China’s evaporating wetlands
Jiang Gaoming
Ponds and marshes are drying up around the country. Land is reclaimed for agriculture and industry, while reservoirs and dams disrupt the flow of rivers. The wetlands are in trouble, writes Jiang Gaoming.
News came from my hometown earlier this year: the local government had decided to spend 50,000 yuan (about US$7,300) sinking new wells to combat shortages of water for irrigation. The site used to be wetland; back in the 1960s, people used to grow rice there. But when the drilling team started work in April they sank a 200-metre-deep shaft and found no sign of water. In May they were forced to give up.
How was it possible that no water could be found under a former wetland? The locals were astonished. The story started back in the 1980s, when land reforms encouraged farmers to raise their own crops, causing a shortage of land. Wetlands were reclaimed and trenches dug to drain water away; springs were blocked with sand and covered with soil. The wetlands dried out to make way for more arable land. Surrounding villages followed suit; ponds and waterways were covered over and riverside vegetation cut back. Even centuries-old graveyards were used to raise crops. In rural areas, anywhere that once held water was flattened; in and around the towns, they were tarred or concreted over. Farmland increased, but the wetlands were lost and the weather got drier. Now you cannot find a drop of groundwater.
The national situation is even more worrying. The northern province of Hebei lost 90% of its wetlands in the last 50 years; 80% of what is left is polluted. In Shaanxi province the 30 counties in the Guanzhong area have seen up to 10,000 ponds disappear. Poyang Lake, China's largest freshwater lake, now shrinks to as small as 50 square kilometers, down from 4,000 at its peak. The loss of wetlands has meant aridity spreading from the north to the country’s fertile south. In 2007, tens of millions of people living around Poyang Lake suffered drinking water shortages. Wetlands in arid and semi-arid regions are not faring any better. Alashan, in Inner Mongolia, is seeing wetlands dry up due to water abstraction from the Hei River upstream. Water flowing into this traditionally green area has dropped from 900 million cubic metres to 200 million, leading to the disappearance of hundreds of lakes and ponds. The creation of new farmland around the upper reaches of the Tarim River, in Xinjiang autonomous region, has lead to a 350 kilometre-stretch of the river drying up, with deserts appearing where lakes once were.
Many are quick to blame the loss of wetlands on climate change. Global factors and a lack of precipitation do, to a certain extent, present a threat to wetlands, particularly in areas which are already arid or semi-arid. However, we cannot ignore human activity in rural areas. In most areas the loss of wetlands is not a natural disaster, but a manmade problem.
First, the reclamation of land from lakes, rivers and the sea has directly replaced wetlands with dry land. Land shortages mean that in rural areas any type of wetland – ponds, marshes, the banks of lakes – have been targets for appropriation. During the Great Leap Forward in 1958, a large number of farmers in Hunan province were moved into the Dongting Lake region to reclaim the land, with dykes used to push back the waters of lakes, shrinking it to a fraction of its former size. Hubei, known as the province of a thousand lakes, has gradually transformed its lakes into farmland. What remains is inadequate to mitigate the effects of flooding and drought. The area affected by flooding and drought consequently grew from 460,000 hectares in the 1950s to 1.7 million hectares in the ‘80s. Land shortages are even more severe in coastal areas; the enthusiasm for creating new land remains in Shanghai, Xiamen and other cities. The city of Xiancheng, in Jiangsu province, used to have 582 kilometres of coastal wetlands; now it has only a 50-kilometre “core area” as a habitat for the red-crowned crane and other wildlife. Areas that were once wide expanses of coastal wetlands have been replaced with factories, paper mills, farms and salt pans. Some polluting industries that are no longer welcome in southern China, including chemical plants, printing, dyeing and paper-making factories, have relocated here and represent a potentially fatal threat to the local environment.
Second, reservoirs are cutting off rivers, which means wetlands downstream are shrinking or disappearing entirely. China has more reservoirs than any other nation, with almost 86,000 at the end of 2006. Once a reservoir has been built the downstream areas will only receive water that is not wanted further upstream. The wetlands, which rely on this water, are then at risk. The threat is particular grave to wetlands in arid and semi-arid regions. Ten reservoirs have been built on the 8 tributaries of the Heyang River, in Gansu province, leaving downstream Minqin county severely short of water. It may even meet the same fate as Lop Nur and dry up completely.
