2006. 3 Pan Yue: the era of project planning without strategic strategic EIAs is coming to a close, Legal Daily, August 29, 2005. 2

challenges for strategic environmental impact assessments 229 People were fully aware then of the obstacles to putting strategic EIAs into practice: regional development planning was the responsibility of State Council departments and local governments, there was not yet any systematic body of strategic EIA theory, an inter-departmental cooperation mechanism was not in place, and strategic EIA professionals were sorely lacking. With this in mind, Pan offered five solutions to the difficulties for these mandatory strategic EIAs: First, clear ground rules. A project strategic EIA report will not be accepted for consideration if the project does not fall within the 10 special planning sectors and a strategic EIA has not been performed. Consideration of a project EIA report will be suspended if a strategic EIA has not been carried out as required by law; simplified application procedures and materials can be specified if it is one of the 10 special planning sectors and a strategic EIA is already under way. Second, administrative regulations for strategic EIAs should be laid down as soon as possible, clarifying the role of the environmental protection bureaus in performing unitary oversight of strategic EIAs. Environmental protection bureaus should regulate the whole process, laying down guidelines for their costs, procedures, and scope. These should also ensure the orderly conduct of strategic EIAs and their consideration and hearing processes, and make it possible for the conclusions of strategic EIAs to play their due role at the final planning decision-making stage. Third, raise overall standards of strategic EIAs. Certain entities specializing in macroeconomic and technology research or plan formulation shall be recommended to perform strategic EIAs. Fourth, encourage public participation in the process. Finally, implement pilot strategic EIAs in selected cities with sharp tensions between development and the environment. Before the completion of the strategic EIA, projects in certain industries must be suspended, limited, or stopped if they are likely to exacerbate pollution and environmental damage. However, the next two years saw hardly any progress in rolling out strategic EIAs, without even a single influential successful case. Two years after the Environmental Impact Assessment Law of the People’s Republic of China came into effect, a SEPA official revealed, the only complete strategic EIA done by SEPA was the one for Special Planning for Forestry-Paper Integration Projects for the National Tenth Five-Year Plan and for the

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Year of 2010.4 State authorities approved over 20 projects in February 2006, none of which had undergone the requisite procedures under the Strategic EIA Regulations. B. Why Have Strategic EIAs Been Hard to Implement? Why has the rollout been so slow? Among all the reasons—theoretical, technological, and legislative—the most important is conflicts of interest. 1. Hierarchy for Implementing a Strategic EIA System Not Yet Established According to the Strategic Environmental Impact Assessment Regulations (规划环 评条例), all local government planning exercises, from the short-term to the long-term, face the possibility of rejection if they lack an approved strategic EIA. However, the originators of the plans and the final decision-makers are the same group of people in government. Traditionally, there has been absolutely no place for environmental protection bureaus in the process whereby government decision-makers formulate strategies, regulations, or plans. The crux of the matter is that officials have not yet changed their mentality, and decision-making has not yet been made more scientific and democratic. “The planning draft shall not be approved by authorities if the former lacks sections or explanations concerning environmental impacts.” This principle is stated in the Strategic EIA Regulations, but only exists on paper. Since the entry into force of the Strategic EIA Regulations, central government authorities alone have approved nearly a hundred projects, only a few of which have a strategic EIA. Most planning entities do not even know what kind of project needs a strategic EIA or how to perform one. 2. Strategic EIAs and Conflicts of Interest The biggest resistance to strategic EIAs has come from local government, with many localities and departments opposed due to conflicts of interest. Legislation is thus rendered toothless. As Pan Yue explicitly states, “A strategic EIA is about long-term and universal interests, but some authorities and localities are obsessed with immediate interests, and those of some but not all.

4 Five factors block implementation of strategic strategic EIA, Legal Daily, February 14, 2006.

challenges for strategic environmental impact assessments 231 This is a recipe for conflict. What is worse, local authorities even find various pretexts to shirk their duty to carry out a strategic EIA.”5 3. Environmental Authorities Lack Veto Rights The Strategic EIA Regulations severely lacks effective legal enforcement means. According to the law, environmental authorities have the right to examine but not both to examine and approve. This crucial difference in the drafting makes for a power with much weaker binding force and legal effect than the veto power inherent in the right of examination and approval. The division of powers made by the State Council and under the Strategic EIA Regulations makes SEPA the logical examination and approval body for strategic EIAs. However, the present position of SEPA mean that no other department would be willing to “take orders” from SEPA. SEPA can hardly do a thing if some projects simply ignore the need to obtain its approval. Some see all SEPA’s efforts to issue the Strategic EIA Regulations as being aimed at enhancing its own powers. So far, per Pan Yue, SEPA does not have the power of veto over planning projects. Currently, assessments are carried out directly by a qualified strategic EIA body. SEPA then brings its relevant divisions together to examine the project and put forward suggestions. However, whether or not these suggestions are implemented and the project approved is still the direct statutory prerogative of governments above the prefecture level or central departments in charge of a certain industry (e.g., the National Development and Reform Commission). Ergo, as Pan says, even if the Regulation is issued, SEPA will still have no right of veto over the projects themselves. 4. Problems with the Strategic EIA Regulations Some environmental law scholars see a congenital defect of the Strategic EIA Regulations as being its lack of practical rules for implementation and accountability. Although the law contains regulations in principle on the compilation, submission for approval, and examination of the strategic EIA, it fails to set detailed rules on the procedures and scope of the assessment. In particular, the law does not mention oversight mechanisms and lacks

5 Pan Yue, speech at “Strategic strategic EIAs in China,” International Seminar, Beijing, November 3, 2007.

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strong accountability clauses. A person responsible for violating the law is merely subject to administrative punishment. Professor Wan Canfa of the China University of Political Science and Law, who was involved in the drafting of the law on strategic EIAs, sees difficulty in making administrative punishments bite. This is because the authority specifically responsible for meting out punishment is the same one that has compiled the plan in question. Unsurprisingly, it is hard to implement a self-punishment system. Administrative punishments are also vague in terms of who exactly is responsible and penalty standards, and lack firm legal basis. In addition, examination and approval procedures feature a disconnect between local and central government authority. According to the Strategic EIA Regulations, the local strategic EIA has no need to be approved by central authorities. In practice, however, local planning usually includes certain key state development projects whose strategic EIA reports are subject to approval by SEPA at state level. Thus, it is quite possible for the local government to have already approved the strategic EIA, but for the specific project to then fail state-level approval. The problem is thus that one plan has to pass two independent approvals that lack coordination. 5. Lack of Funding Channels for Strategic EIAs All funding for government authorities come from budgetary appropriations. At present, however, there is no budget for strategic EIAs at all. Where the money for the strategic EIA comes from is thus a thorny issue. For example, in Tianjin municipality, the municipal Academy of Environmental Sciences is now engaged in strategic EIAs for the Comprehensive Development Plan for the Banks of the Hai River and the Urban Master Plan for Tianjin. The Academy hopes to offer constructive long-term suggestions on strategies for the refurbishment of the old city as well as urban and industrial development. However, even the salaries of the researchers are not covered, and the Academy has had no choice but to bear all of the costs by itself.

challenges for strategic environmental impact assessments 233 III. Strategic EIA Rollout Proceeds Despite Difficulties A. Authorities Must Implement Strategic EIAs in Accordance with the Law The view of Sun Youhai, director of the Legal Bills Bureau of the Environment and Resources Committee of the National People’s Congress, is that the failure of the Strategic EIA Regulations to translate into action is due to defects in its implementation system. During the examination and approval process, environmental authorities at all levels encounter habitual resistance from local governments. The principle of administration according to the law nevertheless means that the message needs to be driven home that failure to implement the strategic EIA constitutes a violation of the law. If the government and its departments are guilty of inaction, they should face legal consequences. In the meantime, environmental authorities should implement the law without fear. Sun Youhai suggests environmental authorities at all levels should proactively initiate the strategic EIA process, and not be afraid of difficulties. They should punish those who violate the law, refuse to be assessed, or act fraudulently during the examination and approval process. Prominent examples of pursuing violators will send a warning message to others. B. Improve Strategic EIAs by Encouraging Public Participation Wang Canfa has specifically proposed establishing a system of public interest litigation. In order to improve the strategic EIA rollout, any organization or individual should have the right to hold any entity that has failed to conduct a mandatory strategic EIA accountable. The public interest litigation system would thus improve scrutiny of government departments carrying out strategic EIAs, and hopefully improve on the current lack of oversight. The Xiamen experience suggests that public participation in a strategic EIA not only makes government decisions more scientific, but also helps democratize the decision-making process. It is thus imperative to put broader public participation in strategic EIAs on the agenda. The draft Strategic EIA Regulations, already submitted to the State Council for approval, explicitly obliges all authorities concerned to disclose information to the public, consult public opinion, and hold hearings on controversial or important issues. This regulation, if fully implemented,

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will herald concrete progress towards more scientific decisions by the government and its agencies, and more democratic decision-making. C. Slow but Steady Progress Despite the current predicament, strategic EIAs in China have enjoyed hard-won but substantial progress. One example is the initiation of the legislative process for the Strategic EIA Regulations, already submitted in draft to the State Council. The second is SEPA’s proactive moratoria on approvals in certain regions (except for “circular economy projects”) until illegally-established projects are brought back into line. SEPA has set up the pilot strategic EIA zones in ten model administrative districts including as Inner Mongolia, Xinjiang, Dalian and Wuhan; for three key sectors, railways, petrochemicals and aluminum; and eight special planning schemes such as industrial development in the Three Gorges Reservoir areas in Chongqing, and the Ningdong energy and chemical base in Ningxia Province. The third positive piece of news is SEPA’s moving forward with strategic EIAs in the fields of urban rail, highways, coal and ports. Fourthly, the Strategic EIA Experts’ Consultative Committee has been formed with 16 academics and 23 professors. At the local level, in May 2006, Shanghai introduced the Implementation Measures for Environmental Impact Assessments in Shanghai setting down improved rules for strategic EIAs, and stating that Shanghai has already started strategic EIAs for the ongoing ‘Three Jinshan Islands’, ‘Jiading New Town’ and ‘Shanghai Tideland Development and Protection’ projects. After his exposé of the troubles faced by the Strategic EIA Regulations, Pan Yue announced at the end of 2007 that SEPA would assemble a group of experts to assess the environmental impact of major present economic and technological policies for key economic zones and regions. These regions include the resource-rich middle and upper reaches of the Yellow River, the West Taiwan Strait Economic Zone, Beibu Bay Economic Zone, the Bohai Rim Economic Zone, and the Chengdu-Chongqing Economic Zone in Sichuan Province, as well as important industries like steel, petrochemicals, electric power, paper, and coal. SEPA Minister Zhou Shengxian promised at a meeting in January 2008 to step up efforts to implement environmental assessment pilot projects and raise environmental awareness among government authorities nationwide. The government would also soon put a strategic environmental impact assessment system fully into action.

