Chinas Environment - Case Study Example

China’s environment Beginning in the late 1970s, China’s communist regime began changing its policies from a Sovietstyle centralized economy to a more free market oriented economy. The reforms led to privatization of agriculture, increased foreign investment and emergence of private enterprises. While China has witnessed tremendous economic growth, rising industrialization and development has come at a cost to the environment. The Chinese government has failed to implement effective legislation and regulations to prevent environmental degradation. The government has failed to achieve a balance between development needs and environmental issues (Edmonds, 51). Rapid economic development has led to reduction in land that can be cultivated. According to current studies China has lost more than 44.1 million hectares of land since the 1980s. Many jungles, fisheries and ponds have been destroyed. The majority of China’s forests and jungles are suffering from deforestation and destruction. Desertification and salinization are other major problems affecting arable land. Large areas of the Yangtze River have lost its volume. Environmental problems which have affected China’s arable land have led to scarcity of water and diminished agricultural production capacity. Serious concerns have been raised about China’s ability to feed its rising population. Soil erosion, desertification, water scarcity, deforestation are some of the major environmental problems faced by China (Edmonds, 53). China’s rising industrial capacity has led to pollution which threatens the environment. Industrial waste products make up a large portion of pollution in China. Waste products have been released into the environment without proper processing methods. Textile, mining, food, paper, oil industries are the leading producers of waste products which have been dumped into the Huang River. The lack of enforcement of environmental regulation laws had led to the spread of pollution by the industrial sector. China’s industries also lack the modern technology to process industrial waste products. China has ample resources of oil and coal. However it consumes more energy than it produces. A thriving economy has also fed the need for energy resources. This has led to the degradation of the environment. Coal is the main source of energy for China. The demand for crude oil and electricity has increased with the rise in industries. China consumes about 9 percent of the world’s oil supply. It is increasingly dependant upon foreign producers for oil and energy supply (Edmonds, 56). Water is life for China’s huge population which is approximately one quarter of the world’s total population. Rapid economic growth has led to an increase in water pollution. The dumping of waste products by industries in China’s water supplies has significantly reduced their volumes. Water is also not utilized properly. China’s Yangtze River has become the world’s largest natural sewer. An estimated twenty billion tons of waste products are released into the river annually. Severe flooding has further led to losses and degradation of the environment. China’s urban population does not have access to safe water. The water is highly contaminated in the urban areas. A majority of China’s cities suffer from water problems (Edmonds, 59). China is constructing the largest hydroelectric dam on the Yangtze River. This project is known as the “Three Gorges Dam”. The dam once completed is expected to carry many benefits. China’s dependence on coal would be reduced and electricity would be produced in abundance (Morton, 23s). However the project has its critics also. The World Bank did not finance the project despite a record of having financed dams in developing countries. Critics say that the dam will have a negative impact on China’s environment and habitat. Large species of animals could become extinct or endangered. Deforestation, increase in volume of flooding, slow flow of water and weakening of self cleaning process would be affected. China’s air is severely polluted. Carbon Dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide and chlorofluorocarbon are the major causes of pollution. Air pollution has caused many illnesses. Respiratory, skin, eye and heart problems are caused by air pollution. China’s food supply has also been severely affected. Air pollution has caused a decline in China’s agriculture production. It is forecasted that air pollution will continue to increase in China due to its great consumption of coal. China’s massive population has found many new opportunities to increase their standard of living by working for foreign enterprises and opening their own industries. However this has also produced a negative impact on the population. Most village industries are major generators of pollution. An increase in the living standards of China’s population has fueled a demand for quality food, water, electricity, vehicles, electrical appliances and air conditioners. This adversely affects the environment. More demand for consumer products fuel an increasing demand for new factories producing those goods. This in turn leads to more pollution. The use of fertilizers in agriculture further adds to environment degradation (Morton, 2005). China has witnessed tremendous growth in industry, agriculture and energy sectors. A huge creation of rural factories has also led to environmental degradation of lakes, forests, ecosystems, ponds, forests, jungles and coastal areas. The government has focused on economic development at the expense of the environment (Morton, 32). China’s government has opened up its markets and given autonomy at the provincial and district levels to promote economic growth. Therefore the result has been zeal in striving for economic development. This has led to adverse conditions for the environment. Rural populations have been displaced to make way for economic development projects. The number of hectares of cultivable land has been reduced. Industries have proliferated in the villages. These industries have been dumping waste