Third, the construction of large dams is exacerbating the disappearance of wetlands. There are 22,000 large dams in China; 45% of the world’s total and more than in any other country. The debate continues over the effect of these dams on the environment, but nobody denies that the disruption of water flow causes the loss of wetlands. When the Xiaolangdi reservoir, in Henan province, went into operation on the Yellow River, water levels fell downstream and wetland areas decreased, clearly seen in both shallows and wetlands upstream from Kaifeng. Remote sensing data puts the area of wetlands in the lower reaches of the Yellow River at 724.3 square kilometres in 1997, decreasing to 651.6 square kilometers by 2003. The Three Gorges dam also caused river water levels to drop and drew water out of lakes. In summer 2006 some areas on the upper reaches of the Yangtze River saw the worst droughts since 1949.
Over-extraction of groundwater also causes the loss of wetlands. Aridity, upstream reservoirs and pollution meant that surface water proved inadequate for needs of the public, so they turned to the groundwater hundreds or thousands of metres under their feet. Over-extraction of groundwater in the Hai River basin affects an area of 90,000 square kilometers: 70% of the total area of the plains. At one time, 40% of Tianjin's land area was wetland, now this has decreased to 7%. Lake Baiyangdian, known as the “pearl of the north”, has dried up on seven occasions since the 1960s, once for five years. Extracting groundwater also causes subsidence, with ground levels dropping by up to three metres in parts of Tianjin. One area of eight square kilometres now lies below sea level.
Pollution is also destroying China’s wetlands. Wetlands can clean up a certain amount of pollution, but there are limits beyond which they are at risk of destruction. All of China's seven major river systems – the Liao River, Hai River, Huai River, Yellow River, Songhua River, Pearl River and Yangtze River – are severely polluted. The Xiaoqing River in Shandong was once famous for the clarity of its waters, but they now run closer to black. There are 110 waste-water outlets flowing into this river in Jinan city alone, with eight large factories pumping out industrial effluent. Avoiding responsibility for its own pollution, one well known paper manufacturer 50 kilometres away is unloading its waste into the river.
Wetlands are sometimes called the kidneys of the world. Losing them means losing their ability to regulate the climate, absorb floodwaters and clean up pollution; it may worsen droughts and floods and mean the loss of natural habitats for wildlife. We should waste no time in saving China’s wetlands.
Jiang Gaoming is a professor and Ph.D. tutor at the Chinese Academy of Sciences’ Institute of Botany. He is also vice secretary-general of the UNESCO China-MAB (Man and the Biosphere) Committee and a member of the UNESCO MAB Urban Group. He is known for his concepts of “urban vegetation” and allowing damaged ecosystems to recover naturally.
Showing posts with label Environment. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Environment. Show all posts
September 18, 2008
New ministry begins to bark, but still lacks bite
New ministry begins to bark, but still lacks bite
He Gang
The creation of an environment ministry is one example of positive reform transforming China’s government, writes He Gang. But there is room to improve the capacity to enforce environmental laws.
He Gang
The creation of an environment ministry is one example of positive reform transforming China’s government, writes He Gang. But there is room to improve the capacity to enforce environmental laws.
March 28, 2008, saw the launch of China's Ministry of Environmental Protection (MEP). As stated in its mission, this new cabinet-level ministry will take responsibility for China's environmental governance. MEP is tasked to develop and organise the implementation of environmental protection; to manage all related planning, policy and standards; and to coordinate across jurisdictions and levels of government to solve the country's major environmental problems.
The creation of the MEP is an example of the widespread reforms that have been transforming China's government in the past decades. Since 1982, five waves of major reforms have reduced the number of government ministries from 52 to 27. The latest round of these has aimed to create a "small government in a big society" , as public-sector priorities have shifted from economic development to regulation and public service. However, such a bold long-term transformation will only be possible by maintaining current rates of economic growth while simultaneously reducing inflation pressure and preserving central government macroeconomic performance. The Chinese government will also need to strike the dedicate balance between development, environment and social stability.