REFLECTIONS ON ENVIRONMENTAL MASS INCIDENTS IN CHINA Tong Zhifeng

Over the past few years, China has witnessed a large increase in the number of environmental mass incidents as pollution threatened people’s basic right to life. These mass incidents, more organized than before, showed some new characteristics such as the use of the Internet and cell phones to mobilize protests. Local governments promote economic growth at the expense of the environment, leading to more pollution and thus more environmental mass incidents. A mechanism should be established whereby local governments communicate with the public rather than resorting to force. Key words: mass incidents, public participation, pollution

I. Emergence of Environmental Mass Incidents Two important mass incidents in 2007 were peaceful demonstrations against the construction of a $1.4 billion petrochemical factory, also known as the Haicang PX Project in Xiamen City (厦门市), Fujian Province (福建省), and against the planned construction of the Liulitun Waste Incineration Power Plant (六里屯圾焚烧发电厂) in the Liulitun area of Haidian District in Beijing. The two projects were both stopped as the result of the mass protests. Environmental mass incidents have emerged in many places in China recently, especially in the industrialized coastal regions. In 2005, three major mass incidents took place in southeast China’s Zhejiang Province. On April 10, a farmers’ protest against a chemical factory turned to a mass confrontation with police in Dongyang City. On July 15, farmers living near Shenzhou City and Xinchang County clashed with police in protesting against the discharge of toxic waste by local pharmaceutical factories. On August 20, farmers in Changxing County besieged a battery factory protesting against its pollution and clashed with policemen.1 1 Zhang Yulin, “Environment Conflicts in Rural China with the Integration of Governments and Business: A Case Study of the Three ‘Mass incidents’ in Zhejiang

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Pan Yue, Vice Minister of the State Environmental Protection Administration (SEPA) observed that 1/4 of the people in China have no access to clean drinking water, and 1/3 are breathing filthy air. People become angry when their health is being jeopardized by pollution and deteriorating environmental conditions. According to statistics, the number of mass incidents caused by pollution increased at an annual rate of 29%. In 2005, the total number of conflicts with a more violent nature reached 50,000. The displacement and relocation of up to one million people by 2020 large dam projects in southwest China is a particularly sensitive issue.2 Statistics from State Bureau of Letters and Calls in March 2007 revealed that the bureau’s work focused on petitions concerning five major issues, namely, land expropriation and requisition, relocation for urban construction, environmental protection, restructuring and bankruptcy of state-owned enterprises, and litigation-related issues.3 Yue Huadong, Deputy Mayor of Zibo City, Shandong Province, included pollution as one cause of mass incidents in his article published in the Chinese Cadres Tribune.4 A study by Zhao Shukai showed that the nature and causes of farmers’ petitions and mass incidents varied over time. In the mid-1980s, there were few appeals and hardly any mass incidents though farmers were burdened by various taxes and fees. From the late 1980s to the late 1990s, violent mass confrontations emerged in rural areas. Appeals were mainly related to issues such as farmers’ burdens, farmland, corrupt rural officials, unfair rural committee elections, and rural education.5 It

Province, University Service Center for China Studies, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, http://www.usc.cuhk.edu.hk/wk_wzdetails.asp?id=5920 (accessed March 27, 2007). 2 Pan Yue, “Building an Environmental-Friendly and Harmonious Society,” People’s Daily, http://finance.people.com.cn/GB/1037/4594021.html (accessed July 15, 2006). 3 Xinhua News Agency, “Issues Concerns Five Aspects Gained Public’s Wide Attention and Become Major Issues in Petition Dealing” Xinhua News Agency, http://news.xinhuanet.com/photo/2007-03/28/content_5910384.htm (accessed on March 28, 2007). 4 Yue Donghua, “The Cause of Mass incidents in the Period of Social Transition,” Chinese Cadres Tribune, No. 5 (2007). 5 Zhao Shukai, Sociology Perspective, “Petitions by Chinese Farmers over 25 Years,” Sociology Perspective, http://www.sociologyol.org/yanjiubankuai/fenleisuoyin/fenzhishehuixue/nongcunshehuixue/2007-10-30/3752.html (accessed on October 30, 2007).

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Table 13.1: Summary of environmentally related incidents since the mid-1990s Year

Pollution Direct economic Number of and loss caused (in letters and accidents 10,000 CNY) appeals (case)

1995 1996 1997

1,966 — —

3,854.7 — —

58,678 67,268 106,210

1998

—

—

147,630

1999

—

—

230,346

2000

—

—

247,741

2001 2002 2003 2004 2005

1,842 1,921 1,843 1,441 1,406

12,272 4,640 3,374 36,365 10,515

367,402 435,020 525,988 595,852 608,245

2006

842

13,471

616,122

Number of visits

94,798 person-times 47,714 visits 71,528 persontimes/29,677 visits 93,791 persontimes/40,151 visits 89,872 persontimes/38,246 visits 139,424 persontimes/62,059 visits 80,329 visits 90,746 visits 85,028 visits 86,414 visits 142,360 persontimes/88,237 visits 71,287 visits

Source: Data for 1995–2004 were taken from The Growth of the Environmental Protection Force at Grassroots Level, by Hong Dayong et al. Remin University of China Press, pp. 3–4. 2007. Data for 2005 and 2006 were taken from China Environmental Statistic Bulletin for the respective years.

was not until the late 1990s that pollution became the major cause of farmers’ petitions. Over the past few years, with heightened awareness of environmental problems and protection, pollution has become a new inducement for mass incidents. According to incomplete statistics, a total of 58,678 complaints were lodged in 1995 on environmental issues while the figure rose to 616,122 in 2006, a 10-fold jump in 11 years as shown in Table 15.1. The government’s failure to resolve the complaints led to mass incidents in many cases. For example, 10,285 or 62.2% out of 16,523 mass incidents took place in south China’s Guangdong Province between 2000 and 2004 as a result of the provincial and local governments’ failure

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to respond to the appeals and letters.6 China is currently in a period of frequent mass incidents and it has become one of local governments’ major tasks to solve environmental problems in order to prevent environmental mass incidents. II. Characteristics of Environmental Mass Incidents Environmental mass incidents in recent years share the following characteristics. A. Complicity of Events First, environmental mass incidents are often intertwined with other rural problems such as expropriation and requisition of land and involuntary relocation. While the pollution of farmland, forests, underground and surface water by factories in rural areas remained unsolved, factories demanded even more land for expansion. In such cases, farmers and factories found it difficult to agree upon the amount of compensation. Farmers were not only angry about their loss of clean air and water, and the damage done to their health but also dissatisfied with the amount of the compensation for land use or relocation. These multiple issues made it harder for governments to solve the problems. Second, as shown by recent mass incidents, there has been a difference in the composition and motivations of participants in urban and rural areas. Rural mass incidents were often caused by pollution that has threatened people’s lives while mass incidents in urban areas were value-driven. For instance, the composition of protestors against the PX Project in Xiamen City (厦门市) was rather complicated in that a large number of protestors were middle-class residents, as well as farmers living near the petrochemical factory. Third, environmental mass incidents varied geographically. According to Professor Zhao Yulin’s research on the geographical distribution of environmental mass incidents, incidents were concentrated in more industrialized areas in China, such as Guangdong Province, Zhejiang Province and Jiangsu Province in southeastern China. A report by Yan

6 Zheng Hangsheng, Reduce the Cost and Boost the Development: Sociology and its Underlying Concepts (Beijing: Beijing Normal University Press, 2007), 198.

