environment | CHINDIA ALERT: You'll be living in their world, very soon

29/05/2013

China to issue new plan for air pollution control

China Daily: “China to issue new plan for air pollution control

A national plan for air pollution control could be outlined as early as this week, said 21cbh.com, a professional financial news website Tuesday.

The outline will target the reduction of air pollution on a national scale by establishing clear standards of air quality in different regions.

Coal plants, motor vehicles and dust that produce fine particulate matter will be the focus of strict control in the outline initiated by the Ministry of Environmental Protection, according to multiple sources who told the news website.

The overall plan has undergone multiple revisions and will be submitted to the State Council, China’s cabinet, for review by the end of this month, the Shanghai Securities News quoted Yang Tiesheng, deputy director of the energy saving department under the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, as saying on May 22.

The specific measures put forward by the plan include stipulating the declining rates of atmospheric pollutants such as PM2.5 (particles smaller than 2.5 microns in diameter), sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxide in cities, the reduction of coal consumption throughout the country, as well as the promotion of using clean energy such as natural gas, while banning coal-fired power plants in cities and minimizing heavy-polluting vehicles.

The Yangtze River Delta region and the Pearl River Delta region will be the key areas of the new air pollution prevention campaign.

Roughly one million heavy-polluting vehicles, popularly known as “yellow label cars”, will be prohibited from driving on roads in Beijing, Tianjin municipality and Hebei province, which would reduce half of the PM2.5 by vehicle emissions alone, said one environmental expert as quoted by the news website.

The outline stipulates that air quality must “make substantial progress” in the upcoming five years rather than the next 20 years, a standard previously adhered to by big cities such as Beijing, according to a source from the National Development and Reform Commission, China’s economic planning body.

Grade II air quality stipulates the average concentration of PM2.5 over a 21 hour period should be between 35 to 75 milligrams per cubic meters, according to the latest standard made by the Ministry of Environmental Protection in 2012.”

via China to issue new plan for air pollution control |Politics |chinadaily.com.cn.

Posted in carbon emission, China alert, Economics, Environment, Green, greenhouse gas, Pollution | Leave a Comment »

Tags: air pollution prevention, Beijing, China, climate, environment, Ministry of Environmental Protection of the People's Republic of China, National Development and Reform Commission, Particulates, Pearl River Delta, Yangtze River Delta

25/05/2013

* Xi pledges to safeguard the environment

China Daily: “China will never pursue temporary economic growth at the expense of environmental degradation, President Xi Jinping vowed on Friday.

Xi Jinping 习近平 (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

“Those who made rash decisions regardless of the ecological environment, resulting in serious consequences, must be brought to account, and should be held accountable for a lifetime,” he said.

“Only by implementing the strictest system and the most stringent rule of law can we provide reliable protection for ecological civilization.”

Xi was speaking during a group study session attended by members of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and environmental scholars.

Meng Wei, head of the Chinese Research Academy of Environmental Sciences and an academician at the Chinese Academy of Engineering, was one of the two key lecturers at the session.

He told China Daily that by using the words “held accountable for a lifetime”, Xi is referring to both requirements and inspirations.

“Officials are responsible for benefiting the people within their regions, not only in terms of gross domestic product, but also with green hills and clean water,” Meng said. “Maintaining a good ecological environment should also be taken into account as part of officials’ political achievements.”

Xi reaffirmed the importance of balancing economic development and environmental protection, calling for an overall plan for land development, and for a scientific distribution of production, living and ecological space, leaving more room for nature to repair itself.

He emphasized the urgency of implementing major ecological restoration projects, and of enhancing ecological production capacity.

He said the idea of guarding the bottom line of national ecological safety should be firmly established.”

via Xi pledges to safeguard the environment |Politics |chinadaily.com.cn.

Posted in China alert, Economics, Environment, Pollution | Leave a Comment »

Tags: China, Chinese Academy of Engineering, communist party of china, ecological restoration projects, ecological space, environment, Xi JinPing

13/05/2013

* Myanmar Pipeline Puts China Ahead in Energy Shipping Dilemma

WSJ: “A new crude oil pipeline through Myanmar due to begin operations in September will put China in a favorable position compared to other Asian economic powerhouses challenged by energy security issues.