Figure 1. Milestones in Chinese Environmental Governance
After more than 30 years of rapid economic growth and development, China is facing unprecedented challenges in its efforts to protect its environment and natural resource base. The rapid deterioration of the nation's environmental quality and depletion of its natural resources are threatening the lives and health of the largest population in the world and the very potential for sustained growth of the economy. Some of the most pressing challenges include:
Air Quality. Two of the Blacksmith Institute's 10 most polluted cities are in China. Three major city clusters in China–Beijing-Tianjin-Tangshan, the Yangtze River Delta and Pearl River Delta–all face significant air pollution problems. Zhong Nanshan, head of the Guangzhou Institute of Respiratory Diseases, warned that most people older than 50 experience "black lung" as result of air pollution in Guangzhou city. With the 2008 Olympic Games right around the corner, Chinese officials in Beijing have introduced an even-odd license plate number system to control the number of vehicles on city roads after July 20 in an effort to improve air quality for the athletes and visitors.
Water Pollution. Huge blooms of blue-green algae have led to severe water pollution at Taihu Lake in the Yangtze Delta both this summer and last. According to the 2006 China Environmental Condition Communique, 28 percent of the nation's 745 water-quality monitoring sections are under standard V, which is the lowest level of China’s Environmental Quality Standards for Surface Water. For more than ten years, the central government has poured money into pollution treatment projects on the Huai River and Dianchi Lake, with little success. Only 43.2 percent of the 46 sections of the river's 44 major tributaries passed quality tests, according to a 2007 report by the Huai River Committee.
Climate Change. The results of China's Assessment Report on Climate Change show that annual average air temperature has increased by 0.5-0.8°C over the last century (slightly higher than the average global temperature rise), with most of the temperature rise observed in the last 50 years. Along China's coasts, sea levels have risen an average of 2.5 mm annually over the last 50 years. China's mountain glaciers have also retreated, and the trend is accelerating. The geography and climatic conditions of the country already give rise to frequent extreme events. Recently, though, extreme events have been exacerbated by the complexity and fragility of China's ecosystems, and by the fact that its three largest urban agglomerations and industrial centres are in coastal areas. In rural areas, agricultural output could be reduced by between 5 and 10 percent by 2030. The Fourth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) warned that China will be one of the world's most affected regions if the climate continues to change as predicted.
Pan Yue, Vice Minister of Environmental Protection, estimates that two environmental incidents occur every three days in average around China, threatening the government's goal of creating a "Harmonious Society". In 2005, the formal public hearing held in the wake of the controversy surrounding the Yuan Ming Yuan Park, which used impermeable membranes on the bottom of the Park's lakes to save water, but impacted both the area's ecosystems and nearby historic cultural sites, was the first of its kind in the environmental arena. The project was stopped after this hearing.
Since then, Chinese people have become more engaged in the environmental movement. Increasing environmental awareness and concern for environmental justice have led to widespread environmental protests. In June 2007, the citizens of Xiamen, a city on the southeastern coast known for its environmental awareness and ecotourism industry, demonstrated against the construction of a chemical factory slated to be built nearby. People in Shanghai protested against an extension of the city's Maglev system in January 2008, and in May citizens in Chengdu demonstrated against the construction of a petrochemical factory and oil refinery. With the release of The Regulations on Government Disclosure of Information in May 2008, calls for information transparency and public participation will continue to increase.
With increasing calls for action to ensure environmental quality, the government has responded with mixed results. For example, billions of dollars have been spent to clean up pollution on the Huai River, one of China's major rivers, but this effort has resulted in little real progress. The issue here is decentralisation: the local environmental governor is nominated and assigned by the local officer, and all local environmental improvement projects are funded solely by the local government. While the central government may have a strong will when it comes to the environment, local reluctance is still a big problem. Local governments lack both the incentives and the capacity to implement well-developed projects. High-level Chinese leaders often promise "clean water and clean air for everybody," but this simple-sounding goal is, in reality, not an easy job.
