China will invest 10 billion yuan (US$1.2 billion) over the next
five years to curb further pollution of the northeastern Songhua
River, according to a plan approved by China's State Council on Wednesday.
The plan is to prevent and control pollution in the
drainage area of the river, which flows into a river on the
China-Russia border. The executive meeting of the State Council
chaired by Premier
Wen Jiabao also ordered the launch of a series
of projects to tackle industrial sources of pollution and treat
urban sewage.
A senior official with the State Environment
Protection Administration (
SEPA) said the plan will include more than 200 projects,
among which 100 or more will work on industry-related pollution.
The main aim of the projects is to reduce chemical oxygen depletion
(COD) by 70,000 tons each year.
Seventy projects will focus on improving facilities
for sewage processing and they are expected to handle three million
tons of sewage every day.
The executive meeting also stressed that "priority
shall be given to treatment and protection of drinking water
sources in large and medium-sized cities to ensure safety of
drinking water and water quality of the China-Russia border
river."
Priority cities include Harbin, Changchun, Jilin,
Qiqihar, Daqing, Jiamusi, and Mudanjiang, an official with the
State Development and Reform Commission said.
He noted that the plan has proposed concrete
measures to insure pollution control work and set targets to be
achieved by 2010, which include:
-- Sources of drinking water in large and
medium-sized cities in the area should be treated and put under
protection.
-- Tasks to treat urban sewage of major cities and
major sources of industrial pollution should be fulfilled.
-- Major pollution hazards should be effectively
controlled and monitored. Total volume of discharge of major
pollutants should be effectively controlled.
-- Water quality of seriously polluted water bodies
in large and medium-sized cities should be improved.
-- Monitoring of water quality and water pollution
early-warning and emergency response mechanisms in this area should
be improved markedly.
The Communist Party of China Central Committee and the State Council
attach great importance to the prevention and control of pollution
in this area and has put it on the 11th Five-Year (2006-2010) Guideline for
national economic and social development.
"Doing the job well is of great significance to
reinvigorating the old industrial base of northeast China, boosting
coordinated economic and social development and improving people's
lives," it was said at the meeting.
Also on Wednesday, SEPA announced that there were
another 73 water pollution cases following the Songhua River
incident. SEPA Deputy Director Pan Yue said more active measures
will be taken to monitor pollution, and more severe punishment will
be meted out to those found responsible.
An accident at an upstream chemical plant severely
polluted the Songhua River last November. Cities along the river
were forced to temporarily suspend drawing water from the river, a
major water source, affecting the lives of millions of residents
and the normal operation of businesses.
(Xinhua News Agency March 30, 2006)