Nation to launch 2nd pollution survey
Data will help develop diversified approach to environmental protection
China will begin its second national survey on pollution sources in 2017, which analysts said will help the country adopt diversified measures to combat new sources of environmental pollution.
According to an announcement by the State Council, the general survey, which is conducted every 10 years, will involve a thorough investigation into all possible pollution sources, including industrial, agricultural and household pollutants and emissions.
The survey will identify types and sources of pollutants and emissions, and check environmental facilities. It also requires investigators to accurately report the situation and not to fabricate or modify data.
Li Zuojun, an environmental expert at the Development Research Center of the State Council, told the Global Times on Thursday that China’s environmental conditions have changed greatly in the last 10 years and this general survey will help the government better understand the current environmental situation and make policies to combat new sources of pollution.
“More importantly, it will help policymakers to take differentiated measures to effectively solve regional problems,” said Li.
An official from the Ministry of Environmental Protection ( MEP) told media on Thursday that the current survey will monitor the whole process, including training of investigators, inspection of pollution sources, and collection and reporting of data, to ensure accuracy.
The official also said that satellite remote sensing and unmanned aerial vehicle will be used for the investigation.
Regional variations in development may affect the accuracy of data since China lacks experience in conducting a thorough survey on pollution sources. Also, the survey may be opposed by some organs or individuals who fear their interests might be threatened.
“Although the survey may affect economic development in a short term, local governments should support it in order to strengthen measures on environmental protection,” said Li.
China is facing mounting environmental problems.
China’s Ministry of the Water Resources said in a report on monitoring data in January that 80 percent of the water in 2,103 monitored wells is classified as not fit for human consumption.
Moreover, the latest data from the MEP and the Ministry of Land and Resources showed that about 16.1 percent of China’s surveyed land is polluted by heavy metals, including cadmium, arsenic, lead and mercury.
Under the new Environmental Protection Law which took effect at the start of 2015 and toughened scrutiny on polluters, more than 1.58 million enterprises have been inspected, according to the Xinhua News Agency.
Environmental authorities nationwide have punished 51,000 enterprises for excessive discharge of pollutants and identified 73,400 illegal projects by the end of November, reports said.
More than 2,000 government officials were disciplined and more than 100 violators were detained on criminal pollution charges during an inspection by a central government- deployed supervision team in the strictest environmental law enforcement action ever, Xinhua reported in August.