The United Nations Development Program (UNDP) yesterday launched in Beijing its China National Human Development Report 2002, saying the country now stands at a "crossroads" in the path to sustainable development.

The third annual report, with the theme - "Making Greening Development a Choice," said the country needs to take immediate action to choose the "green reform path," which is a pro-active, people-centered approach to sustainability.

Arno Rosemarin, communications director from the Stockholm Environment Institute and team leader for the report project, said China has the power to carry out reform, and "the exciting thing is that they are taking action."

Kerstin Leitner, resident representative for UNDP China, also said the trend over the past 10 year has indicated China can manage to pull itself away from a perilous future.

Yue Ruisheng, vice-director of the International Co-operation Department under the State Environmental Protection Administration, yesterday commented on the report saying China is committed to choosing a "green path."

The Chinese Government has been highlighting its sustainable development strategy as a basic national policy since 1992, emphasizing a good co-ordination of social development, economic growth and environmental protection.

According to the report, China, achieving an average economic growth rate of 10 percent over the past two decades, is now facing a "monumental" challenge to sustainable development under pressure from a rapid transition toward a market-based economy and high-speed urban modernization.

Nearly 700 million Chinese people do not have access to safe water and less than one-tenth of urban waste water is treated, according to the report.

More than 2,500 square kilometers of land in China is turned into desert annually, directly affecting the lives of 110 million people.

The report urged the Chinese Government to further expand and enrich its legislative and regulatory framework for environmental protection.

The report also encouraged more market work for environmental issues, which prove to be more economical compared with administrative efforts.

The business community can also play an enormous role in improving the environment.

(China Daily June 29, 2002)