China should avoid wasting natural resources in its economic development, says an article in China Youth Daily. An excerpt follows:

Worries over China's economic development mode have been eminent recently. The flourishing of "Made in China" goods and the ever-soaring GDP growth rate have been, to some extent, achieved at the expense of environmental degradation and the squandering of natural resources, so experts claim.

China's resources consumption is substantial, while the quantity of its wasted resources is formidable. Take the iron and steel industry for example: the energy costs of producing 1 ton of steel in China are twice as much as in other countries such as Japan and South Korea.

Local government bodies should be blamed for the formation of China's development mode based on high resource consuming, as they are overwhelmed by a profit-comes-first mentality. For example, electrically operated motorcycles, which are very environmentally-friendly and energy-saving, are not allowed to be driven on the road in some cities.

On the other hand, highly polluting and energy-consuming motorbikes are met by no such restrictions.

China should not be over-optimistic about its swelling foreign investment, some of which is lured by China's cheap labor and cheap natural resources. One foreign businessman who invested in China said the raw materials he needed were strictly protected in his own country but sold cheaply in China.

China will pay a dire price for such a resource-wasting development mode. According to a World Bank report, the waste of resources and environmental pollution induce a big loss in industrial output and people's health.

If China's resources reserves decline dramatically as a result of over-exploitation, the nation will be forced to rely on imported resources. The issue is one that truly makes us nervous and deserves immediate countermeasures.

(China Daily May 16, 2005)