Environmental issues in China
China has several environmental issues that severely affect the Chinese environment. One of the serious negative consequences of the People's Republic of China's rapid industrial development has been increased pollution, smog, and degradation of natural resources. Much solid waste is not properly disposed of. Water pollution is a source of health problems across the country, and air pollution causing many premature deaths each year.[citation needed] China's polluted environment is largely a result of the country's rapid development and consequently a large increase in primary energy consumption, which is primarily provided by coal power plants. China has pursued a development model which prioritizes exports-led growth (similar to many other East Asian countries). In early 2006, Forbes magazine reported that all 10 of the 10 most polluted cities in the world are in China.[1]
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[edit] Issues
Efforts to control China's pollution problem have become a top priority of the Chinese leadership. In March 1998, the State Environmental Protection Administration (SEPA) was officially upgraded to a ministry-level agency, reflecting the growing importance the PRC government places on environmental protection. Beginning in 2006, the government greatly expanded expenses into environmental protection, and a series of new laws have been passed. Enforcement of these laws is also being expanded. The PRC has strengthened its environmental legislation and made some progress in stemming environmental deterioration. During the 11th 5-Year Plan (2006–2010), the PRC plans to reduce total emissions by 15% and bring China's energy efficiency up by 30%. Beijing in particular invested heavily in pollution control as part of its campaign to host a successful Olympiad in 2008. Some cities have seen improvement in air quality in recent years. In the first half of 2007, China's total energy consumption per unit of output improved by 2.8% and China's sulfur dioxide emissions fell by 0.6%, showing that these new measures have the potential to slow down pollution growth. [2] Since 2002, the number of complaints to the environmental authorities has increased by 30% every year, reaching 600,000 in 2004; while the number of mass protests caused by environmental issues has grown by 29% every year.[3] [4] The Financial Times said a World Bank report, entitled Cost of Pollution in China, (prepared with the cooperation of the State Environmental Protection Agency)[5] found up to 760,000 people die prematurely each year in China because of air and water pollution. High levels of air pollution in China's cities leads to 350,000-400,000 premature deaths, it said. Another 300,000 die because of indoor air of poor quality. The newspaper article, quoting World Bank advisers and Chinese officials, also said that the report omitted research showing that there are 60,000 premature deaths each year because of water of poor quality.[6]
The Chinese government has placed a greater concern on environmental issues since the early 21st century. In 2004, the central government instituted the Green Gross Domestic Product project, in order to determine the true gross domestic product, adjusted to compensate for negative environmental effects. The results were so much worse than projected that the program was suspended entirely in 2007. In 2005, the eleventh five-year plan contained special emphasis on the nation's environmental degradation. In his annual address in 2007, premier Wen Jiabao made 48 references to "environment," "pollution," or "environmental protection."[7] In addition, the Chinese government attempted to hold national "No Car Days" throughout nearly 100 cities, including Beijing, in which cars would be banned on central roads. However, it was largely ignored.[8]
[edit] Soil problems and river cessation
Approximately 30% of China's surface area is desert. China's rapid industrialization could cause this area to drastically increase. The Gobi Desert in the north currently expands by about 950 square miles (2,500 km2) per year. The vast plains in northern China used to be regularly flooded by the Yellow River. However, overgrazing and the expansion of agricultural land could cause this area to increase, in a process known as desertification. In the past 50 years, exploitation in the form of dams and other irrigation infrastructure have all but halted the river's natural course, threatening to dry up the entire river valley. The cessation of river flows, or flow stoppages, has surged since the 1980s because of increased water usage and waste. In 1997, the lower Yellow River did not flow 230 days out of the year, an increase of over 2000% since 1988. Increased erosion and sedimentation, especially on the Loess Plateau, has made the river much less navigable by ship.[9]
In 2001, China initiated a "great green wall" project. It is a project to create a 2,800-mile (4,500 km) "green belt" to hold back the encroaching desert. The first phase of the project, to restore 9 million acres (36,000 km²) of forest, will be completed by 2010 at an estimated cost of $8 billion. The Chinese government believes that, by 2050, it can restore most desert land back to forest. The great green wall project is possibly the largest ecological project in history.[10] Starting in 2006, the Chinese government expanded protection for forests, banning logging and restricting the size of cities and golf courses to enhance land usage efficiency.
In many cases, local government officials have failed to enforce, or simply ignored environmental edicts made by the central government.
[edit] Climate change
[edit] Pollution
[edit] Population
[edit] Waste
The small level of "environmental awareness" has hindered the development of proper recycling systems in China's cities as the amount of garbage increases.[11]
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ "America's Most Polluted Cities". Forbes. 2006-03-22. http://www.forbes.com/logistics/2006/03/21/americas-most-polluted-cities-cx_rm_0321pollute.html.
- ^ "China says energy efficiency slowly improving". The Associated Press. 2007-07-30. http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2007/07/31/business/AS-FIN-China-Saving-Energy.php.
- ^ Ma, Jun (2007-01-31). "How participation can help China's ailing environment". chinadialogue. http://www.chinadialogue.net/article/show/single/en/733-How-participation-can-help-China-s-ailing-environment.
- ^ "Environmental Activists Detained in Hangzhou". Human Rights in China (HRIC). 2005-10-25. http://www.hrichina.org/public/contents/press?revision_id=25771&item_id=25770.
- ^ NPR: The 'Fresh' Gray Skies of Chengdu
- ^ "China 'buried smog death finding'". BBC. 2007-07-03. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/6265098.stm.
- ^ Kahn, Joseph; Yardley, Jim (2007-08-26). "As China Roars, Pollution Reaches Deadly Extremes". The New York Times. http://www.nytimes.com/2007/08/26/world/asia/26china.html. Retrieved 2007-09-21.
- ^ Beijing drivers ignore No Car Day. BBC: September 21, 2007.
- ^ Diamond, Jared: "Collapse," pp.364-5. Penguin Books, 2005
- ^ Ratliff, Evan (April 2003). "The Green Wall Of China". Wired Magazine. http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/11.04/greenwall.html.
- ^ Violet Law (July 28, 2011). "As China's prosperity grows, so do its trash piles". THE CHRISTIAN SCIENCE MONITOR. http://www.csmonitor.com/World/Asia-Pacific/2011/0728/As-China-s-prosperity-grows-so-do-its-trash-piles. Retrieved 29th of July, 2011.
[edit] External links
- chinadialogue - a news service about the environment of China