Elevation of the MEP to the cabinet level is a promising step, but this does not guarantee results. Although its status improved over the last 30 years, the environmental administration is still comparatively weak in the cabinet. The Environmental Protection Storm, initiated by MEP Vice Minister Pan Yue, is both a national campaign to promote environmental awareness and an example of how the MEP has had to use relatively creative methods to consolidate its power in the government. Notable setbacks, such as the MEP's failure to implement a new "green GDP" evaluation system given the complexity of greening the GDP, show that the ministry is not yet as efficient and effective as other core ministries like the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), China's macroeconomic management agency.
To better understand the Chinese system of environmental management, it is helpful to compare it to analogous systems in the United States and European Union.
Structure. Learning from experiences in the United States, China established five regional inspection offices in 2006 in an effort to foster regional coordination. But, in contrast to the U.S. system, the province is the basic political and economic unit in China. Environmental agencies at the provincial level are not staffed by the central government and are funded exclusively by local governments. This disconnect has effectively turned provincial "environmental protection officers" into professional workers with no real power. The five regional-level inspection offices will have little influence over the situation on the ground, as they still do not have the power to coordinate the provincial offices.
Personnel. In a country of 350 million people, the US Environmental Protection Agency has more than 17,000 employees, not including outside contractors. China, a country with four times the population and significantly more pollution per capita, has only about 300 workers at the MEP in Beijing and perhaps 30 people in each of the five regional inspection offices. Including affiliate agencies and institutes, the total number of personnel can perhaps reach 2,600. Some important support comes from the affiliated research institutions, but the ministry remains weak, lacking the decision-making capacity and financial resources of many other agencies.
Enforcement. China's central regulations and rules do not have the same force as US or European laws. As one of its key instruments, China's central government issues five-year plans that set general national targets, which in turn are delegated to local governments; promotions for government workers are based on how well they meet those goals. The current 11th Five-Year Plan contains two major environmental goals: a 20-percent improvement in energy efficiency and 10-percent decreases in major pollutants. But as long as China's promotion system is solely based on GDP growth, any government mandates to curb pollution will remain secondary, and any environmental targets will not be fully enforced on the ground.
The way forwardZhang Shiqiu, professor at Peking University's College of Environmental Sciences and Engineering, delivered her worries at the first Chinese Environmental Protection System Reform Conference in 2007. She said that China is currently in its most critical time for the transition of environmental regulatory system, given the concern of China is facing the most serious period of environmental damages, which will likely continue into the near future. She highlighted emerging environmental incidents, particularly serious pollution accidents that increase environmental risks and threaten national environmental security. She also noted that the environmental crisis has recently instigated social conflicts and weakens social stability.
In her view, an effective environmental rights structure needs clear definitions and clarifications. She proposed that environmental management should turn from "sector management" to "public management" that integrate public resources governance and public participation into their management with people oriented pursuit. She also calls for the transition of environmental regulatory system from "local based" to "regional based," "from single-pollutant control to multiple pollutants control strategy," "from end-of-pipe to lifecycle management, which focuses on the restructuring of the economy and energy consumption," and to use more market-based instruments (MBIs) to provide incentives to enterprises and social actors, especially a combination of damage compensation schemes, eco-services payment schemes and pollution/resources taxation schemes.
As a leading consulting group, the China Council for International Cooperation on Environment and Development (CCICED) has united with top leaders and international experts. At its 5th Annual General Meeting, the China Task Force on Environmental Governance released a report, recommending that China strengthen its environmental governance in four major issue areas:
Improving the government's capacity to enforce environmental laws and oversee the implementation of environmental programs, to enhance the government's capacity to control environmental pollution, and to improve the management of natural resources;
Engaging the business sector to take a more proactive role in environmental management by providing incentives to those that perform well and punishing those that do not, and by promoting best practices of industrial production and hazardous accident preparedness;
Engaging civil society by providing greater transparency of information concerning environmental and natural resource conditions and of government decision-making activities, combined with access and participation by stakeholders, NGOs, and the general public, and;
Establishing greater policy coherence and planning capacity for both domestic and international environmental and natural resource issues. Promote the capacity and incorporate this into the expectations of performance of other government ministries and agencies.