products into the environment. Air pollution has caused extensive illnesses amongst China’s population. China cannot prevent environment degradation by emphasizing on economic development. Advances in science and technology could benefit China in pursuing sustainable development policies. But so far it has refused to sign international treaties and agreements that strive to reduce green gas emissions, pollution and pursue sustainable economic development. Chinese government officials have countered that removing poverty and pursuing economic development are more important concerns for the government. China continues to focus on heavy industries which are the major sources of pollution and environment destruction. China has more than 100,000 enterprises which are involved in protecting the environment. Foreign companies can help promote environment friendly policies in China (Morton, 29). China has many laws regulating environment protection but the courts are unable to enforce them due to vested interests. China’s government is slowly realizing the need for regulation that protects the environment. The Chinese government has in recent years invested heavily in protecting the environment. In the recent five year plan, the government announced that they would invest 500 billion yuan for the treatment of industrial waste products, minimizing pollution and pursuing environment friendly policies. The government has also launched a public campaign to educate its citizens about protecting the environment. An official forum has also been created for discussing environmental issues. Despite extensive efforts to protect the environment, the Chinese government remains committed to economic development. Environment and economic issues are tackled by higher Chinese officials where the economy is given preference over the former (Morton, 37). The 1970s and 1980s saw the rise of organizations that were dedicated to protecting the environment. The Chinese government has created organizations at the provincial, district and village level to address environment issues. These agencies have developed guidelines, policies and procedures for the environment. NGOs have also proliferated which have launched their own campaigns to educate the people living in rural areas about the environment. They have organized activities like recycling and cleaning up waste. Universities and colleges have seen student groups advocating environmental protection. However many of these organizations cannot operate freely due to the authoritarian political structure of China. China’s heavily regulated media does not allow unlimited freedom of expression. Therefore many of these organizations face tough pressure in addressing environmental issues (Cannon, 42). China’s environmental organizations suffer from their inability to coordinate their activities with other agencies. They also have been unable to enforce environment friendly policies due to government support for economic development. Local Chinese government is pressurized by the State government to pursue economic development projects at the expense of the environment. The lack of financial resources has also hampered the ability of organizations to carry out their work sufficiently. Other serious shortcomings are lack of trained staff and low fines against pollution which do not help in covering the financial costs (Cannon, 44). China’s National Environmental Protection Agency is the supreme organization which is tasked with coordinating and standardizing environment friendly policies and organizations. However this is only on paper. Other environment organizations have pursued their own independent policies related to the environment. Further local agencies are influenced by officials who favor economic development over the environment. Local officials own many industries which makes it difficult to enforce environment friendly policies. The Academy for Green Culture now known as Friends of Nature was the first Chinese environment NGO. It was created in 1994. Other significant environment NGOs includes Global Village of Beijing and Green Home. Currently there is 4000 environment NGOs in China. These NGOs have launched campaigns like tree planting and recycling. They have also been active in protecting species (Cannon, 46). China’s environment NGOs faces many problems due to bureaucracy and red tape. The process of registration is still slow and cumbersome. Under Chinese law an NGO can be registered only if a government department sponsors it. They also face financial difficulties because of lacking of funding. There has been limited support from the government in funding these NGOs. These organizations raise funds either by donations or organizing their own fund raising campaigns. These NGOs are unable to enforce environmental friendly policies. The powerful industries are backed by local officials and enjoy vast support from the central government. China’s environment NGOs are studying from Western organizations about their influence and professionalism. Western NGOs have been able to focus on specific activities rather than attempting to tackle everything. They also have been able to influence their governments about pursuing environment friendly policies (Cannon, 49). China’s environment NGOs have been seeking to educate the people and raise awareness amongst them. They have also been actively seeking the support of the Chinese government in enforcing environmental regulation laws. The NGOs have been instrumental in monitoring the environment and raising awareness amongst the people about the environment (Cannon, 53). Despite being a tightly controlled authoritarian society, the Chinese government has allowed NGOs and media to raise concerns about the environment. The Chinese government has actively encouraged grassroots environmental organizations that can educate the masses about the environment. However these organizations are tightly monitored to prevent any political dissent from using these organizations as platforms for political change. Chinese environmental NGOs refrain from talking about