It's official: China holds world record for pollution
The highly industrialized Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region is also the most polluted. The problem stems from development model and the few investments in the environment sector. The government’s broken promises.
Beijing (AsiaNews) - China has the world record on all types of pollution: sulfur dioxide, nitrogen gas, carbon emissions. In particular, the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region, the most industrialized, is also one of the most polluted on the planet.
This is what the Chief engineer of the Chinese Academy for Environmental planning, Wang Jinnan, said at a gathering of companies specialized in the "green economy " in Guangdong and reported by the Legal Daily yesterday.
Wang said that this year it would take 1.75 trillion yuan (about 237 billion Euros) to reduce pollution in accordance with the plans established by the government, but there is not a lot of investment in this regard.
Wang expressed concern at the increasing levels of PM2.5 pollutants - particulate matter - which in a few years has reduced in visibility in Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei to 50 km.
According to Ministry of Industry official Lei Wen, the problem lies in the model of industrial production, which fosters intensive exploitation, with a high polluting impact. Another problem is the lack of government spending on the environment.
The central government has pledged to spend at least 1.5% of GDP (gross domestic product) to protect the environment. But so far, in recent years, that expenditure has been around 1%.
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