WiLD Blog

Every industrial boom in history has provided a legacy of environmental damage that takes generations to repair. China is the leading provider of offshore labor in the world and continues to support the global economy by building more coal burning factories each year. The outstanding fact today is that pollution has made cancer the leading cause of death in China. This is stunning when you learn that in China 89,000 people die in road accidents per year, the highest number of automobile related deaths in the world. In 2003 the Chinese Academy of Environmental Planning reported 300,000 deaths from ambient air pollution. This number has no doubt risen since then.  500 million people in China lack access to unpolluted drinking water and only 1% of 560 million city residents breathe ‘safe’ air (according to EU standards). As a result of grim statistics, China’s government has banned the publication of data on the subject in order to subdue social unrest.

With the 2008 Olympics rapidly approaching Beijing is scrambling to find a solution to their toxic grey skies. The U.S. has held the gold metal for leading producer of greenhouse gases for decades but the International Energy Agency has now said that China could become the emissions leader by the end of 2007, emitting over 6 billion tons of carbon dioxide per year.

To the rest of the world it appears that China has accepted the effects of pollution as the norm. In many industrial cities there are few days of the year when the sun is visible through the grey haze. In Zhejiang province China’s coastline is so polluted that algal red tides have wiped out all other marine life. These facts paint a picture of a science fiction novel for us but it is a reality for 1.32 billion Chinese living in this moment.

In direct correlation with massive pollution increase is a record breaking growth in the economy. China’s Communist Party would like to believe that economic growth and prosperity will alleviate pollution. In this case pollution and growth go hand in hand.

Heavy industrial and urban growth requires grave amounts of energy. In China almost 100% of industry is fueled by the most readily available and dirtiest form of energy, coal. Today the world becomes smaller to all of us as scientists disclose meteorological findings in global air circulation. Sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides released by China’s coal powered plants fall as acid rain in Seoul, South Korea, and Tokyo, just to mention a few affected areas. In fact, much of Los Angeles particulate pollution originates in China.

Environmental problems get harder and more expensive to address the longer they remain unresolved. Officials in China blame polluted air and water for social unrest. Health care cost’s increase, water shortages jeopardize farmland, and poverty remains high. But the government is beginning to recognize the long-term effects of environmental neglect. Campaigns have begun to close illegal mines and redesign heavily polluting factories. Also more initiatives have been created to develop solar and wind powered energy sources. President Hu Jintao created a project to measure the G.D.P of districts by factoring in the cost of pollution. This would put real pressure on corrupt officials who have been working for their own financial benefit. After the first results the project was thrown out when G.D.P in many provinces was reduced to zero.

Change is mandatory for China and although market based incentives do not exist, a decrease in emissions has been mandated by Communist Party leaders. A goal of 20% less energy to achieve the same economic activity has been set for 2010. In addition, 10% decrease in mercury, sulfur dioxide and other pollutants must be met in the same period. 

It’s true that Britain, the U.S. and Japan all polluted their way to prosperity and only worried about the problems after their economies matured and a middle class demanded better living conditions. China would like to use this as a free pass to pollution. But the New York Times points out that “China is like a teenage smoker with emphysema”. They haven’t reached economic stability and have reached environmental crisis. There is no western model to follow. China’s environmental scientists recognize the problems facing China today by stating “our greatest achievement is our biggest burden”.

Corina Marks.

Common sense tells us that the greater the population, the greater the amount of food needed to support the population. So, when you read an article that says that the China’s annual grain harvest will decrease by 10% by the year 2030 you might not understand the impact unless it comes to your attention that today China’s population is just over 1.3 billion and is expected to grow to 1.5 billion by 2030. This increase in population will demand an additional 100 million tons of food to survive.

Global warming is expected to decrease China’s annual grain harvest by 10% in 2030. Farmers have concluded that warmer weather shortens the growth period of some grains and seeds do not get sufficient time to ripen. Another effect of a warmer climate is increased pests & insects that consume crops as a food source. Also, increased evaporation of ground water will demand more irrigation and put stress on water supplies. All this could be remedied by extending farmland but unfortunately in China agricultural land has been shrinking due to increasing population and urbanization processes. What does a country do when crop production is decreasing and demand for food is increasing? Genetically modified grains have yielded higher harvests but their long-term sustainability is unknown. 

The Chinese government has publicized a series of reports in recent months on the impact of global warming and it’s effect on China. Water flow from China’s two largest rivers, the Yangtze and the Yellow, has decreased due to shrinking wetlands at the headwaters. Also global warming has caused the glaciers in northwestern China to melt rapidly. The glacier melting provides a large amount of water (along with flooding) in a small amount of time and without sufficient storage facilities and aqueducts the water will be lost.

Here we have numerous facts that pose serious problems for a country plagued by poverty. Global warming will no doubt affect underdeveloped countries more dramatically than western countries who have more money to devote to malleable infrastructure. Scientists are working hard to find the answers but the outcome remains unknown.

Corina Marks.