The World Bank has also undertaken projects to support environment management in China. The Bank believes that while MEP has seen many successes, the overall deterioration of the environment has not been reversed. To their mind, environmental management in China has become increasingly complex, as widespread socioeconomic changes have created new and urgent environmental challenges. Environmental management, which is largely dealt with by the Ministry of Environmental Protection, has been further complicated by ongoing institutional reorganisation and the sheer size of the country. Yet many of the country's natural resources and environmental services are already under great pressure. China's need for effective environmental management is becoming ever more important. In the end, though, "only a greatly expanded and strengthened coordination framework between local and central level institutions will be able to cope with this challenging agenda."
The creation of the MEP is an example of the widespread reforms that have been transforming China's government in the past decades. Since 1982, five waves of major reforms have reduced the number of government ministries from 52 to 27. The latest round of these has aimed to create a "small government in a big society" , as public-sector priorities have shifted from economic development to regulation and public service. However, such a bold long-term transformation will only be possible by maintaining current rates of economic growth while simultaneously reducing inflation pressure and preserving central government macroeconomic performance. The Chinese government will also need to strike the dedicate balance between development, environment and social stability.
Figure 1. Milestones in Chinese Environmental Governance
After more than 30 years of rapid economic growth and development, China is facing unprecedented challenges in its efforts to protect its environment and natural resource base. The rapid deterioration of the nation's environmental quality and depletion of its natural resources are threatening the lives and health of the largest population in the world and the very potential for sustained growth of the economy. Some of the most pressing challenges include:
Air Quality. Two of the Blacksmith Institute's 10 most polluted cities are in China. Three major city clusters in China–Beijing-Tianjin-Tangshan, the Yangtze River Delta and Pearl River Delta–all face significant air pollution problems. Zhong Nanshan, head of the Guangzhou Institute of Respiratory Diseases, warned that most people older than 50 experience "black lung" as result of air pollution in Guangzhou city. With the 2008 Olympic Games right around the corner, Chinese officials in Beijing have introduced an even-odd license plate number system to control the number of vehicles on city roads after July 20 in an effort to improve air quality for the athletes and visitors.
Water Pollution. Huge blooms of blue-green algae have led to severe water pollution at Taihu Lake in the Yangtze Delta both this summer and last. According to the 2006 China Environmental Condition Communique, 28 percent of the nation's 745 water-quality monitoring sections are under standard V, which is the lowest level of China’s Environmental Quality Standards for Surface Water. For more than ten years, the central government has poured money into pollution treatment projects on the Huai River and Dianchi Lake, with little success. Only 43.2 percent of the 46 sections of the river's 44 major tributaries passed quality tests, according to a 2007 report by the Huai River Committee.
Climate Change. The results of China's Assessment Report on Climate Change show that annual average air temperature has increased by 0.5-0.8°C over the last century (slightly higher than the average global temperature rise), with most of the temperature rise observed in the last 50 years. Along China's coasts, sea levels have risen an average of 2.5 mm annually over the last 50 years. China's mountain glaciers have also retreated, and the trend is accelerating. The geography and climatic conditions of the country already give rise to frequent extreme events. Recently, though, extreme events have been exacerbated by the complexity and fragility of China's ecosystems, and by the fact that its three largest urban agglomerations and industrial centres are in coastal areas. In rural areas, agricultural output could be reduced by between 5 and 10 percent by 2030. The Fourth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) warned that China will be one of the world's most affected regions if the climate continues to change as predicted.
Pan Yue, Vice Minister of Environmental Protection, estimates that two environmental incidents occur every three days in average around China, threatening the government's goal of creating a "Harmonious Society". In 2005, the formal public hearing held in the wake of the controversy surrounding the Yuan Ming Yuan Park, which used impermeable membranes on the bottom of the Park's lakes to save water, but impacted both the area's ecosystems and nearby historic cultural sites, was the first of its kind in the environmental arena. The project was stopped after this hearing.
Since then, Chinese people have become more engaged in the environmental movement. Increasing environmental awareness and concern for environmental justice have led to widespread environmental protests. In June 2007, the citizens of Xiamen, a city on the southeastern coast known for its environmental awareness and ecotourism industry, demonstrated against the construction of a chemical factory slated to be built nearby. People in Shanghai protested against an extension of the city's Maglev system in January 2008, and in May citizens in Chengdu demonstrated against the construction of a petrochemical factory and oil refinery. With the release of The Regulations on Government Disclosure of Information in May 2008, calls for information transparency and public participation will continue to increase.
