The government is reluctant to extend public heating to the South because it will increase the country's already high energy consumption, raising the already high pollution levels further. According to the ministry, the population in the "hot-summer, cold-winter" region is about 100 million, residing on about 3.4 billion square meters of building area. To provide heating to them, 26 million tons of coal has to be burned every year, which is equivalent to 20 percent of the planned energy saving during the 12th Five-Year-Plan (2011-15). Carbon and sulfur dioxide emissions will increase by 73 million tons and 52,000 tons, causing more health problems to people already suffering the consequences of severe air pollution.

Besides, this will make China's fight against climate change even more difficult, especially when it has signed a landmark deal with the United States to cap its carbon emissions by 2030.

A North-style central heating system in the South sounds good to the ear but is not a reasonable proposal in reality. Zhang Xiaomei presented a revised proposal to the annual sessions of the NPC and CPPCC last year advocating that heating be provided to some areas in the South according to the actual needs. A differential heating system for households, which many Western countries on the same latitude as China have adopted, is what experts recommend for southern areas close to Qinling Mountain and the Huaihe River.

Also, the government can leave it to the market to take care of the demand for heating in the South by developing more environmentally friendly heating equipment. Experts too believe that by exploring new heating systems and upgrading the traditional heating system, market forces can work out more eco-friendly and energy-saving ways of providing heating. And this is where the government's support is essential. For instance, the government can devise favorable policies for and invest in research and development of new types of heating systems to expedite the development of eco-friendly heating equipment.

Every Chinese citizen has the right to keep warm in winter, and the government has to find the best way to ensure that.

The author is a writer with China Daily. wangyiqing@chinadaily.com.cn