US experts have suggested China's air pollution controls should
start with caps on the sulphur dioxide emissions of coal power
stations.
Nearly half of China's cities have heavily polluted air,
according to the State Environmental Protection Administration
(SEPA).
Yesterday SEPA Deputy Director Zhang Lijun told an international
seminar on air quality management in Beijing that in most cities
with a population more than 1 million, the percentages of sulphur
dioxide and particles far exceeded the standard.
In response to the problem US researchers have suggested coal
power plants need to be tackled first.
"Coal-fired power plants are major sources of sulphur dioxide,
and it would be a good idea to start with them in the air pollution
control campaign," said John Chang, team leader of indoor air
research with the United States Environmental Protection
Agency.
Chang and 65 other US experts were in Beijing for the seventh
Sino-US Technology and Engineering Conference. They also visited
two demonstration power plants fitted with advanced
desulphurization facilities.
"We were told that more coal-fired power plants would install
desulphurization equipment," said Chang. "The government is
determined to control air pollution, but the key will be whether
these power plants permanently adopt the equipment."
The government plans to cap sulphur dioxide emissions at 23
million tons by 2010, according to the 11th Five-Year Plan.
Coal-fired power plants alone emit more than 60 per cent of the
total sulphur dioxide pollution, with SEPA statistics showing that
16 million tons out of the total 25.5 million tons of sulphur
dioxide was emitted by coal power stations.
China currently lacks a continuous emission monitoring system to
provide data and a basis for implementing a reward-punishment
system for power stations, said Chang.
(China Daily October 25, 2006)
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