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Shihui showed that over 40% of China’s environmental mass incidents in 2003 took place in the Yangtze Delta Area which generated 21% of the total GDP for the year (Shanghai is in this region).7 Local authorities in some areas such as Zhejiang Province started to address the issue, forcing some factories to clean up the pollution or to cut discharges.8 B. Wide Use of the Internet and Cell Phones The Internet and cell phones have been used widely to mobilize and publicize environmental mass incidents in recent years. In the PX incident in Xiamen, Fujian Province (福建省), millions of Xiamen citizens sent text messages around to protest against the highly contaminating project. Short messages calling on people to take to the street on June 1 played a decisive role in the demonstration. In addition to cell phones, the Internet also played an important role in organizing environmental protests against the Xiamen Haicang PX Project. In March 2007 when the National People’s Congress and the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference were in session, six academics from the Chinese Academy of Science (中国科学院)s and over a hundred CPPCC deputies submitted a proposal suggesting that the highly poisonous PX Project be stopped and moved to another site. Media coverage of the proposal led to heated discussions on the Internet. Articles regarding the PX Project attracted over tens of thousands of readers in Xiamen’s major online forums and communities. Words such as “Safeguard Xiamen” and “Give me back the blue sky” were among popular titles.9 Online discussions strengthened public belief in opposing the PX Project. With the explosive expansion of Chinese netizens, it is safe to predict that more environmental mass incidents will be mobilized online. As of October 1997, there were around 620,000 online users in China while

7 Zhang Yulin, “Environment Conflicts in Rural China with the Integration of Governments and Business: A Case Study of the Three “Mass incidents” in Zhejiang Province, University Service Center for China Studies, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, http://www.usc.cuhk.edu.hk/wk_wzdetails.asp?id=5920 (accessed March 27, 2007). 8 “Environmental Protection is concerned with enterprises’ survival—Revisit Mass incidents Spots in Zhejiang Province,” Economic Reference Post, November 9, 2007. 9 Zhu Hongjun, Southern Weekend, “Multi-Billion Projects Provoke Rumors of Poison, Decisive Halt by the Xiaomen Government in Face of Public Crisis,” May 31, 2007.

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the number skyrocketed to 45,800,000 by July 2002. China’s total online population reached 162,000,000 in June 2007, second to the United States’ 211,000,000. Moreover, 51.2% of China’s netizens are below 25 years of age. Online users under the age of 30 accounted for over 70% (70.6%) of the total.10 As young people are becoming more aware of China’s environmental crisis, it is likely that more environmental protests will be organized through online communities. It should be noted that rural online users increased by 51% between the end of 2006 and June 2007, a more rapid growth than that of urban areas over the same period, which is significant given that more environmental mass incidents take place in rural areas.11 C. Escalated Confrontation in Mass Incidents The Public Security Bureau has clearly defined the levels of mass incidents. According to Implementation Measures of Shenzhen Municipality for Preventing and Handling MassIincidents, any incidents involving five to 30 participants are regarded as mass incidents; 30-300 participants, sizeable mass incidents; 300–1,000 participants, major mass incidents; more than 1,000 participants, extremely serious cases. In reality, other factors should also be taken into consideration when assessing the level of mass incidents, such as the nature of the case and its impact. To date, major mass incidents involving over a thousand people have taken place one after another, all having a direct bearing on social stability. Among these major environmental mass incidents are the incident in Dongyang City on April 10, the incident between Xinchang County and Shengzhou City on July 15, the incident in Changxing County on August 20, the Xiamen Haicang PX Project incident, and the protest against the Liulitun incinerator project in Beijing. Moreover, mass incidents featuring violent confrontation are no longer uncommon. For instance, on April 10, 2005, a conflict between thousands of people took place in Dongyang city, Zhejiang Province, with more than 100 people injured. Almost at the same time, over 3,000

10 CNETNews.com.cn, “2007 Report on the China’s Internet Development and the Size and Structure of the Netizen Demographic” CNETNews.com.cn, http://www .cnetnews.com.cn (accessed on July18, 2007). 11 Related statistical reference from The First Report on the Development of China’s Internet, The Tenth Report on the Development of China’s Internet, The Twentieth Statistical Report on the Development of China’s Internet.

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people in Beilun District of Ningbo City, Zhejiang Province kept a local stainless steel enterprise—a heavy polluter—in siege for 10 days. On July 15, 2005, hundreds of farmers in Shengzhou City, Zhejiang Province charged at a highly-polluting pharmaceutical factory of the neighboring county, and clashed violently with police. Moreover, some people in Changxing County attacked a local lead-acid battery company.12 The escalated confrontation sent a warning signal. Mass incidents caused by environmental problems are, in nature, conflicts among people. Local governments’ should keep restraint and only resort to force cautiously while giving priority to pollution control and problem solving. The public should also refrain from violence, and learn to solve conflicts through legal channels such as litigation. III. Causes of Environmental Mass Incidents Scholars attribute the emergence of environmental mass incidents to improved environmental awareness, the dissemination of government information, the incomplete environmental law system, and conflicts between the environment and development.13 Two other factors should also be included as causes of the incidents, namely, pollution as a threat to people’s health and the government’s denial of public participation in environmental issues. Meanwhile, we should pay attention to other underlying reasons of environmental mass incidents. A. People’s Living Environment Being Affected by Pollution In essence, environmental mass incidents are about people claiming their basic right to life. This has been reflected in the slogans of farmers protesting against local chemical factories: “Give me back my land, I want to make a living” “Give me back my land, I need health” “Give me back my land, I want to have offspring”

12 “Environmental Protection is concerned with enterprises’ survival—revisit mass incident spots in Zhejiang Province,” Economic Reference Post, November 9, 2007. 13 Cheng Yuyan, “Characteristics of Mass incidents Caused by Environmental Problems and its Reasons and Legal Solutions,” Journal of Guangdong Institute of Public Administration, sec. 2, 2007.

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“Give me back my land, I have to eat” “Give me back my land, I want a clean environment” Thousands of farmers in Xinchang protested against a pharmaceutical plant shouted, “To die from pollution is no better than to die fighting.”14 Take the case of the Liulitun waste incineration power plant in Beijing for example. On June 5, 2007, the World Environment Day, residents came to the State Environmental Protection Administration (SEPA) office to protest against the construction of an incineration plant in their neighborhood, all wearing T-shirts reading “Objecting Against the Incineration Plant in Liulitun.” According to a report by Southern Weekend, “Unofficial statistics about local residents’ health condition over the past six years indicated that, since 2001, among 1,000 local residents in the plant area, 279 people suffered from pharyngitis, 2 from lung cancer, 1 from laryngo-carcinoma. Also, among women aged between 45 and 50, 21 suffered from hystero-myoma, and 6 from breast cancer. The incidence of cancer is nearly 1%, while an incidence of 0.03% is already considered a high rate. In other words, the residents would not have stood up to protest if not for the pollution that has severely threatened their basic right to life.”15 B. Denial of Public Participation in Environmental Issues The public’s right to participate in environmental issues is not duly respected. According to Article 21 of the Environmental Impact Assessment Law, a strategic Environmental Impact Assessment (strategic EIA) report should be compiled for any project that may cause heavy impact on the environment. Project builders should hold appraisals, hearings or other forms of activities to solicit the opinions of concerned parties, specialists, and the public, except for confidential cases designated by the State. The strategic EIA report submitted by the builder should then include the explanations for accepting or rejecting these opinions. In February 2006, SEPA issued the first Provisional Measures for Public

14 Lang Youxing, “Democracy in Consultation and Participatory Environmental Treatment: Take the Environmental Protest Events by Farmers in Zhejiang Province as Examples,” international symposium on Public Policies and Treatment in a Society of Tranformation, Nov. 19–20, 2005, Guangzhou. 15 Wang Qian, Southern Weekend, “How to Put Beijing’s Liulitun Waste-fuel Power Plant Event to An End,” July 11, 2007.

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Participation in Environmental Impact Assessment, requiring information dissimenation and public opinion solicitation in every stage of a strategic EIA. On April 25, 2006, SEPA issued the Measures for the Disclosure of Environmental Information ( for Trial Implementation) Nevertheless, the regulations concerning public participation are not strictly observed. In environmental mass incidents this year, both farmers and urban dwellers complained about their ignored rights. This indicates that the public are not only fighting for survival, but also asking for recognition and safeguarding their lawful rights. In other words, local governments’ defiance of public rights to know and to participate in environmental issues may trigger mass incidents. C. Economic Growth-Driven Local Governments under Pressure from Above in the Centralized System Pressure from above refers to the assessment indicators assigned to local governments by the central government when granting powers to them. Assessment indicators are mainly concerned with the overall size of the economy and its growth rate. Since local officials’ promotions and benefits are tied to economic indicators, local officials will inevitably give priority to the development of commerce and industry. On the other hand, since the surplus value from agriculture is becoming less significant, local governments rely more on tax revenue from commerce and industry for their daily operation, salaries, and benefits. In pursuing economic development, local governments, to some extent, have evolved into corporation-serving governments or quasi-corporations. In other words, instead of taking providing public goods as its main duty, the governments give priority to economic growth and financial gains, regarding pollution control and its social impact secondary tasks.16 D. Growth-Driven Governments and Their Integration with Businesses China has experienced two decades of transition from a planned economy to a market economy in which the ties between local governments

16 Zhang Yulin, “Environment Conflicts in Rural China with the Integration of Governments and Business: A Case Study of the Three “Mass Incidents” in Zhejiang Province, University Service Center for China Studies, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, http://www.usc.cuhk.edu.hk/wk_wzdetails.asp?id=5920 (accessed March 27, 2007).

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and enterprises are closer than ever before. Some governments adopted pro-business policies such as providing investors with all kinds of tax and financial preferences, political benefits and publicity, and even issuing “special permits” to them. These benefits are even greater than treatment previously reserved for state-owned enterprises in years past. Governments and enterprises have united into a solid governmentbusiness union, which is one of the main drivers of China’s current economic growth. This integration is also a source of trouble.17 IV. Strategies and Measures Taken by Local Governments in Responding to Environmental MassIincidents The Emergency Response Law of the People’s Republic of China, effective November 1, 2007, clearly defined Social Safety Incident as an incident in which emergency response measures should be taken. The Law also specifies the rules related to the emergency response activities such as prevention and preparedness, surveillance and warning, rescue operations, rehabilitation and reconstruction. This shows the efforts of the State in handling mass incidents by legal means. Looking back at recent environmental mass incidents, however, we find that local governments have not always adopted these measures. A. Covering up is Still the First Choice for Local Governments The first response by local governments to mass incidents tends to be covering up the truth instead of informing related departments and the public of any progress. There are two ways of covering up. One is to disclose the truth within a small circle, but still cover it up from the public in order to create an outwardly peaceful atmosphere. Government organizations will hold urgent meetings to discuss and work out response measures while ordering the media to keep quiet, leaving the

17 Zhang Yulin, “Environment Conflicts in Rural China with the Integration of Governments and Business: A Case Study of the Three “Mass incidents” in Zhejiang Province, University Service Center for China Studies, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, http://www.usc.cuhk.edu.hk/wk_wzdetails.asp?id=5920 (accessed March 27, 2007).

