Pollution in China

One of the serious negative consequences of the People's Republic of China's rapid industrial development has been increased pollution and ruin of natural resources. A 1998 World Health Organization report on air quality in 272 cities worldwide reported that that seven of the world's 10 most polluted cities were in China (China: Environmental Issues). Industrialization in the Pearl River Delta has also contributed to worsening air pollution in Hong Kong. The Xinhua News Agency has quoted an environmental official, Wang Jinnan, as saying that more than 410,000 Chinese die as a result of pollution each year (Lynch).

China's increasingly polluted environment is largely a result of the country's hurried development causing a large increase in energy consumption, which is almost entirely produced by burning coal. China has pursued an economic model which emphasizes exports, so they have been increasing manufacturing capacity as much as possible. Without any significant ecological or pollution controls to reduce emissions, the damage to the environment has been unchecked (Ma).

The People's Republic of China's leaders are beginning to pay attention to the country's severe environmental problems. In March 1998, the State Environmental Protection Administration (SEPA) was officially upgraded to a ministry-level agency, showing the growing importance the government places on environmental protection. Recently, the PRC has begun to improve its legislation concerning the environment and made some progress in holding off environmental problems. The PRC put more than one percent of its Gross Domestic Product in environmental protection, and that percentage is likely to increase in the future (Ma). Beijing, in particular, is investing heavily in pollution control as part of its effort to host the Olympics in 2008.

Air pollution

In reference to the air quality in Beijing, Hai Zhao, who visits family there every year, says “Each time I go back, it gets a little worse. When I think back to 10 or 15 years ago, the difference is huge.” Researchers from the U.S. Department of Energy have found that sunlight (measured by solar radiation) has gone down even though cloud cover, on average, has gone down. "Normally, more frequent cloud-free days should be sunnier and brighter but this doesn't happen in our study," said Yun Qian, one of the researchers (Wired, AP). Hai hadn’t heard about the study, but he didn’t doubt it. He summarized his thoughts with the statement: “The smog in Beijing is horrible.”

Two-thirds of the 338 cities that they have information for are considered polluted according to the People's Republic of China's own findings. Two-thirds of those polluted cities were found to be moderately or severely polluted. Respiratory and heart diseases related to air pollution are the leading cause of death in China (Lynch). Also, acid rain happens over 30% of the entire country. China is very far behind the United States and Europe, in regards to environmental regulation (China: Environmental Issues).

Water pollution

Almost all of the China’s rivers are considered polluted to some extent, and half of the population lacks access to clean water. Ninety percent of urban water bodies are severely polluted (Lynch). Water scarcity also is an issue. For example, severe water scarcity in Northern China is a serious threat to economic growth and has forced the government to begin large scale diversion of water from the Yangtze River to northern cities, including Beijing and Tianjin. This project consists of building an enormous dam called “The Three Gorges Dam” (China: Environmental Issues).

The task of dealing with water is split between a few agencies of the government. Water pollution is the responsibility of the environmental authorities, but the water itself is managed by the Ministry of Water Resources. Sewage is dealt with by the Ministry of Construction, but groundwater falls under the responsibility of the Ministry of Land and Resources (Ma). Requiring all these organizations to work together can sometimes cause problems.

At a chemical plant in Jilin City on November 13th, 2005,