China’s Myanmar pipeline, which in the photo is under the red dirt trail, means it will be less dependent on the Strait of Malacca for its imported oil needs.

At a capacity of 440,000 barrels a day, the pipeline—running from Myanmar’s coast at the Bay of Bengal to China’s southern Yunnan region—will allow China to send less crude through the Strait of Malacca. The narrow waterway by Singapore, where the U.S. Navy has a strong presence, is considered a major threat to secure energy supplies by major Asian economies dependent on crude shipments from the Middle East and Africa.

China—helped by its own domestic oil production of just over 4 million barrels a day—last year relied on the narrow waters for around 37% of its total demand. That share will drop to about 30% once the Myanmar pipeline comes on stream.

In comparison, Japan, South Korea and Taiwan all rely on the Strait of Malacca for around 75% of their total oil consumption, in part due to their small domestic production.

The Myanmar pipeline, which will run parallel to a major natural gas pipeline, comes on top of a string of oil and gas import pipelines already completed or planned to supply China’s less-developed inland regions.”

via Myanmar Pipeline Puts China Ahead in Energy Shipping Dilemma – China Real Time Report – WSJ.

Posted in China alert, Economics, oil & gas, Politics | Leave a Comment »

Tags: Bay of Bengal, Burma, China, crude oil pipeline, domestic oil production, environment, middle-east, Myanmar, Pipeline transport, Strait of Malacca, Yunnan

11/05/2013

* Should China Try to Feed Itself?

BusinessWeek: “For China’s leaders, there was one problem in an otherwise benign inflation report for April. First, the good news: The consumer price index rose 2.4 percent, about in line with economists’ expectations. While inflation accelerated from 2.1 percent in March, the April figure is still well below the government’s target of 3.5 percent for the year.

An aerial view of the fish farms in the countryside next to Hefei, in central China's Anhui province

So what’s the catch? Food prices. With vegetables getting more expensive, the cost of eating jumped 4 percent last month, compared with an increase of 2.7 percent in March. The rising cost of food could create more difficulties in the coming months, the People’s Bank of China warned yesterday.

The Chinese government is well aware of the political sensitivity of food, which is one reason the country is sticking to a policy that promotes self-sufficiency. The country’s farmers met about 98 percent of China’s demand for grain last year, Vice Minister of Agriculture Chen Xiaohua said at a news conference in March.

If the country wants to ensure lower prices, though, China should rethink that self-sufficiency policy, argues Paul Conway, the vice chairman of Cargill. “As they become richer and more urbanized, they will have to become less self-sufficient in grain,” he says. The Minnesota-based agribusiness giant is a major player in exporting wheat, corn, and soybeans from the U.S. and other countries in the Western Hemisphere to Asia, so he certainly has a good business reason for wanting China to buy more food from abroad.

But, Conway says, China and other Asian countries with huge populations, such as India and Indonesia, stand to benefit from reducing their reliance on local farmers. “There is still a tendency in some parts of Asia to food security through food self-sufficiency,” he says from Singapore, where he gave a speech on May 8 about food security. Giving up on that idea and instead importing food from low-cost producers in the U.S., Canada, Brazil, and Argentina would be “the best guarantee of Asian food security,” he says. “For grains and oilseeds, Asia’s self-interest is to have access to the surpluses from the Western Hemisphere.”

In order to bolster its food security, China also should be investing in agricultural infrastructure in other countries, Conway says. Just as Chinese investors are helping to fund transportation projects in African countries that supply minerals to China’s factories, the country should also be putting money into projects that could make it easier for farmers in places like Brazil to get their crops to seaports. That, he argues, makes more sense than just buying farms overseas. “From a food security standpoint, the fact that you own land in another country doesn’t guarantee you anything. Borders can always be closed. If China wants to improve the flow of grains, instead of investing in land, invest in infrastructure.””

via Should China Try to Feed Itself? – Businessweek.

The real moral FAILURE in the food security Bill debate (rediff.com)
Over half the world’s population could rely on food imports by 2050 – study (guardian.co.uk)

Posted in agriculture, China alert, economic inter-dependence, Economics, food security, food shortage, Infrastructure, Politics | Leave a Comment »

Tags: Brazil, China, climate, environment, Food security, food self sufficiency, India, Peoples Bank of China, science

09/05/2013

* China’s Vision for a ‘New’ Urbanization

WSJ: “China watchers are all abuzz about urbanization, which is supposed to be a focus of reform. But what does the term mean? After all, China has been urbanizing for 30 years, which has meant building roads, subways, ports — and relying more and more on infrastructure spending, which seems to have less and less payoff these days.