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245

public in the dark.18 Local governments usually take this measure in hope of resolving the problem from within. The other way to cover up is even worse. It covers up the truth not only from the public but also from higher levels of government by selectively reporting the incident with incomplete and inaccurate information. Higher level officials could then make wrong judgments and decisions which may worsen the situation. Under certain circumstances, local governments choose to cover up under the pretense of “maintaining the social stability.” However, hiding the truth or sending wrong messages will always lead to mass incidents. The best way is to mobilize all social resources is to solve the problem as soon as possible. B. Strategy of Suppression and Coercion According to Article 50 of the Emergency Response Law of the People’s Republic of China, if mass incidents lead to serious social unrest, police should get involved and respond immediately and legally to regain social stability as soon as possible. This means resorting to force to settle disputes is conditional and should only happen when “social security and order are seriously threatened.” Local governments, however, fear losing control of the incident, often resorting to force casually even when mass incidents posed no threat to public security. This attempt to forcefully bring a quick end to the incident usually led to an escalation, with confrontation on a massive scale. What local governments should learn to do is to focus on negotiation and persuasion. They should only resort to coercive measures when absolutely necessary, and then should strictly observe the provisions of the Emergency Response Law of the People’s Republic of China, to “forcefully separate the fighting parties . . . and solve the conflict and control the development.” C. Surveillance and Control of Online Information Since information technologies are widely used, text messages and the internet are popular tools for mobilizing mass incidents. Local governments tend to take actions to control information on the internet by

18 Chen Lidan & Chen Junni, “Analysis of Information Flow Obstacle in Songhua River Pollution Incident,” Xin Wen Jie no. 6 2005.

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screening related websites. However, in an age of IT innovation, it is becoming more and more difficult to monitor and control the internet. What is more important is that, government actions such as covering up the truth from the public, and the subsequent spread of incomplete, delayed, and unofficial information available to the public may stimulate a spread of rumors. This in turn may put the government in an awkward position. V. Prevention Mechanism of Environmental Mass Incidents A. Possible Increase of Environmental Mass Incidents Environmental mass incidents could be an outlet for social conflicts. Currently, there exist two types of environmental mass incidents: those responding to existing pollution and those resisting possible pollution. A typical case of resisting possible pollution is the protest against the PX Project in Xiamen. With the increased public awareness and desire for a better life, incidents resisting possible pollution will take place more frequently if local governments do not address pollution problems properly. B. Institutionalizing Public Expression In mass incidents, the public generally pushes the government through demonstrations or other unofficial means, hoping the government will give enough weight to pollution control. The government should be more understanding of public opinions and find out the real motivations of the protests. It is possible that some people join in demonstrations for reasons other than pollution (e.g. for personal reasons or grievances). Since mixed motivations make incidents complicated, an efficient way is to set up a “Social Security Valve” system for open expression of dissatisfaction and grievance. To accomplish this, first, governments need to accept the idea that the public is not to be controlled but should be cooperated with for public management. Second, related laws and rules should be implemented to produce opportunities for communication between governments and the public so that the public can legally express their opinions and participate in governance.

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C. Establishing a Regular Social Cooperation Mechanism Three powers are involved in a country’s governance: state, market, and society. Effective coordination and cooperation are needed to give each its full role. In regards to environmental mass incidents, cooperation between the state and society is far from being satisfactory as the government’s control of the social arena is too strong while mass media and intermediary social organizations are not trusted either. Therefore, governments can not find the organizers of the mass incidents to communicate with because no one wants to be responsible for the confrontation. Of course, sometimes, there is no organizer at all. With the multiplicity of social sectors, the government alone can not achieve effective public governance. It is time to enhance NGO’s public participation while setting up a sound relationship between media and the government. D. Developing Intermediary Social Organizations, Especially Environmental NGOs A normal social system is composed of political elites, an intermediary class, and the masses. Well-developed intermediary organizations are good for social stability as they have easier access to political elites and the public as well. However, intermediary organizations in China are not yet fully developed and no environmental NGO has ever participated in an environmental mass incident. In light of this, we need to set up powerful intermediary organizations to serve as a bridge between the government and the public. E. Enhancing Promotion and Education of Environmental Laws and Strictly Enforcing Them To date, there are altogether 6 environmental laws, 10 resource protection laws, 30 environmental regulations, 90 environmental rules, 427 national environmental standards and 1,020 local environmental rules.19 Yet two main problems remain. First, local governments have a weak awareness of environmental protection, either ignoring the related laws or failing to strictly enforce them. Second, the public is not familiar

19

Notice on Issuing the Tenth Five-Year Plan of National Environmental Plan.

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with related laws, which may intensify environmental conflicts that could have been resolved by legal means. Therefore, it is necessary to strengthen legal education and foster respect and observation of laws among local officials while educating the public to protect themselves by legal means.

PART V

APPENDIX

APPENDIX

ANNUAL INDEXES: ENVIRONMENTAL TRENDS The 2007 Annual Indexes present figures and tables on China’s key environmental issues at the beginning of the Eleventh Five-Year Plan period. The indexes also compare environmental trends with the goals set for the Eleventh Five-Year Plan, as well as figures from 2005, the benchmark year. Data on air pollution emissions and water pollution discharges, energy consumption, and the water quality of rivers and lakes is presented. From these trends, we may be able to assess the effects of the government’s policies and measures, and foresee the possibility of realizing the goals of the Eleventh Five-Year Plan. Incomplete as the statistics may be, trends concerning changes in China’s environment still show. Except for where indicated, all data are from reports and indexes of China’s former State Environmental Protection Administration, now the Ministry of Environmental Protection. I. Air Quality

(10,000 tons) 10000

Dust

8000 6000 4000 2000 0

Year 2004

2005

2006

Figure A.1: Industrial dust emissions, 2004–2006

252

appendix

(10,000 tons) 1400

Industrial

Household

1200 1000 800 600 400 200 0

Year 2004

2005

2006

Figure A.2: Total dust emissions, 2004–2006 Table A.1: Industrial and household dust and soot emissions, 2004–2006 Year 2004

Emissions

Industrial dust emissions (10,000 tons) Industrial soot emissions Household soot emissions Total dust and soot emissions

2005

11th 5-yr target

2006

9048

9112

9000

8084

8865 2085 10950

9489 2336 11825

— — 11000

8645 2243 10888

Table A.2: Total SO2 emissions and Five-Year Plan targets Emissions

Year 2004

Industrial (10,000 tons) Household Total

2005 10th 5yr 2006 First Half 11th 5yr Target of 2007 Target

18914 21684 3635 3809 22549 25493

— — 1800

22348 3540 25888

— — 12634

— — 22950

The discharge amount of industrial dust in 2006 was down 11.3% from the previous year, while the total discharge amount of soot was down around 8%. Sulfur dioxide was up 1.5% compared with the year 2005. However, in the first half of 2007 it was 12.634 million tons, down 0.88% from 12.746 million tons from the same period of 2006.

annual indexes: environmental trends

(10,000 tons) 30000

Industrial

253

Household

25000 20000 15000 10000 5000 0 2004

2005

2006

Target

Figure A.3: Total SO2 emissions, 2004–2006 and 11th Five-Year Plan target

Since 2006, China had adopted a series of effective measures aimed at reducing sulfur dioxide emissions, including: 1) dramatically increasing the percentage of new coal-fired power plants generation sets with desulfurization facilities installed, accounting for 82.5% of the installation capacity; 2) accelerating the progress of installing desulfurization facilities in existing power plants; 3) closing small thermal power generation units; 4) nationwide efforts to increase environmentally-friendly and efficient power generation, while simultaneously reducing power generated by coal-fired units that are inefficient and polluting. II. Water Quality Table A.3: Total wastewater discharge, 2004–2006 Discharge Industrial (100 m tons) Household (100 m tons) Total (100 m tons)

Year 2004

2005

2006

221.1 261.3 482.4

243.1 281.4 524.5

240.2 296.6 536.8

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appendix

(billion tons) 60

Industrial

Household

50 40 30 20 10 0

Year 2004

2005

2006

Figure A.4: Total wastewater discharge, 2004–2006

Percentage of Industrial Wastewater up to the Discharge Standards Percentage of Industrial Water Recycled Percentage of Urban Household Wastewater Treated 100.00% 80.00% 60.00% 40.00% 20.00% 0.00% 2004

2005

2006

Figure A.5: National wastewater treatment, 2004–2006

Year

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255

Table A.4: National wastewater treatment, 2004–2006 Year

Percentage Industrial Discharge up to Standards Industrial Water Recycled Urban Domestic Wastewater Treated

(10,000 tons) 1600

Industrial

2004

2005

2006

90.7% 74.2% 45.6%

91.2% 75.1% 52%

92.10% 80.60% 57%

Household

1400 1200 1000 800 600 400 200 0

Year 2004

2005

2006

Figure A.6: National ammonia nitrogen discharge in wastewater, 2004–2006 Table A.5: National ammonia nitrogen discharge in wastewater, 2004–2006 Discharge Industrial (10,000 tons) Household Total

