China recently unveiled a massive plan to tackle air pollution, a source
of growing social discontent. The move highlights how the issue has
become a priority for Beijing. But experts say more radical changes are
needed. Beijing calls it its 'most comprehensive and toughest plan' yet
to reduce air pollution. According to the state-run 'China Daily'
newspaper, the Chinese government is set to invest 1.7 trillion yuan
($277 billion) to control and in some regions reduce air pollution by
the year 2017, setting stricter limits on the levels of PM 2.5
particles. The tiny floating particles, measuring 2.5 micrometres or
less in diameter, are hazardous because they can penetrate deeply into
the lungs and cause respiratory and cardiovascular diseases. The
so-called Airborne Pollution Prevention and Control Action Plan
specifically targets northern China, particularly in the cities Beijing,
Tianjin and in Hebei province. The government aims to reduce air
emissions by 25 percent by 2017 compared with 2012 levels in those
areas, according to the report. Zhao Hualin, head of the pollution
prevention and control department of the Ministry of Environmental
Protection, told the newspaper that the state council had approved the
plan last month. He added that the program was one of three key action
plans to be released over the next five years, designed to address
airborne pollution prevention, water pollution control and improvements
to the rural environment. 'The thick smog and haze that covered large
areas of the country in January has focused public attention on this
issue,' Zhao is quoted as saying. 'People are demanding action' The
announcement follows another decision by the state council to introduce
ten measures to combat air pollution. The new regulations include a
target to reduce pollution emissions in heavy-polluting industries as
well as the development of clean energy supplies. According to China
expert Isabel Hilton, from the non-profit organisation chinadialogue,
the issue of pollution has become a major political problem for the
government. Overall the dire state of China's environment has become an
important factor in the growing public protests that has the government
worried over political stability and its own legitimacy, Hilton told DW.
'For many years the authorities simply withheld the facts from the
public, but today anyone can buy a hand held monitor that tells you
exactly how bad the air is you are breathing. It is impossible to
conceal and people are demanding action,' she said. The recent
announcement fails to provide details as to how the five-year targets
are to be met. This raises the question of who should implement the new
measures and how it should be done. Hilton argues that the Ministry of
Environmental Protection is weak and 'lacks the clout to take on the
important economic and industrial interests.' The expert says that even
though the ministry sets standards and issues regulations, 'they are
widely ignored and the penalties for pollution have been too small and
too poorly applied to be effective.' Millions of premature deaths China
has depended heavily on coal as a source of energy which has helped the
country experience an unprecedented economic growth over the past
decades. But that growth has come at a high price: According to the 2010
Global Burden of Disease (GDB) published in the British medical journal
'The Lancet,' air pollution contributed to about 1.2 million premature
deaths in China in 2010 alone. Hilton believes this is directly linked
to the model of development the country has pursued in the last thirty
years. 'China's annual coal consumption is nearly four billion tons, up
from one billion during the 1990s,' she said, adding that pollution from
industry and road traffic was on the rise. Furthermore, a study
released earlier this month by a US scientific journal stated that the
decades-old Chinese policy of giving out free coal for winter heating in
cities north of the Huai River has reduced life the expectancy of 500
million residents there by five and a half years. Li Hongbin, economics
professor at the Tsinghua University, is one of the researchers
involved in the study. He told DW he hoped that Chinese authorities now
realized the high cost of pollution in terms of human life. 'It is worth
it for the government to invest more to solve the pollution problem in
order to save lives.' Radical changes needed So despite efforts by the
government, the situation remains dire. Many experts therefore believe
that it will take many years and quite radical changes in China's energy
structure for new measures to have an effect. 'Essentially the problem
is the result of industrialisation, coal fired power generation and an
increase in motor vehicles. These are trends difficult to reverse and so
far the efforts have been city or province based,' said Hilton. The GDB
states that outdoor air pollution ranks fourth in East Asia (China and
North Korea) as a contributory factor to premature deaths, after diet,
high blood pressure and smoking. A matter of pride? The high level of
pollution has also had an impact on China's booming economy. Scientists
from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) recently published a
study where they estimate that the impact from ozone and particulates
to the economy increased from $22 billion in 1975 to $112 billion in
2005. Overall, it seems that there will be no instant solution to
China's air pollution problems. However, public outcry and major health
risks have led the party to prioritize the issue. Hilton believes there
might be another factor driving China's fight against pollution:
national pride. 'Beijing is the capital of a country that envisages
itself as the coming economic superpower. It is extremely embarrassing
for a government that likes to promote its economic miracle that its
capital is considered unliveable, not only by expatriates but by many
Chinese citizens
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