The National Development and Reform Commission, China’s state planning agency, is due to produce a report later this year laying out a path for a new kind of urbanization.

Li Tie, director general of the NDRC’s China Center for Urban Development, said the report involves a “new model of city development,” which would include three main parts:

First, there would be a focus on “low carbon” development — meaning trying to assure Chinese cities ease their horrendous pollution.

Second, would be reform of the household registration, or hukou, system. For smaller cities the system would be “totally liberalized,” Mr. Li said. He didn’t lay out his thoughts fully, but seemed to suggest that all residents would enjoy the same rights and benefits regardless of where they were born. For larger cities, migrants would get “resident cards” which assured them “improved treatment” and access to social services.

Third, China would look to increase “clustering” in big cities. Mr. Li didn’t explain what he meant by that, but in urban planning speak, clustering usually means trying to develop industries or specialties in a city or group of cities. That’s a way to build on the intellectual frisson of urban life, where new ideas can spawn new industries.

Those proposals address some of the most vexing problems with life in China’s cities: pollution, widening social inequality and lack of innovation. They also suggest that China’s leaders are committed to making urbanization into something more than another building spree. But changes would be costly and could require China’s central government to take a much more active role in overseeing—and paying for—urban growth than it has in the past. Whether China’s new leaders are ready to take such steps will become clear over the next year or two.”

via China’s Vision for a ‘New’ Urbanization – China Real Time Report – WSJ.

Posted in China alert, Economics, Migrant workers, Politics, urban development | 2 Comments »

Tags: Beijing, China, China National Petroleum Corporation, environment, Kunming, Li Tie, National Development and Reform Commission, Public Security Bureau, Urbanization

07/05/2013

* Indian farm sector to lose 4 million workers in 12th Plan period

What the Plan does not say is where the 4m surplus farm workers are going to get employment.

The Hindu: “The country’s agriculture sector is projected to lose four million workers in the 12th Plan period, the government informed Parliament on Tuesday.

The farm sector had contributed 8.8 million job opportunities during the ten year period from 1993-95 to 2004-05. File photo: G.N.Rao

As per the 11th Five Year Plan document of the Planning Commission, the agriculture sector “is projected to contribute no increase in the Eleventh Plan and a net decrease of 4 million agricultural workers over the Twelfth plan period” Minister of State for Agriculture Tariq Anwar said in a written reply to the Lok Sabha.

There is no potential for massive increase in employment in agriculture sector. However, indirect employment is likely to increase with rise in farm production particularly in agro-processing and in support infrastructure, he said.

The sector had contributed 8.8 million job opportunities during the ten year period from 1993-95 to 2004-05, he added.

The Minister said several schemes like National Food Security Mission, Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana and Gramin Bhandaran Yojana launched in the agricultural sector aim at increasing production and in the process, create additional income and employment opportunities.

via Farm sector to lose 4 million workers in 12th Plan period – The Hindu.

India’s Vanishing Farmers (counterpunch.org)

Posted in agriculture, Economics, food shortage, India alert | Leave a Comment »

Tags: agriculture, agriculture sector, climate, environment, Food security, Lok Sabha, national food security, Planning Commission, Primary sector of the economy, tariq anwar

07/05/2013

* 2,400 MTonnes wheat rotting in govt granaries for past 2 years

Times of India: “India may be facing the shame of 47% of its children suffering from malnutrition and about 30% of its population living below poverty line, but food continues to rot in government granaries. The Food Corporation of India (FCI) has admitted in data accessed through RTI that the amount of damaged wheat has increased from 2,010 million tonnes (MT) in 2009-2010 to 2,401.61 MT (2011-2012). The country has already suffered a loss of 932.46 MT damaged wheat this year, with the worst affected being Bihar.

Food Corporation of India (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The data has been given in response to an application filed by Uttar Pradesh resident, Kush Kalra. Till February, 2013, the FCI has on its hands “non-issuable wheat” or damaged wheat amounting to 932.46 MT. Bihar has the highest quantity of rotting wheat at 306.5 MT, followed by Uttarakhand (221 MT) and Gujarat (195 MT).