With increasing calls for action to ensure environmental quality, the government has responded with mixed results. For example, billions of dollars have been spent to clean up pollution on the Huai River, one of China's major rivers, but this effort has resulted in little real progress. The issue here is decentralisation: the local environmental governor is nominated and assigned by the local officer, and all local environmental improvement projects are funded solely by the local government. While the central government may have a strong will when it comes to the environment, local reluctance is still a big problem. Local governments lack both the incentives and the capacity to implement well-developed projects. High-level Chinese leaders often promise "clean water and clean air for everybody," but this simple-sounding goal is, in reality, not an easy job.
Elevation of the MEP to the cabinet level is a promising step, but this does not guarantee results. Although its status improved over the last 30 years, the environmental administration is still comparatively weak in the cabinet. The Environmental Protection Storm, initiated by MEP Vice Minister Pan Yue, is both a national campaign to promote environmental awareness and an example of how the MEP has had to use relatively creative methods to consolidate its power in the government. Notable setbacks, such as the MEP's failure to implement a new "green GDP" evaluation system given the complexity of greening the GDP, show that the ministry is not yet as efficient and effective as other core ministries like the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), China's macroeconomic management agency.
To better understand the Chinese system of environmental management, it is helpful to compare it to analogous systems in the United States and European Union.
Structure. Learning from experiences in the United States, China established five regional inspection offices in 2006 in an effort to foster regional coordination. But, in contrast to the U.S. system, the province is the basic political and economic unit in China. Environmental agencies at the provincial level are not staffed by the central government and are funded exclusively by local governments. This disconnect has effectively turned provincial "environmental protection officers" into professional workers with no real power. The five regional-level inspection offices will have little influence over the situation on the ground, as they still do not have the power to coordinate the provincial offices.
Personnel. In a country of 350 million people, the US Environmental Protection Agency has more than 17,000 employees, not including outside contractors. China, a country with four times the population and significantly more pollution per capita, has only about 300 workers at the MEP in Beijing and perhaps 30 people in each of the five regional inspection offices. Including affiliate agencies and institutes, the total number of personnel can perhaps reach 2,600. Some important support comes from the affiliated research institutions, but the ministry remains weak, lacking the decision-making capacity and financial resources of many other agencies.
Enforcement. China's central regulations and rules do not have the same force as US or European laws. As one of its key instruments, China's central government issues five-year plans that set general national targets, which in turn are delegated to local governments; promotions for government workers are based on how well they meet those goals. The current 11th Five-Year Plan contains two major environmental goals: a 20-percent improvement in energy efficiency and 10-percent decreases in major pollutants. But as long as China's promotion system is solely based on GDP growth, any government mandates to curb pollution will remain secondary, and any environmental targets will not be fully enforced on the ground.
The way forwardZhang Shiqiu, professor at Peking University's College of Environmental Sciences and Engineering, delivered her worries at the first Chinese Environmental Protection System Reform Conference in 2007. She said that China is currently in its most critical time for the transition of environmental regulatory system, given the concern of China is facing the most serious period of environmental damages, which will likely continue into the near future. She highlighted emerging environmental incidents, particularly serious pollution accidents that increase environmental risks and threaten national environmental security. She also noted that the environmental crisis has recently instigated social conflicts and weakens social stability.
In her view, an effective environmental rights structure needs clear definitions and clarifications. She proposed that environmental management should turn from "sector management" to "public management" that integrate public resources governance and public participation into their management with people oriented pursuit. She also calls for the transition of environmental regulatory system from "local based" to "regional based," "from single-pollutant control to multiple pollutants control strategy," "from end-of-pipe to lifecycle management, which focuses on the restructuring of the economy and energy consumption," and to use more market-based instruments (MBIs) to provide incentives to enterprises and social actors, especially a combination of damage compensation schemes, eco-services payment schemes and pollution/resources taxation schemes.