political issues and instead focus on activities like protecting endangered species, conservation and protecting endangered species. These NGOs have also worked with local officials trying to persuade them to pursue environment friendly policies (Cannon, 55). Newspapers, magazines and TV have also been allowed by the Chinese government to talk about environment issues. Newspapers have written articles about deforestation, soil erosion, flooding, contamination and air pollution. Special programs have been broadcast in which protecting the environment has been emphasized. For instance battery recycling programs helped influence people to create such programs in their cities and towns. The media has also highlighted government corruption and tried to convince the government not to pursue environment degradation policies. The international community has been working hard to cooperate with China in preventing environment degradation. The Chinese government has also played an active role in cooperating with the international community. China can become a success story for other developing countries pursuing economic development if it successfully implements a sustainable development program (Cannon, 56). China has been involved with international efforts to protect the environment. It has participated in numerous seminars, conferences and conventions where environment issues have been discussed. Many international organizations have been helpful in promoting environment friendly policies. There have been efforts to protect endangered species (Cannon, 57). International organizations have also been giving technical and financial assistance to China to help protect the environment. The World Bank has assisted China in loans which have been used in environment management. Organizations are also investing in science and technology to help the Chinese in preventing environment degradation. The World Bank has provided more than US$1 billion in assistance to China to develop its forest sector. The World Bank has assisted China in many agricultural and irrigation projects. Major efforts have been undertaken to plant forests. Farmers have been encouraged to participate as part of poverty eradication programs. Despite this progress, China is still pursuing policies which favor economic development over environment issues. China’s national interest is to eradicate poverty and to develop the economy. China has also been reluctant to implement international standards and procedures for environment regulation and management. China is pursuing those environment management policies which are compatible with its economic development program and do not infringe on its national sovereignty. China has made many commitments to adhere to international standards and regulations regarding the environment but it has been slow to implement them. It faces formidable technological and financial limitations in properly implementing environment regulation policies. The international community while applauding the vision and concerns of the Chinese government has also observed its slackness in preventing environment degradation (Shapiro, 27). The Chinese government has in recent years tried to obtain assistance and expertise from the international community. Japan has been a major provider of aid for environment management and regulation. Other Asian and international organizations have also provided expertise and aid to help China fight environment degradation. Extensive projects have been funded for preventing pollution, protecting endangered species and encouraging the use of organic fertilizers. Many multinational companies which have investments in China have been promoting environment friendly policies. Foreign companies have been crucial in providing science and technology to better treat industrial waste products and prevent contamination of the environment. However despite progress many foreign companies have ignored environmental concerns. Still the international community has played an important role in transferring resources, expertise and financial assistance to the Chinese government to fight environment degradation. China’s government has 30 environment regulation laws. It has also passed several environment standards, policies and procedures (Horton, 23). There is still room for improvement in the quality of these laws. Public opinion has also been invited on government websites which is a major achievement for the country’s closed political system. However despite these improvements the lack of effective enforcement, political factors, emphasis on economic development and untrained judges and lawyers makes it difficult to implement these environment regulation laws. There has also been a growth of legal non government environment organizations. These organizations have trained lawyers in environment regulation laws, litigation cases and helped pollution victims get compensation from industries. Political and legal hurdles however somehow limit the efforts of such organizations to fight environment degradation. China’s government has been taking some drastic steps to reduce pollution. The Pearl River is being cleaned up as a major project. Many sewerage treatment plants have been constructed near the river. Major industries have been shifted away from the river. The efforts are impressive but it still has to go a long way to compare with advanced countries (Shapiro, 25). References: Edmonds, Richard Louis (2005). Managing the Chinese Environment (Studies on Contemporary China). US: Oxford University Press. Morton, Katherine (2005). International Aid And Chinas Environment: Taming the Yellow Dragon. US: Routledge. Cannon, Terry (2005). Chinas Economic Growth: The Impact on Regions, Migration and the Environment. US: Routledge. Shapiro, Judith (2005). Maos War against Nature: Politics and the Environment in Revolutionary China (Studies in Environment and History). US: Cambridge University Press. Horton, Peter (2007). China Investment Environment & Strategies: The Key to Winning in the Greater China Market. US: Cambridge University Press. Read More