A report today from the Chinese government acknowledges the mounting environmental impact posed by unrestrained industrialization and promised government regulation. From Xinhua:
The Chinese government has pledged to give priority to curbing pollution and maintaining a balance between economic and social development and the environment over the next 15 years.
According to a decision by the State Council, China has set seven major tasks for environmental protection: control of water pollution, including ensuring safety of drinking water and improvement of river valleys; enhancing environmental protection in urban areas by controlling pollution; control of air pollution by reducing the emission of sulphur dioxide; protection of the environment in rural areas, with preventing soil pollution as a priority; enhancing the protection of ecology to promote harmony between man and nature; enhancing supervision and management of nuclear facilities and radioactive sources; and implementing national environmental protection projects to solve urgent environmental issues.
The decision requires that by 2010 the environmental quality in key areas and cities should be improved and the deterioration of ecological environment be checked, and by 2020 the quality of the environment and ecology be markedly improved.
Chinese regulation of industrial emissions may affect the public health of Americans, as scientists have found that toxic mercury clouds from China travel in the atmosphere and land in America, particularly the West Coast.
To read about SEPA, the environmental protection agency of China, click here.
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