Jiangsu is acting to save Taihu. Seems pretty serious, but see what happens. Translated from reports via sina.com (photo: Taihu’s blue-green algae crisis via sina.com):
It’s learned from the July 7 Taihu Lake pollution clean-up conference that Jiangsu is getting serious to save the lake from further endangering the livelihoods and the drinking water of local residents.
The provincial authorities hope to “effectively control” the eutrophication and “significantly improve” the water quality in the lake in five years, and “fundamentally solve the water pollution problem” in 8-10 years. A series of measures have been proposed, such as restricting the opening of new plants and increasing the fees for pollutant discharges.
By 2008, the province expects to shut down 2,150 small chemical plants. By 2010 the total investment to the clean-up effort will be as much as 3% of local GDP. The provincial and local governments will all earmark funds for the clean-up.
Another major source of pollution comes from residential sewage, estimated 56.8 billion tons a year. Agriculture also contributes a lot of nitrogen and phosphorus to the eutrophication. The uses of pesticide and nitrogen fertilizer are expected to go down by 30% and 20% respectively. Work will also start on the treatment of sewage and garbage in rural areas. [Full Text in Chinese here and here]
