Environmental officials in east China's Fujian Province identified 565 factories
yesterday that have problems that could easily pose threats to the
environment.
The list is the result of an inspection of more than 2,300
factories located in 103 water source areas. The survey, which
began in December, involved more than 7,000 enforcement
officials.
The factories were found to have committed violations that could
have led to environmental crises. Twenty-seven factories with
serious environmental security problems were ordered to improve
their facilities.
Xiamen Papermaking Co Ltd, cited as the worst example, was
ordered to shut down, the provincial environmental protection
bureau said.
"Any emergency probably leading to the pollution of potable
water sources must be reported to local government or bureau within
one hour after confirmation on site," said Chen Ning, the bureau's
vice-director .
The bureau said it carried out another inspection in January,
but little rectification has been done so far, and problems found
during the inspection still haunted the local environment.
There are many reasons, Chen said. Some factories do not make
environmental protection a priority. They have poor management, and
their environmental protection facilities do not function
effectively.
Some pollutants were still being improperly discharged, and
hazardous waste was not getting proper treatment.
Improper industrial distribution and weak supervision are also
contributing to harm the environment, the bureau said.
It is requiring that supervision and enforcement be
strengthened. Factories discharging pollutants against rules and
producing environmental crises should be strictly punished, the
bureau said.
Fujian will conduct other environmental inspections frequently
in the next two or three years, Chen said.
The province is calculating how much it will spend to improve
the environment, especially the water sources.
(China Daily April 12, 2006)