Year

2004

2005

2006

422 908 1330

525 973 1498

425 988 1413

256

appendix

(1,000 tons) 16000

Industrial

Household

14000 12000 10000 8000 6000 4000 2000 0

Year 2004

2005

2006

Figure A.7: Total Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD) discharge in wastewater, 2004–2006 Table A.6: National Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD) discharge in wastewater, 2004–2006, and the 11th Five-Year Plan target Discharge Industrial (10,000 tons) Urban Domestic Total

Year

2004

2005

2006

11th Five-Year Plan Target

5097 8295 13392

5548 8594 14142

5415 8867 14282

— — 12730

The discharge amount of Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD) in wastewater reached 6.913 million tons during the first half of 2007, up 0.24% from the same period in 2006. Despite an increase, the fact that total discharge amount for the first half of 2006 was up 3.7% compared with the same period of 2005 indicated a slowdown in the first half year of 2007. A decrease of 0.08% of COD discharge was seen in the first three quarters of 2007 compared with the same period of the previous year, resulting from the government’s efforts to enhance wastewater treatment and control major industrial polluters.

annual indexes: environmental trends

120%

Water Quality Levels I, II

III

257

IV

V

Worse than V

Pearl Songhua Huaihe River River River

Hai River

Liao National River

100% 80% 60% 40% 20% 0% Yangtze Yellow River River

Water System

Figure A.8: Water quality in seven major river basins in 2006 Table A.7: Water quality in seven major river basins in 2006 Quality

Water Yangtze River

Levels I, II Level III Level IV Level V Below Level V

58% 18% 12% 5% 7%

Yellow River

Pearl River

18% 32% 25% 0% 25%

58% 24% 15% 0% 3%

Songhua Huaihe River River 3% 21% 48% 7% 21%

5% 21% 37% 7% 30%

Hai River

Liao River

14% 8% 11% 10% 57%

27% 8% 17% 5% 43%

In terms of overall water quality, surface water suffered medium-level pollution in 2006, with major pollution indexes being the permanganate index, ammonia nitrogen index, and oil index. Compared with 2005, the overall quality of surface water maintained stable.

258

appendix

A. Freshwater

Water Quality Levels I, II

III

IV

V

Worse than V

120 100 80 60 40 20 0 2005

2006 Water System

Figure A.9: Water quality of 27 key state-monitored lakes (reservoirs), 2005–2006 Table A.8: Water quality of 27 key state-monitored lakes (reservoirs), 2005–2006 Year

Water Quality Levels I, II

2005 2006

7% 7%

Level III

Level IV

Level V

Worse than Level V

21% 22%

11% 4%

18% 19%

43% 48%

Table A.9: Water quality of nine large lakes, 2005–2006 Lake Name

Trophic State Index

Eutrophic State

2006

2005

Major Pollution Index

Taihu

63

Medium

74

?

Worse than Level V ?

TN

Dianchi Chaohu

60

Medium

Worse than Level V Worse than Level V Level V

Erhai

42

Medium

Level III

Worse than Level V Level III

TP, TN, AN TP, TN —

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259

Table A.9 (cont.) Lake Name

Trophic State Index

Eutrophic State

2006

2005

Major Pollution Index

Dongting Hongze

58 56

Light Light

56

Light

Level V Worse than Level V Level V

TP TN

Nansi Poyang Jingbo

47 56

Medium Light

Level V Worse than Level V Worse than Level V Level V Level IV

Level IV Level IV

TP permanganate index

TN

In 2006, based on total nitrogen (TN) and total phosphorus (TP) levels in 27 key state-monitored lakes and reservoirs, the water quality of Chaohu Lake was classified as Level V, while Taihu Lake and Dianchi Lake (滇池湖) were worse than Level V. Reservoirs, suffering less from eutrophication, had better water quality than lakes. Caohai Lake, the northern part of Dianchi Lake, was still in a severe eutrophic state, while the southern part, Waihai Lake, was in somewhat better shape. Rivers around Dianchi Lake were heavily polluted. Compared with 2005, no obvious improvement could be seen in the water quality of Taihu Lake. The water quality of Waihai Lake deteriorated, but improvement could be found in Chaohu Lake. B. Coastal Areas Table A.10: Water quality of coastal areas in 2006 Level

Sea Area

I II III IV Worse than IV

Bohai Sea

Yellow Sea

26.10% 43.50% 8.70% 4.30% 17.40%

42.90% 40.80% 10.20% 6.10% 0.00%

East China South China National Sea Sea Average 6.40% 35.10% 6.30% 16.00% 36.20%

44.10% 39.40% 8.10% 1% 7.10%

28.80% 38.90% 8.00% 7.30% 17.00%

260

appendix

Water Quality Level I

II

III

IV

Worse than V

100.00% 80.00% 60.00% 40.00% 20.00% 0.00% Bohai Sea

Yellow Sea

East China South China Sea Sea

National Average Water System

Figure A.10: Water quality of coastal areas in 2006

C. Solid Waste

(million tons) 1600

Generation

Utilization

Discharge

1400 1200 1000 800 600 400 200 0 2004

2005

2006

Year

Figure A.11: Industrial solid waste generation, utilization, and discharge 2004–2006

annual indexes: environmental trends

261

Table A.11: Industrial Solid Waste Generation, Utilization, and Discharge of 2004–2006 Year

Discharge Generation (million tons) Utilization Discharge

2004

2005

2006

1200 677.95 17.92

1340 770 16.54

1515 926 13.02

In 2006, the volume of industrial solid waste generated nationally increased by 13.1% from the previous year, total discharge was down 21.3%, and 926 million tons were utilized. SEPA issued Guidelines on Publicizing Environmental Prevention and Treatment Information of Solid Waste Pollution in First- and Second-tier Cities. SEPA also drafted the Management Methods on Application and Approval of Export of Hazardous Waste, Guidance on Making Emergency Plan for Enterprises Engaging in Hazardous Waste Business, and Detailed Regulations on Examining Business Certificate of Hazardous Waste, and Environmental Protection Specifications of Chromium Slag Pollution Treatment. These regulations have further restricted the generation and discharge of solid waste, laying the institutional foundation for environmental planning during the Eleventh Five-Year Plan period. III. Economic Growth and Energy Consumption

(billion tcet) 3 2.5 2 1.5 1 0.5 0 2004

2005

2006

11th 5-Year Plan Target

Figure A.12: Total energy consumption, 2004–2006 and 11th Five-Year Plan target

262

appendix Table A.12: Energy consumption, 2004–2006 and 11th Five-Year Plan Target

Consumption

Year 2004

Eastern Region (billion ton coal equivalent)

2.032

2005

2006

11th 5-Year Plan Target

2.224

2.457

2.7

(ton coal equivalent per 10,000 yuan) 1.4 1.2 1 0.8 0.6 0.4 0.2 0 2005

2006 Year

Figure A.13: National energy consumption per unit of GDP 2005–2006 Table A.13: National energy consumption per unit of GDP 2005–2006 Index Energy consumption per unit of GDP (ton coal equivalent per 10,000 RMB)

Year 2005

2006

1.22

1.206

In 2006, 2.46 billion tons of coal equivalent was consumed nationwide, up 9.61% from the previous year, while the energy consumption per unit of GDP was 1.206 tons of coal equivalent per 10,000 RMB,

annual indexes: environmental trends

263

down 1.33% than that in 2005, the first decrease seen in three years. During the first half of 2007, national energy consumption per Unit of GDP was down 2.78% than the same period of the previous year. It was targeted to decrease by 20% from that in 2005 in the Eleventh Five-Year Plan.

GDP per capita (2003, US$)

Energy consumption per unit of GDP

1800 1500 1200 US$ 900 600 300 0 China (2003)

Japan (1953)

Chinese Taiwan (1967)

South Korea (1970)

Figure A.14: Energy consumption per unit of GDP Table A.14: Energy consumption per unit of GDP Country or Area

GDP

GDP per capita (2003 USD$) Energy consumption per unit of GDP (USD$)

China (2003)

Japan (1953)

Chinese Taiwan (1967)

1000 1680

1000 60

1080 10

South Korea (1970) 985 25

(Source: World Bank, and Shanghai Shenyin Wanguo Research & Consulting Co., Ltd)

Table A.15: Energy consumption of seven industries during the Tenth Five-Year Plan period Black Trans- Chemical NonPower PetroIndustry metal portation metal generation chemical Energy smelting mineral consumption Energy consumption

17%

8.50%

8.30%

8%

6.80%

5%

Nonferrous metal smelting 3.70%

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appendix

Extensive economic growth was not fundamentally transformed during the Tenth Five-Year Plan period. Over-heated growth was seen in energy and raw material-consuming industries such as coal-fired power generation, steel, building materials, and nonferrous metals, with annual growth rates all being over 15%. These industries’ rapid growth exerted more pressure on the environment. (Source: World Bank, and Shanghai Shenyin & Wanguo Securities Research Institute Co., Ltd) IV. CO2 Emissions

1990

(million tons) 7000 6000 5000 4000 3000 2000 1000 0 Iceland

Japan

US

2003

UK

2004

Germany Russia

China

India Year

Figure A.15: CO2 emissions of selected countries Table A.16: CO2 emissions of selected countries Year

Country Iceland (1)*

1990 (million tons)** 2003 (million tons)*** 2004 (million tons)**

Japan (8)

US (12)

UK (16)

Germany Russia (22) (67)

China (81)

India (128)

