Environmental Protection
(Xinhua)
Updated: 2006-06-05 10:27
III. Pollution Control in Key Regions
In recent years, the Chinese government has focused its pollution-control
efforts on what are known as the "key regions," with marked achievements to its
credit. The "key regions" refer to the three rivers (Huaihe, Liaohe and Haihe),
the three lakes (Taihu, Dianchi and Chaohu), the major state projects (the Three
Gorges Project and the South-North Water Diversion Project), the "two control's
area" (sulfur dioxide control area and acid rain control area), Beijing and the
Bohai Sea.
-- Prevention and control of water pollution in key drainage
areas. The drainage area of the above-mentioned three rivers and three lakes
totals 810,000 sq km, traversing 14 provinces (municipalities) with a total
population of 360 million. The State formulated and put into practice a plan for
the prevention and control of water pollution in key drainage areas for the
ninth and tenth Five-Year Plan periods (1996-2005), under which it set up a
system to control the total amount of pollutants. Every enterprise that
discharges pollutants is required to reduce its emission to a certain level,
which contributes to the goal of reducing the total amount of pollutants. While
improving its pollutant-discharge licensing management method, the State had
established a number of key pollution-control projects. By the end of 2005, of
the 2,130 water pollution prevention and control projects in key drainage areas
in the Tenth Five-Year Plan, 1,378 were completed, accounting for 65 percent of
the total. In the three-river, three-lake drainage area, 416 sewage treatment
plants have been completed or are under construction, with a daily treating
capacity of 20.93 million tons. Over 80 percent of the more than 5,000 heavy
polluters in the drainage area have reached the standard discharge level. Water
pollutants in this drainage area have been reduced greatly, and the trend toward
deteriorating water environment is now basically under control. Water quality in
certain parts of the rivers or lakes has been improved significantly. The State
has spent 18.167 billion yuan constructing sewage- and garbage-treatment
facilities in the Three Gorges Reservoir Area and its upper stream. It also has
had solid wastes removed from the bed of the reservoir to ensure water
safety.
-- Prevention and control of pollution in the "two control's
area." In 1998, the Chinese government approved the delimiting of the acid rain
control area and sulfur dioxide control area. The "two control's area" covers a
total of 1.09 million sq km, involving 175 cities or districts in 27 provinces,
autonomous regions and municipalities directly under the Central Government. The
State readjusted the energy structure in this area by promoting the use of clean
fuel and low-sulfur coal, and prohibiting residents in big and medium cities
from using coal for household stoves. Compared with 1998, the proportion of
cities located within the sulfur dioxide control area that achieved the standard
annual sulfur dioxide density level in 2005 rose from 32.8 percent to 45.2
percent. The proportion of cities located within the acid rain control area
whose sulfur dioxide density surpassed the national third grade level declined
from 15.7 percent in 1998 to 4.5 percent in 2005.
-- Air pollution
control in Beijing. Beijing has taken measures to control air pollution since
1998. Technologies that use clean energy or save on energy are being widely
introduced. This includes the use of natural gas, electricity-powered heating,
geothermal resources, and energy-saving architecture. In 2005, the amount of
natural gas used in Beijing was 3.2 billion cu m, and the city's heating network
provided central heating to buildings exceeding 100 million sq m in area.
Management of motor vehicle emission was tightened, and environmental protection
labeling was adopted for motor vehicles; those with high emission were
identified with yellow labels and prohibited from using some roads. More than
300,000 old or dilapidated motor vehicles were scrapped and 2,800 public buses
burning natural gas were introduced. In 2005, the national emission standard for
the third phase (equivalent to the European Standard III) was adopted ahead of
schedule. Standards for environmental protection on construction sites were
revised and improved, and management was tightened. Supervision and inspection
were strengthened for road sweeping and water spraying by machines. More than
100 enterprises in the city center that caused pollution were closed down or
moved out. All shaft kiln cement production lines were closed down. Thanks to
these efforts, the number of days with Grade II air quality or better in Beijing
increased from 100 in 1998 to 234 in 2005. The concentration of various air
pollutants all declined, and air quality improved significantly.
--
Control of pollution in the Bohai Sea. In 2001, the Chinese government approved
the Action Plan to Bring Back Turquoise Water to the Bohai Sea. By the end of
2005, 166 projects aimed at controlling pollution in the Bohai Sea and
protecting the environment were completed, and 70 more were under construction,
with the investment totaling 17.5 billion yuan. Forty-four new urban sewage
treatment plants were built, with a total daily treatment capacity of 3.553
million tons. Eighteen new urban garbage treatment plants were established, with
a total daily treatment capacity of more than 7,000 tons. In addition, 89
ecologically-friendly agriculture and breeding industry projects were set up,
and nine ports and oil-spill response projects built, bringing under control the
trend toward environmental deterioration in the Bohai Sea for the time being.
