BEIJING - Petrochemical projects near North China's Bohai Bay have been a boon to the local economy but pose a threat to the region's environment, experts warn.

Many large refinery and petrochemical projects have been established on land near the bay, putting serious pressure on its environment. Pollution from those operations threatens to turn the waters there into a "dead sea", especially since it is difficult to purify an inland sea, the Shanghai-based Oriental Morning Post reported on Tuesday.

Liaoning province, which borders Bohai Bay, contains at least six large refineries that can process millions of tons of crude oil every year. In two other nearby places - Shandong province and Tianjin - oil refineries and petrochemical businesses also give a considerable boost to the local economies, according to the paper.