A plan for achieving ecological balance in the Pearl River Delta is expected to be completed within the year, according to a spokesman for the Guangdong provincial government.

The spokesman said the provincial government would cooperate with the State Environmental Protection Administration (SEPA) in producing three plans on environmental protection, in the Pearl River Delta, Guangdong Province, and the greater region of Guangdong, Hong Kong and Macao.

He said a panel of over 30 specialists have been invited to work on the plan in the Pearl River Delta, and the China Environmental Planning Institute has been put in charge of compilation of the plan.

After conducting investigative tours of nine cities within the Pearl River Delta, where the economy is the most advanced in the country as a result of processing trade, the specialists concluded pollution had become quite serious amid fast economic development of the past two decades and needed to be addressed immediately.

It is estimated that the per capita gross domestic product (GDP) of the delta will reach US$7,000 by the year 2010, and will surge to US$12,000 by 2020. By then, the region will step into a new round of fast economic growth.

However, experiences from foreign countries suggest that when a society has reached the level of the Pearl River Delta, heavy industry will be boosted, which will in turn have a negative impact on the environment.

The specialist suggested that recycling be introduced into economic development and urban construction in the Pearl River Delta, and efforts be made to turn the delta into a galaxy of ecologically balanced cities in 20 to 30 years by way of expediting regional industrial restructuring.

In accordance with the guidelines of the preliminary outlines worked out by the specialists, the Pearl River Delta will be made into a national sustainable development model by 2020.

(Xinhua News Agency September 2, 2003)