Beijing, Aug 29: A report presented to top Chinese legislators here, has said that a third of the country's population was affected by acid rain last year
Beijing, Aug 29: A report presented to top Chinese legislators here, has said that a third of the country's population was affected by acid rain last year. Sheng Huaren, vice-chairman of the National People's Congress (NPC) Standing Committee, was quoted by the China Daily as saying that lawmakers had carried out an environmental inspection in 15 provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities, and come to the conclusion that a majority of these regions experienced 'acidic' rainfall last year.
The report further goes on to say that with 26 million tons of sulphur dioxide discharged last year, 27 per cent more than in 2000, China has become the world's biggest sulphur dioxide polluter.
According to the report, nearly 650 out of 680 coking plants in North China's Shanxi, the country's major coal mining province, discharged excessive sulphur dioxide.
Environmental inspectors have now reportedly advised Beijing to curb high energy consumption and high polluting industries, by restricting land and loan approvals and raising pollution control standards.
The depressing statistics notwithstanding, the chairman of the NPC Environmental and Resources Protection Committee, Mao Rubai, has expressed confidence that Beijing will fulfill its environmental obligations well before the 2008 Olympic Games get underway.
Rubai told the media here that Beijing is currently spending 2.3 billion dollars a year on environmental protection, and this investment is expected to rise in the run-up to the Games.
Environmental investment in Beijing accounts for nearly three per cent of the city's gross domestic product. Clean energy such as natural gas counts for 57 per cent of the city's total energy consumption, sources said.
Environmental improvements have been witnessed in Beijing since 1998. Sixty-four per cent of days last year had good air quality, 36 per cent higher than 1998. The amount of sulphur dioxide dropped 29 per cent compared with seven years ago.
Bureau Report