As a leading consulting group, the China Council for International Cooperation on Environment and Development (CCICED) has united with top leaders and international experts. At its 5th Annual General Meeting, the China Task Force on Environmental Governance released a report, recommending that China strengthen its environmental governance in four major issue areas:
Improving the government's capacity to enforce environmental laws and oversee the implementation of environmental programs, to enhance the government's capacity to control environmental pollution, and to improve the management of natural resources;
Engaging the business sector to take a more proactive role in environmental management by providing incentives to those that perform well and punishing those that do not, and by promoting best practices of industrial production and hazardous accident preparedness;
Engaging civil society by providing greater transparency of information concerning environmental and natural resource conditions and of government decision-making activities, combined with access and participation by stakeholders, NGOs, and the general public, and;
Establishing greater policy coherence and planning capacity for both domestic and international environmental and natural resource issues. Promote the capacity and incorporate this into the expectations of performance of other government ministries and agencies.
The World Bank has also undertaken projects to support environment management in China. The Bank believes that while MEP has seen many successes, the overall deterioration of the environment has not been reversed. To their mind, environmental management in China has become increasingly complex, as widespread socioeconomic changes have created new and urgent environmental challenges. Environmental management, which is largely dealt with by the Ministry of Environmental Protection, has been further complicated by ongoing institutional reorganisation and the sheer size of the country. Yet many of the country's natural resources and environmental services are already under great pressure. China's need for effective environmental management is becoming ever more important. In the end, though, "only a greatly expanded and strengthened coordination framework between local and central level institutions will be able to cope with this challenging agenda."
He Gang completed his master’s degree at Peking University. He was a member of the youth delegation to the 2005 UN Climate Change Conference in Montreal
September 16, 2008
After Beijing's 'green Olympics'
With the flame now extinguished at the "Bird’s Nest" stadium, China should unite the country around the great successes – and formidable challenges – of the green Olympics.
When the Olympic flag was unfurled at the "Bird’s Nest" stadium in Beijing, the Chinese leaders at the scene must have been wondering what the Games would mean to China after the closing ceremonies. The 51 gold medals won by China have probably been enough to ease the pain and frustration of their star athlete Liu Xiang’s sudden departure from the 110-metre hurdles.
This year, the Chinese people have experienced the tragic Sichuan earthquake and the glory of Olympic fanfare, uniting us in sorrow and pain as well as inspiring us with the spirit of international cooperation. With such a dramatic backdrop, it is inevitable that the Chinese people feel a sense of loss after the Olympics. China and its people will need to look for a new cause to unite the country—a cause championed by its leaders and pursued by its people.
In fact, China has already embarked on the path of this cause. These Olympics were advertised as the “green Olympics.” From banning plastic bags to shutting down factories and reducing the number of cars on the road, Beijing has started to create an environmental and people-friendly city. And in the past 10 years, Beijing citizens, for the first time, can experience the convenience of public transportation and unclogged roads as well as improved air quality.
From the presence of numerous state leaders at the opening ceremony to the thousands of Olympic volunteers, Chinese authorities should realise that the international community and the Chinese people have all been wishing China well. The communist rulers should have confidence in their own people that we can help find environmental solutions for China’s unparalleled environmental challenges. Just as athletes need support and freedom to train for gold medals, so do citizens and civil society organizations need support and freedom to help China find effective environmental solutions that will benefit the entire country.
Prior to the Olympics, most of these nongovernmental groups have been screened due to fear that they could create trouble during the Games. But this fear has proven to be unwarranted. Instead, the government should regard these groups as natural allies and should work together with them to protect the environment, reduce poverty, improve education, fight diseases, and protect public health.
The Chinese public must be at the forefront of an effective response to China’s environmental challenges. Currently, China’s environmental movement is organising conservation efforts, leading education programs, and engaging community members in volunteer work. Chinese environmental organisations also have a unique opportunity to work with the government to implement environmental regulations and emulate Beijing’s environmental achievements nationwide.
All of China’s impressive progress and accomplishments to address pollution issues prior to the Olympics have been paralleled with continued environmental challenges across the country: pollution continues to impact the environment and human health in major cities and rural provinces. While the Beijing 2008 Olympics have elevated the status of environmental protection in China, I hope that the improvements we have seen in Beijing will be replicated across the country and continue long after the Olympic Games’ closing ceremonies.