The total damaged wheat in 2009-2010 was 2010 MT. This came down marginally to 1997 MT in 2010-2011, but again rose to 2401.61 MT in 2011-2012.

According to data, the worst offender in 2011-2012 was Maharashtra (1444 MT), while in 2010-2011 Uttarakhand recorded (931 MT) of damaged wheat. Gujarat had the maximum (785 MT) damaged wheat in 2009-2010.

Ironically, India has lagged in improving its Global Hunger Index (GHI) score despite strong economic growth and food production. According to the 2012 Global Hunger Index report, 43.5% of children below five years are underweight, which accounts for almost two-thirds of the country’s alarmingly high GHI score. From 2005-10, India ranked second to last on child underweight — below Ethiopia, Niger, Nepal and Bangladesh.

Limited access for farmers to the open market, lack of covered or adequate storage space for grains have only served to compound the problem. As on April 1, 2013, FCI has covered godown space with capacity to store 33.99 MT that falls woefully short of the demand.”

via 2,400 MT wheat rotting in govt granaries for past 2 years – The Times of India.

Govt floats bids for 1 mn tonnes wheat export (thehindu.com)
Punjab sets aside Rs.18,998 crore for wheat procurement (news.in.msn.com)

Posted in agriculture, Economics, food shortage, India alert, Infrastructure, poverty | Leave a Comment »

Tags: adequate storage, climate, environment, Food Corporation of India, food corporation of india fci, global hunger, Global Hunger Index, India

06/05/2013

* Seawater can save thirsty country

desalination plant (Photo credit: roplant.org)

China Daily: “More government support, including subsidies and a favorable pricing mechanism, is needed for the country to use desalinated seawater to quench its thirst, a top industry expert said.

“The lack of an effective pricing mechanism for desalinated water and support for an operable policy is affecting the development of the country’s sea desalination industry,” said Li Linmei, director of the State Oceanic Administration‘s Institute of Seawater Desalination and Multipurpose Utilization in Tianjin.

The country aims to produce 2.2 million cubic meters of desalinated seawater daily in 2015, about three times current capacity, according to a National Development and Reform Commission plan released last year.

Current domestic water prices range from 2.4 yuan to 4.9 yuan a metric ton in the coastal regions, while the price of water for industry ranges from 3.3 yuan to 7.9 yuan a ton, according to ChinaWaterNet.

However, desalination plants can produce 674,000 tons daily at a cost of about 5 yuan ($0.80) a ton — not including infrastructure such as pipelines.

Li said the government should consider bringing desalinated water into the water grid.

Aside from subsidies and funding for pilot programs, Li believes desalination is a key part of water security.

“The seawater desalination industry is as important as water conservancy projects for China to cope with its water shortage,” Li said.”

via Seawater can save thirsty country[1]|chinadaily.com.cn.

Solar Desalination: Creating new sources of water with the power of the sun (ecoseed.org)
Desalination comes of age with Poseidon Plant (utsandiego.com)

Posted in Economics, water security | Leave a Comment »

Tags: China, climate, Desalination, desalination industry, environment, National Development and Reform Commission, Reverse osmosis, science, Seawater, seawater desalination, Tianjin, water

06/05/2013

* Indian Supreme Court gives nod to Kudankulam nuclear plant, says it is safe

Thank goodness. India needs all the power it can generate.

Times of India: “In a relief for the Centre and the Tamil Nadu government, the Supreme Court on Monday approved the commissioning of the controversial Kudankulam nuclear plant.

English: Construction site of the Koodankulam Nuclear Power Plant Deutsch: Baustelle des Kernkraftwerks Kudankulam (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Kudankulam plant is safe and secure and it is necessary for larger public interest and economic growth of the country, the SC said.

“Nuclear power plants are needed in the country for the present and future generations,” observed the apex bench.

The apex court said that the Kudankulam N-plant has been set up by the government for the welfare of the people.

A bench of justices K S Radhakrishnan and Dipak Misra, which had reserved the verdict following marathon arguments in the last three months, delivered the judgement.