2

1070.7 4818.3 579.4

980.4

1984.1 2398.9

681.7

2.2

1230.8 5941.7 579.8

806.5

1518.9 4248.7 1262.9

2.2

1257.2 6045.8 586.9

808.3

1524.1 5007.1 1342.1

Notes: * The numbers in parentheses are the respective country’s Human Development Index (HDI) in 2007. ** Data from Human Development Report 2007/2008 by the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) *** Data from the US Carbon Dioxide Information Analysis Center (CDIAC) for the year 2007. The original statistics are presented in the unit of metric ton carbon, and are converted into metric ton carbon dioxide based on the conversion formular of the UNDP (the conversion coefficient is 3.664).

annual indexes: environmental trends

265

In 2006, China’s carbon dioxide emissions were second only to that of the US, accounting for 13.5% of the world’s total emissions. A goal was set in the planning outline for the Eleventh Five-Year-Plan period to decrease energy consumption per unit of GDP by around 20% and reduce discharge of major pollutants by 10% during that period. Build an energy-efficient and environmentally-friendly society has become inevitable, and is the unavoidable path to promote economic restructuring. However, it should also be reminded that, due to the former economic growth mode that paid insufficient attention to the environment, the total amount of China’s carbon dioxide emissions is extraordinarily large and continues to rise. China will overtake the US to become the biggest greenhouse gas emitter in the coming years, while the “energy conservation and emissions reduction” policy lacks a specific plan to reduce carbon dioxide emissions. Every citizen and every government has an obligation to protect the global climate. Hopefully, China will increase investment in this field, enhancing the “energy-conservation and emissions-reduction” policy while at the same time paying more attention to controlling carbon dioxide emissions in every industry and every region. V. Financing Green Initiatives Table A.17: Investment in pollution control, 2004–2006 Investment (billion RMB)

Year

Total (billion RMB) Investment in urban environmental infrastructure Industry pollution source treament Environmental investment in new projects

2004

2005

2006

190.86 114

238.8 128.97

256.78 76.72

30.81 46.05

45.82 64.01

48.57 13149

There was a sluggish increase in nationwide investment in pollution treatment in 2006. However, environmental investment in new projects that were “designed, constructed, and put into production simultaneously” increased dramatically, indicating that related investment shifted as the “energy conservation and emissions reduction” policy

266

appendix

(billion yuan) 300

Total investment Urban environmental infrastructure Industry pollution source treatment Environmental investment in new projects

250 200 150 100 50 0 2004

2005

2006

Year

Figure A.16: Investment in pollution control, 2004–2006

was implemented. As the initial investment had been large, investment dropped sharply in urban environmental infrastructure development. As far as the year 2006 is concerned, while investment is increased, we believe that popularization and application of new technologies in the environmental field should not be ignored, since both technology and funds are crucial for environmental protection. VI. Urban Environment Table A.18: Urban air quality, 2004–2006 Level Levels I & II Level III Worse than Level III

Year

2004

2005

2006

38.6% 41.2% 20.2%

60.3% 29.1% 10.6%

62.4 28.5 9.1

annual indexes: environmental trends

Better than Level II

III

267

Worse than III

100 80 60 (%) 40 20 0 2004

2005

2006 Year

Figure A.17: Urban air quality, 2004–2006

Air quality in 559 cities monitored in 2006 was generally better than in 2005. Nonetheless, the air was still seriously polluted in certain cities, with the major pollutant being PM10. Cities suffering from PM10 pollution were mainly in Shanxi, Xinjiang, Gansu, Beijing, Shaanxi, Ningxia, Sichuan, Inner Mongolia, Hebei, Hunan, Liaoning, Henan, Chongqing, Tianjin, and Jiangsu. Particulate matter (PM10) was still the major form of air pollution. The density of SO2 and NO2 was high in most of the developed cities. Factories and cars were the major sources of air pollution in urban areas. VII. Beijing 2008 Olympic Games—An Environmental Review In the first half of 2007, Beijing experienced a year-on-year drop of SO2 in the air by 13.06%, the sharpest drop among the 31 provinces, autonomous regions, or municipalities directly under the control of the central government.

PM10 (mg/m3) SO2 (mg/m3) NO2 (mg/m3)

Pollutants

0

0.05

0.1

0.15

0.2

mg/m3

Harbin

Wuhan

Haikou

Cities

Guangzhou

Chongqing

NO2

Kunming

Table A.19: Air quality of major Chinese cities in 2005

Figure A.18: Air quality of major Chinese cities in 2005

Shanghai

SO2

Xi’an

Lanzhou

10.4

4.2

5.6

14.1

5

6.6

6.1

6.1

8.8

5

5.4

11.9

6.8

5.3

8.8

1.5

1.2

4

4.8

7.3

12

3.8

5.5

8.2

3.2

4.4

12.9

3.7

6.8

15.8

Cities Beijing Harbin Shanghai Wuhan Guangzhou Haikou Chongqing Kunming Xi’an Lanzhou

Beijing

PM10

268 appendix

0

50

100

Days 150

200

250

300

1998

100

2000

2001

185

2002

203

Years

2003

2004

229

2005

234

2006

241

Figure A.19: Number of days Beijing met air quality standards, 1998–2006

1999

114

177

224

First Half of 2007

110

Goal for 2007

245

annual indexes: environmental trends 269

270

appendix

(µg/m3) 80 71 70

64

67 61

60

55

53

50

50 40 30 20 10 0 2000

2001

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006 Year

Figure A.20: SO2 content of the air in Beijing, 2000–2006

TERMINOLOGICAL GLOSSARY Bali Roadmap (巴厘路线图): Participating nations at the 2007 United Nations Climate Change Conference agreed to the Bali Roadmap, otherwise known as the Bali Action Plan, a two-year process intended to leading to a binding agreement on climate change in 2009. Blue-green algae bloom (蓝藻水华): A rapid increase in the amount of algae in a given water body. An algae bloom can occur in both fresh and salt water, and is caused by excessive nutrients in the water, especially phosphorus, usually from runoff from farms. Blue Sky Project (蓝天工程): Chinese government project to increase the number of “blue sky days,” or days with relatively less air pollution. Cascade development (梯级开发): Strategy of building several smaller hydropower dams as opposed to one very large dam. China Association for Non-Governmental Organization Cooperation (CANGO) (中国国际民间组织合作促进会): CANGO is a governmentorganized NGO, also known as a GONGO, established to coordinate activities of international NGOs in China as well as to connect international NGOs, multilateral agencies, and domestic NGOs. CANGO’s homepage: http://www.cango.org/english/. China Climate Action Network (中国民间气候网络): Network of NGOs working independnetnly and cooperatively to raise awareness about climate change and to reduce greenhouse gas emissions through a variety of events and campaigns aimed primarily at corporations, governments and the general public. Circular Economy (循环经济): The China Daily describes the circular economy as a model for economic growth which aims at environmental protection, pollution prevention and sustainable development. Under this model, resources are used with higher efficiency and reused and recycled when possible, so that pollution is minimized and

272

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waste is reduced as much as possible. It also involves the transformation of industrial organization and allocation, urban infrastructure, environmental protection, technological paradigms, and social welfare distribution. An important part in China’s effort toward sustainable development, circular economy was officially raised as a target for China’s future growth in 2004. The State Council issued a file about promoting it in July 2005, making it a key guideline in the 11th Five-Year Plan and to achieve the specific goals in energy conservation and pollution reduction before 2020. Citizen Action to Save 20% Energy (节能 20% 公民行动): Initiative started by 40 prominent NGOs including Friends of Nature, WWF, and Global Village Beijing to help conserve energy by holding various awareness-raising events throughout the country. Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) (清洁发展机制): Defined in Article 12 of the Kyoto Protocol, the CDM allows a country with an emission-reduction or emission-limitation commitment to implement an emission-reduction project in developing countries. Such projects can earn saleable certified emission reduction (CER) credits, each equivalent to one tonne of CO2, which can be counted towards meeting Kyoto targets. Climate justice (气候司法): The concept of climate justice is an intervention made by NGOs, primarily from the Global South, in order to redefine climate change from a human rights and environmental justice perspective. Supporters of climate justice hold a number of core principles, including the principle of ecological debt that industrialized governments and transnational corporations owe the rest of the world as a result of their appropriation of the planet’s capacity to absorb greenhouse gases. Also, supporters note that although industrialized countries benefitted from utilizing resources that both enabled them to develop, developing countries bear a disproportionate amount of the costs of climate change. Furthermore, supporters hold that any market-based or technological solution to climate change, such as carbon-trading and carbon sequestration, should be subject to principles of democratic accountability, ecological sustainability and social justice.

terminological glossary

273

Climate refugees (气候变迁难民): People displaced by climate change induced environmental disasters such as droughts, desertification, sea level rise, and the more frequent occurrence of extreme weather events. Environmental Kuznets Curve or EKC (环境库兹涅茨曲线): The EKC holds that the relationship between economic growth and environmental quality is an inverted U-shape, according to which environmental conditions deteriorate during early stages of economic growth but begin to improve after a certain threshold of wealth is achieved. The original Kuznets Curve was named for Nobel laureate Simon Kuznets, who postulated in the 1950s that income inequality first increases and then declines with economic growth. In 1991, economists Gene M. Grossman and Alan B. Krueger suggested the Kuznets Curve applied to the environment. It was a powerful counterargument to the onceconventional view, popular in the aftermath of the “limits to growth” enthusiasm of the 1970s that economic growth was the enemy of the environment. The EKC gained wide acceptance as a key development concept in the 1990s, including at the World Bank. EKC has been criticized, especially by those in Global South, for masking the fact that developed countries have improved their environment by exporting polluting industries to developing countries. Environmental Mass Incident (环境污染导致的群体性事件): The definition of “mass incidents” (群体性事件) is somewhat ambiguous and varies by province, but environmental mass incidents in general are cases where groups of people converge to express their disapproval of a variety of environmentally related issues. The most common causes for environmental mass incidents are water pollution from specific factories or industrial complexes, appropriation of land and displacement of people for industrial and water projects (i.e., dams), and air pollution caused by specific factories and power plants. Equator Principles (赤道原则): Based on the International Finance Corporation (IFC) performance standards on social and environmental sustainability, and on the World Bank Group’s Environmental, Health and Safety general guidelines, the Equator Principles are intended to guide financial institutions when financing projects.

