Six petrochemical companies in east China's Jiangsu Province, including the Yangtze Petrochemical Company and Jinling Petrochemical Company, are under orders by the State Environmental Protection Administration (SEPA) to improve waste treatment and reduce pollution in the Yangtze and other rivers. An additional 1.62 billion yuan (US$157 million) has been allocated for environmental safety facilities at the 20 projects.
SEPA had launched a comprehensive national review of chemical and petrochem projects near major water areas from February 7, inspecting 127 projects. 20 large plants were found with grave environmental safety problems, including 11 along the Yangtze, China's longest waterway, one on the Yellow River and two at the Daya Bay, involving the sectors of oil refining, ethylene and methanol. Early last year, SEPA suspended construction on 30 large projects with a total investment of 117.9 billion yuan on the grounds of environmental protection, a move demonstrating the government's resolve to stop pollution at source and to achieve sustainable development.
These measures are a response to the Songhua River incident, after which SEPA embarked upon a nationwide inspection on environmental safety and launched trials in ten provinces and municipalities, including Beijing, to calculate GDP taking environmental factors into account.
10-Apr-06 
{{comment.DateTimeStampDisplay}}
{{comment.Comments}}