As one of the countries that hold the key to saving the world from environmental destruction, China can help lead efforts to protect the environment. Now, after the closing ceremonies have ended and the international attention has gone away, the real Olympic challenge begins. China made enormous progress dealing with its environmental issues during the Olympics. Can China maintain and advance these environmental gains after the Olympics, benefiting people throughout China? Can China adapt its successes in Beijing to address the environmental challenges throughout China’s vast provinces?
China has a new challenge after the Olympics—one that is arguably even more important than this celebration of humanity and international cooperation that occurs once every four years. Now that the Olympic flame has been extinguished at the Bird’s Nest stadium, China’s leaders and people need to work together to protect the environment. Even more than the Olympics, this new cause that can unite China, its leaders, and its people will define China’s legacy in the future.
When the Olympic flag was unfurled at the "Bird’s Nest" stadium in Beijing, the Chinese leaders at the scene must have been wondering what the Games would mean to China after the closing ceremonies. The 51 gold medals won by China have probably been enough to ease the pain and frustration of their star athlete Liu Xiang’s sudden departure from the 110-metre hurdles.
This year, the Chinese people have experienced the tragic Sichuan earthquake and the glory of Olympic fanfare, uniting us in sorrow and pain as well as inspiring us with the spirit of international cooperation. With such a dramatic backdrop, it is inevitable that the Chinese people feel a sense of loss after the Olympics. China and its people will need to look for a new cause to unite the country—a cause championed by its leaders and pursued by its people.
In fact, China has already embarked on the path of this cause. These Olympics were advertised as the “green Olympics.” From banning plastic bags to shutting down factories and reducing the number of cars on the road, Beijing has started to create an environmental and people-friendly city. And in the past 10 years, Beijing citizens, for the first time, can experience the convenience of public transportation and unclogged roads as well as improved air quality.
From the presence of numerous state leaders at the opening ceremony to the thousands of Olympic volunteers, Chinese authorities should realise that the international community and the Chinese people have all been wishing China well. The communist rulers should have confidence in their own people that we can help find environmental solutions for China’s unparalleled environmental challenges. Just as athletes need support and freedom to train for gold medals, so do citizens and civil society organizations need support and freedom to help China find effective environmental solutions that will benefit the entire country.
Prior to the Olympics, most of these nongovernmental groups have been screened due to fear that they could create trouble during the Games. But this fear has proven to be unwarranted. Instead, the government should regard these groups as natural allies and should work together with them to protect the environment, reduce poverty, improve education, fight diseases, and protect public health.
The Chinese public must be at the forefront of an effective response to China’s environmental challenges. Currently, China’s environmental movement is organising conservation efforts, leading education programs, and engaging community members in volunteer work. Chinese environmental organisations also have a unique opportunity to work with the government to implement environmental regulations and emulate Beijing’s environmental achievements nationwide.
All of China’s impressive progress and accomplishments to address pollution issues prior to the Olympics have been paralleled with continued environmental challenges across the country: pollution continues to impact the environment and human health in major cities and rural provinces. While the Beijing 2008 Olympics have elevated the status of environmental protection in China, I hope that the improvements we have seen in Beijing will be replicated across the country and continue long after the Olympic Games’ closing ceremonies.
As one of the countries that hold the key to saving the world from environmental destruction, China can help lead efforts to protect the environment. Now, after the closing ceremonies have ended and the international attention has gone away, the real Olympic challenge begins. China made enormous progress dealing with its environmental issues during the Olympics. Can China maintain and advance these environmental gains after the Olympics, benefiting people throughout China? Can China adapt its successes in Beijing to address the environmental challenges throughout China’s vast provinces?
China has a new challenge after the Olympics—one that is arguably even more important than this celebration of humanity and international cooperation that occurs once every four years. Now that the Olympic flame has been extinguished at the Bird’s Nest stadium, China’s leaders and people need to work together to protect the environment. Even more than the Olympics, this new cause that can unite China, its leaders, and its people will define China’s legacy in the future.
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