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Good Luck Beijing (好运北京): A series of sporting events held in 2007 and 2008 as preparation for the 2008 Beijing Olympic games. Official website: http://en.beijing2008.cn/goodluckbj/. Green Credit Policy (绿色信贷): Policy of not issuing credit to heavily polluting companies until they implement environmental protection measures in order to comply with relevant laws. Also, companies that are found to violate environmental standards after receiving loans could have their loans recalled. Regional Restrictive Approval (区域限批): State Environment Protection Administration (SEPA) has begun enforcing this policy to limit or suspend granting environmental impact assessment approvals for new construction projects in given regions if the aggregate amount of pollutants discharged in that region exceeds its macro-level pollution control threshold, as determined by SEPA. SEPA’s enforcement focuses on ten industrial sectors, including textiles, automobiles, electricity, coal, steel, cement, coke, ferroalloy, electrolytes and calcium carbide. Southern Jiangsu Model (苏南模式): Jiangsu is known for its “Su Nan (or Southern Jiangsu) Model” which developed many booming collective and township enterprises in the 1980s and 1990s. Township enterprises are government-funded enterprises that were set up by rural farmers and the remaining workforce that then prospered because of reforms carried out by the government. The name “Jiangsu” comes from Jiang, short for the city of Jiangning (now called Nanjing), and Su, for the city of Suzhou. Strategic Environmental Impact Assessment (Strategic EIA) (战略环境 影响评价): China’s Environmental Impact Assessment Law came into force in September 2003, explicitly stating that an EIA is required for both new construction projects as well as plans. SEPA also announced that it will suspend approval of all new projects located in four industrial cities (Tangshan, Luliang, Liupanshui and Laiwu) for those cities’ lending support to local projects that violated environmental standards and caused serious pollution as well as all new projects of the four top power companies (China Huaneng Corporation, China Huadian Corporation, China Guodian Corporation and China Datang International Corporation) for violating environmental protection rules.

terminological glossary

275

Three Synchronies (三同时): Law that requires new and modifications of construction projects must design, construct, and simultaneously put into operation environmental protection facilities during each phase of the project. Waste classification (垃圾分类): Sorting waste into categories for recycling and safer and more efficient treatment.

INDEX

Blue Sky Plan (蓝天工程) 17, 141 Green Olympics (绿色奥运) xxiii, 16, 137–138, 141, 146 Three Lakes (三湖) 5, 41 three synchronies (三同时) 204, 207 17th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (中国共 产党第十七次全国代表大会) 4, 8, 19, 171 air pollution xxi, 17, 106, 128, 141, 143–144, 153, 160–162, 182, 251, 267 Air Pollution Map (中国空气污染地图) 27 Air Quality Index (AQI) 142 All-China Environment Federation (环球中国环境专家协会) 220 America 31, 110, 131, 214 Asian Development Bank 213, 217, 219 Australia 81, 99, 118 Bali Roadmap 113 Bank of China 16, 211, 214, 219 Beijing Liulitun 3, 20 Beijing National Stadium (北京国家体 育场) 138 Beijing Olympic Action Plan (北京奥运行动规划) 138, 141 Beijing Olympic Games 3, 137 Beijing Organizing Committee for the Olympic Games (BOCOG) 137, 144–145, 146 n. 18 Beike Blueprint Bicycle Leasing Company (贝科蓝图自行车租 赁公司) 188 biodiversity 8, 10, 70, 117, 153, 162, 164 Bird’s Nest (鸟巢) 16, 138–140 blue-green algae bloom 3–5, 32, 39, 54–55, 59 Blue Sky 17, 182, 239 Blue Sky Project 18 n. 18, 143 n. 13 cascade development strategy 65 Center for Legal Assistance to Pollution Victims (污染受害者法律帮助中心) xviii, 207–209

Cetian Reservoir (册田水库) 150 Changchun (长春市) 55, 59 Changzhou（常州) 5, 31, 42, 46, 50–51 Chaobai River (潮白河) 147 Chaohu Lake (巢湖) 4–5, 41, 54, 259 Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD) (化学需氧量) 4, 13, 31, 45, 50–51, 56, 167–168, 179, 256 Chen Lei (陈雷) 86–87 China Association for NonGovernmental Organization Cooperation (CANGO) (中国国际民 间组织合作促进会) 181–182 China Banking Regulatory Commission (中国银监会) 16, 214–215 China Climate Action Network 96, 123 China Environment and Sustainable Development Research and Reference Center 186–187 China HuaDian Corporation (中国华电 集团公司) 14, 28, 172, 200 China Huaneng Corporation (中国华能集团公司) 14, 28, 143, 172, 200 China Meteorological Administration (中国气象局) 6–7, 84, 99–100 China National Petroleum Cooperation (中石油) 28 China Petro-Chemical Cooperation (中石化) 28 China Youth Daily (中国青年报) xix, 25, 33, 34 n. 31, 125 China’s National Climate Change Program (中国应对气候变化国家 方案) 6, 15, 81, 170 Chinese Academy of Engineering (中国工程院) 138 Chinese Academy of Science (中国科学院) xviii, 6–7, 43–44, 88 n. 7, 138, 224, 239 Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) 20, 186, 224, 225 n. 1, 239 Chongqing Municipal Green Volunteers’ Union (CQGVU) 219

278

index

Chongqing (重庆) 7, 68, 70, 72–73, 100, 103, 105, 110, 125, 184, 212, 219, 234, 267 circular economy 14–15, 29, 35, 172, 175, 199, 234 Circular Economy Law (循环经济法) 15 Citizen Action to Save 20% Energy 94 Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) 117, 119, 122 climate change xxii, 3, 6–8, 15, 23–25, 63, 72–74, 81–85, 87–88, 95–97, 99, 106, 108, 111, 113–116, 121–123, 125–126, 131–133, 141 Communist Party of China (CPC) 4–5, 8, 19, 41, 42 n. 1, 45 n. 4, 47, 170–171, 177 Dadu River (大渡河) 10, 65, 67 Daqin 147 Daqin Railroad (京九铁路) 147 Dasha River (大沙河) 147 Datang International Power Generation Corporation (大唐国际发 電股份) 14, 172 desertification xxii, 6, 85, 88, 104 Development and Reform Commission 6 n. 4, 13, 15, 51, 161, 167, 174–177, 226, 231 Dianchi Lake (滇池湖) 4–5, 41, 54, 58, 259 Dongting Lake (洞庭湖) 72–73, 104 Eleventh Five-Year Plan period 87, 156, 251, 261, 265 Eleventh Five-Year Plan (2006–2010) (十一五) 10, 12, 15, 81, 87, 156, 167–168, 170, 198, 251, 261, 263, 265 Energy Conservation Law (节约能源法) 195, 197 Energy Conservation Law (revised draft) (节约能源法) 15, 171 Environmental Impact Assessment Law xxi, 21, 75–76, 242 Environmental Impact Assessment Law of the People’s Republic of China (中华人民共 和国环境影响评价法) 223, 229 Environmental Kuznets Curve (EKC) (环境库兹涅茨曲线) 30–31 Environmental Mass Incidents (环境污 染导致的群体性事件) 19–20, 235, 238–241, 243–244, 246–247 Equator Principles 211–212, 214–219 Erhuan Road (公路二环) 147

Five Rivers and Ten Roads (五河十路) 147 France 184, 187, 214 Friends of Nature (自然之友) 23, 28, 81 n. 1, 94, 113 n. 1, 181, 186–188, 220 Fujian Province（福建省) 7, 21, 101, 104, 106–107, 203, 209, 235, 239 Gansu 85, 94, 101, 267 Gaoantun Landfill 153–154 Germany 10, 32, 57, 67, 81, 187, 209 Gezhou Dam (葛洲 坝) 11, 68 Global Village Beijing (北京地球村) 28, 94, 186 Good Luck Beijing (好运北京) 27, 144–145, 182–183 Gore, Al xxii, 6, 81, 99 Great Britain 10 green commuting 27, 146, 181–182, 186–187, 189, 191 green credit 16, 175, 211, 213–216, 219–221 Green Earth Volunteers (绿家园志愿者) 28, 67, 81 n. 1 Green GDP 3, 26, 33–34 Green Lifestyle 131 Green Olympics (绿色奥运) xxiii, 16, 137–138, 141, 146, 149 n. 19 Green Watershed (云南绿色流域) 219–220 greenbelt 49, 147–149 Greenpeace 23, 81 n. 1, 87, 115, 118–119 Gross Domestic Product (GDP) 3, 12–13, 26, 31, 33–34, 42, 47, 49, 64, 85, 118–119, 167–168, 172, 176, 179, 239, 262–263, 265 Guangzhou 125, 190, 242 n. 14 Guanting 18, 149–150 Guanting Reservoir (官厅水库) 18, 149–150 Guizhou Province (贵州省) 14, 104, 172, 200, 203 Guodian Power Development Corporation (国电电力发展股份) 14 Hai River (海河) 53–54, 173, 200, 232 Haicang PX Project (海沧 PX 项目) 3, 20–21, 223–225, 227, 235, 239–240 Hebei 18–19, 101, 150–151, 161, 267 Hebei Province (河北省) 14, 18–19, 102, 150, 160–161, 172–173, 200 Hu Jintao (胡景涛) 8, 15, 19, 29, 170–171

index

279

Huai River (淮河) 7, 101 Huaihe River 28, 53, 56, 64, 90, 100–101, 106, 109, 173, 200, 211 Hubei Province (湖北省) 8, 12, 54, 70, 72, 160 Hunan Province (湖南省) 55, 104, 106