A batch of petitions was filed by anti-nuclear activists challenging the project on the ground that safety measures recommended for the plant by an expert body have not been put in place.

They also raised various questions pertaining to the disposal of nuclear waste, the plant’s impact on the environment and the safety of people living nearby, besides other issues linked to the controversial plant.

The Centre, Tamil Nadu government and Nuclear Power Corporation of India Ltd, which operates the plant, had refuted all the allegations on safety and security aspects.

They had submitted that the plant is completely safe and can withstand any kind of natural disaster and external terrorist attack.”

via SC gives nod to Kudankulam nuclear plant, says it is safe – The Times of India.

Posted in Construction, Economics, Electricity, energy, Good news, greenhouse gas, India alert, Infrastructure | Leave a Comment »

Tags: environment, India, Koodankulam, Kudankulam, Nuclear Power Corporation of India, nuclear power plant, politics, science, Supreme Court, Tamil Nadu government

05/05/2013

* Plans to Harness China’s Nu River Threaten a Region

NY Times: “From its crystalline beginnings as a rivulet seeping from a glacier on the Tibetan Himalayas to its broad, muddy amble through the jungles of Myanmar, the Nu River is one of Asia’s wildest waterways, its 1,700-mile course unimpeded as it rolls toward the Andaman Sea.

The Nu River at Bingzhongluo, China. The government stunned environmentalists by reviving plans to build dams on the river. More Photos »

But the Nu’s days as one of the region’s last free-flowing rivers are dwindling. The Chinese government stunned environmentalists this year by reviving plans to build a series of hydropower dams on the upper reaches of the Nu, the heart of a Unesco World Heritage site in China’s southwest Yunnan Province that ranks among the world’s most ecologically diverse and fragile places.

Critics say the project will force the relocation of tens of thousands of ethnic minorities in the highlands of Yunnan and destroy the spawning grounds for a score of endangered fish species. Geologists warn that constructing the dams in a seismically active region could threaten those living downstream. Next month, Unesco is scheduled to discuss whether to include the area on its list of endangered places.

Among the biggest losers could be the millions of farmers and fishermen across the border in Myanmar and Thailand who depend on the Salween, as the river is called in Southeast Asia, for their sustenance. “We’re talking about a cascade of dams that will fundamentally alter the ecosystems and resources for downstream communities that depend on the river,” said Katy Yan, China program coordinator at International Rivers, an advocacy group.

Suspended in 2004 by Wen Jiabao, then the prime minister, and officially resuscitated shortly before his retirement in March, the project is increasing long-simmering regional tensions over Beijing’s plans to dam or divert a number of rivers that flow from China to other thirsty nations in its quest to bolster economic growth and reduce the country’s dependency on coal.

According to its latest energy plan, the government aims to begin construction on about three dozen hydroelectric projects across the country, which together will have more than twice the hydropower capacity of the United States.

via Plans to Harness China’s Nu River Threaten a Region – NYTimes.com.

Member of the National Committee of CPPCC urges hydro development on the Nu River (journal.probeinternational.org)
China-backed dams escalating ethnic tension in Myanmar (eco-business.com)
Karen Communities Demand Halt to Salween River Dams (irrawaddy.org)
Bring China in on a rule-based Asian regional water order (dailystar.com.lb)
China’s great water wall (washingtontimes.com)
What happens when Asia’s ‘water tower’ dries up (eenews.net)

Posted in China alert, Construction, Economics, Electricity, energy, water scarcity | 1 Comment »

Tags: Asia, Burma, China, environment, Salween River, unesco world heritage, unesco world heritage site, Yunnan

CHINDIA ALERT: You'll be living in their world, very soon

Chindia Alert: You’ll be Living in their World Very Soon

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Posts tagged ‘environment’

China to issue new plan for air pollution control

* Xi pledges to safeguard the environment

* Myanmar Pipeline Puts China Ahead in Energy Shipping Dilemma

* Should China Try to Feed Itself?

* China’s Vision for a ‘New’ Urbanization

* Indian farm sector to lose 4 million workers in 12th Plan period

* 2,400 MTonnes wheat rotting in govt granaries for past 2 years

* Seawater can save thirsty country

* Indian Supreme Court gives nod to Kudankulam nuclear plant, says it is safe

* Plans to Harness China’s Nu River Threaten a Region

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