Lijiang River (遼河) 72, 104 Liulitun (六里屯) 20–21, 154–155, 226–227, 235 Liulitun Waste Incinerator Power Plant Project (六里屯圾焚烧发电厂) 226–227

India 99, 118 Inner Mongolia 7, 103–104, 161, 228, 234, 267 Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region 161 Institute of Public and Environmental Affairs (公 与环境研究中心) 27, 81 n. 1 Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) (联合国政府间气候 变化专家小组) 6, 81–82, 84, 99, 108, 113 International Olympic Committee (IOC) 16, 137, 139, 141, 144

Ma Jun (马军) 27 Meiliang Lake (梅粱湖) 40 Mekong Watch 220 Min River 68, 73 Ministry of Finance (财政部) 15, 51, 175–176, 215 Ministry of Public Security (公安部) 145 Ministry of Science and Technology (科学技术部) 6, 177 Ministry of Water Resources (水利 部) 59 Ministry of Water Resources of China (中华人民共和国水利部) 10 Miyun Reservoir (密云水库) 18, 149–150

Japan 10, 32, 57, 67, 105, 118, 120, 209 Jiangsu (江苏) 7, 32, 39, 41–43, 45–46, 101, 267 Jiangsu Province (江苏省) 4–5, 29, 31, 41–45, 47, 54, 106–107, 157, 238 Jiangxi 104–105, 107, 203 Jiangxi Province (江西省) 49, 104, 107, 202 Jilin 102, 104, 227 Jilin Province (吉林省) 28, 55, 104, 196, 227 Jinan (济南市) 7, 55, 100, 110 Jingjintang Road (京津塘路) 147 Jingjiu Railroad (京九铁路) 147 Jingkai Road (京开路) 147 Jingmi Road (京密路) 147 Jingshen Road (京沈路) 147 Jingshi Road (京沈路) 147 Jingzhang Road (京张路) 147 Jinsha River (金沙江) 10, 65–68, 75–76, 211

Nanjing (南京) 43, 105–106, 190 National Aquatics Center (国家游 泳中心) or “Water Cube” (水立 方) 139–140 National Assessment Report on Climate Change (气候变化国家评估报告) 6, 119 National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) (国家发展和 改革委员会) 13, 15, 51, 161, 167, 174–177, 226, 231 National Electronics (国电) 28 National People’s Congress (NPC) (全国人民代表大会) 15, 20, 22, 56, 169, 171, 196, 233, 239 Netherlands 187 netizens 239–240 NGO 23–27, 67, 75, 81, 83–84, 93–97, 113–119, 121, 123, 133, 155, 158, 177, 181–182, 184, 186, 187 n. 6, 191, 202, 209–212, 216–217, 219–221, 247 Ningbo 201, 241 Ningbo City (宁波市) 201 Nitrogen dioxide (NO2) 141, 267 North Canal (北运河) 147

Krosa (Typhoon) 7, 100–101, 107 Kyoto Protocol 113, 115, 117–119 landslides 11–12, 69–70, 108, 216 Lengshuijiang (冷水江市) 55 Liang Congjie (梁从诫) 186 Liao (三河三湖) 5, 56, 90 Liao River (遼河) 53 Liao Xiaoyi (Sheri) (廖晓义) 28 Liaoning Province(辽寜) 7, 100, 102–104, 109, 267

Olympic Forest Park (奥林匹克森林公园) 140 Olympic Games 18, 131, 137–139, 141, 143–146, 161 Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) 32, 119 Oxfam 23, 81 n. 1, 115, 220

280

index

Pan Jiahua 121 Pan Yue (潘岳) 21, 34, 223, 225, 228, 230–231, 234, 236 Paralympics Games 138 Pearl River 190 Poyang 259 Poyang Lake (鄱阳湖) 72–73, 104 Prevention and Treatment of Water Pollution Law (水污染防治法) 196 Protection and Development of the Yangtze River in 2007 (长江保护与发展报告 2007) 8, 10–11, 63, 66, 68–69, 71–72 province 7, 19, 33, 42–43, 46–49, 64, 71, 94, 101, 104, 106–107, 109, 125, 145, 150–151, 161, 228, 267 Provisional Measures for Public Participation in Environmental Impact Assessment (环境影响评价公 参与暂行办法) 75, 197 Qin Dahe 7, 84 Qinghai-Tibet Plateau (青藏高原) 7, 87 Qingjiang River (清江) 54

6,

Ramsar 218 Ramsar Convention on Wetlands of International Importance 218 regional restrictive approval (区域限批) 13–15, 167, 172–175, 200 Regulations on National Surveys of Pollution Sources (全国污染源普查条例) 195, 198 Reservoir/s (册田水库) 9–12, 18, 55–56, 63, 66–73, 75–76, 87, 101, 105–106, 148–150, 158, 160, 203, 234, 259 Russia 118, 217 Sepat 7, 100, 107 Shandong Province (山东省) 7, 172 Shandong Energy Cooperation (山东鲁能) 28 Shangdong 100 Shangdong Province (山东省) 7, 100 Shanghai 41, 61, 70, 106, 125, 184, 190, 216–217, 234, 239 Shanxi Province (山西省) 14, 150–151, 161, 172, 200, 202 Shanxi Road 18–19, 101, 161, 202, 213, 267 Shougang Group (首钢); also known as Capital Steel and Iron Works (首都钢 铁公司) 139, 143

Shunping Road (顺平路) 147 Sichuan Province (四川省) 7, 71, 102, 109, 234 Songhua River (松花江) 19, 54, 56, 90, 200, 227–228 Southern Jiangsu Model 32, 39, 46–47 South-to-North Water Diversion Project (南水北调) 3, 9, 63–64, 160, 196 State Environmental Protection Administration (SEPA) (国家环保 总局) 7, 12–14, 16, 21–22, 33–34, 51, 53–54, 58 n. 9, 76, 155, 158, 168–173, 175–178, 195, 197, 199 n. 4, 200–201, 211, 212 n. 1, 214–215, 219, 223–229, 231–232, 234, 236, 242–243, 251, 261 strategic EIA(s) 20–21, 34, 205, 207, 223–234, 242–243 Strategic Environmental Impact Assessment Regulations (规划环评条例) 3, 33–34, 230–234 Suggestions on Improving the Bike System in Beijing and its Implementation (关于 完善和落实北京市自行车交通系 统) 186 Sulfur dioxide (SO2) 31, 141–143, 167–168, 173–174, 179, 252–253, 267 Suzhou (苏州) 5, 31, 42, 46, 51 Switzerland 10, 67, 187 Taihu 58–59 Taihu Lake (太湖) 3–5, 28, 32, 39, 51, 54, 58, 259 Tenglong Aromatic PX Limited Corporation (腾龙芒烃（厦门)有限 公司) 20 Tenth Five-Year Plan 4, 45, 65, 229, 247 n. 19, 264 Three Gorges Dam (三峡大坝) 3, 9, 11, 63–65, 68–69, 71–74 Three Gorges Dam Committee of the State Council 64 Tianjin 125, 162, 184, 190, 232, 267 UK 185 UNESCO 218 United Kingdom 85 United Nations Environmental Program (UNEP) 137 United States 10, 105, 240 Wang Canfa 233 Wang Qishan (王岐山)

183

index Wang Yongchen 8–9, 12, 28, 63 Water Cube (水立方) or National Aquatics Center (国家游泳中心) 17, 139 Water Pollution Map (水污染地图) 27 Water Quality Management Bureau (水质管理部) 55 Water Resources 8–10, 19, 42, 53–54, 57, 59–61, 63–64, 66, 75–76, 86–87, 121–122, 150, 159, 217 watershed restrictive approval 167, 172–173, 200 Wen Jiabao (温家宝) 41, 64, 167, 169–170 Wenyu River (温榆河) 147 Wohushan Reservoir (卧虎山水库) 55 World Economic Forum 81 World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD) 114 Wuhan 100, 105, 110, 184, 234 Wuhan City (武汉市) 100 Wuxi (无锡) xxi, 4–5, 29, 31, 39–43, 46–47, 49–51, 54, 190, 228 Worldwide Fund for Nature (WWF) 23, 81 n. 1, 94, 119–120 Xiamen (厦门市) xxi, xxii, 3–4, 20–21, 106, 203, 223–227, 233, 235, 238–240, 246

281

Xiamen City (厦门市) 21, 235, 238 Xiamen Haicang PX Project (厦门海 沧PX项目) 3, 20, 224–225, 227, 239–240 Xiangjiang River (湘江) 71, 104, 107 Yalong River (雅砻江) 10, 65–67, 219 Yangtze River (长江) 3, 7–12, 40, 42, 55, 63–73, 75, 90, 105–106, 109, 173, 190, 200 Yellow River (黄河) 53, 56, 64, 86–87, 88 n. 7, 90, 101, 173, 200, 234 Yichang (宜昌) 54 Yidu City (宜都市) 54 Yongding River (永定河) 147 Yuanjiang River (沅江) 104 Yunnan Province（云南省) 103, 219 Zhang Shaochun (张少春), Vice Minister of the Ministry of Finance 175 Zhang Xiaojian 28, 40 Zhejiang (浙江) 7, 107, 185, 201 Zhejiang Province (浙江省) 7, 41–42, 44, 101, 105–106, 213, 235, 238–241 Zhou Shengxian (周生贤) 12–13, 169, 234 Zijiang River (资江) 55, 104