Leaders of China's governments and major companies have been put
on notice that energy efficiency and pollutant discharge reduction
will be key factors in their performance assessments, the State
Council, or cabinet, officially warned on Sunday.
Energy efficiency and pollutant discharge reduction should be
set as indices for assessing economic and social development in all
localities and the performance of government and company leaders,
the State Council said in a circular.
They will receive a negative performance assessment if they fail
to reach goals for energy efficiency and pollutant discharge
reduction regardless of achievements in other fields.
Last year, the government set a goal to reduce energy
consumption per unit of gross domestic product (GDP) by 20 percent
and major pollutants discharge by 10 percent in the 11th five-year
plan period ending 2010.
Under the goal, the nation must cut energy consumption per unit
of GDP by four percent and discharges of major pollutants by two
percent last year.
But the country fell short of the targets, said Premier Wen
Jiabao in his government work report to the national legislature in
March.
Nobody has been blamed nor taken responsibility for the
failure.
The "excessively fast" growth of electricity, steel, nonferrous
metals, construction materials, oil processing and chemical
industries in the first quarter created difficulties in fulfilling
the goal, said the circular on the government General Work Plan
for Energy Conservation and Pollutant Discharge Reduction.
The six industries account for nearly 70 percent of the entire
industrial sector's energy consumption and sulfur dioxide
discharges, which grew by 20.6 percent in the first quarter, 6.6
percentage points higher than the same period a year earlier.
China has paid "a huge cost in terms of resources and the
environment" for its rapid economic growth, and the people "have
many complaints about environmental pollution", said the
circular.
Meanwhile, greenhouse gas emissions have contributed to global
warming and aroused great concern in the international
community.
"Greater efforts for efficiency and discharge reduction are
urgently needed to deal with global weather changes and a
responsibility we should shoulder," it added.
"If we fail to take immediate measures to reverse the situation,
it will be difficult for us not only to make obvious progress in
energy saving and discharge reduction this year, but also to reach
the overall goal for the 11th five-year plan period," the circular
said.
To ensure energy efficiency and discharge reduction, the State
Council issued the General Work Plan, asking all local
authorities, government departments and major companies to report
their own detailed plans before June 30.
Authorities and government departments should give priority to
energy efficiency and discharge reduction, making them a major
means to evaluate positive economic development, said the
circular.
"We should make sure that the economy grows on the basis of
energy and resource conservation and environmental protection."
The goal for energy efficiency and discharge reduction is an
index to enhance government responsibility and "it is the
government's solemn commitment to the people to reach the goal", it
said.
Officials who violate laws and regulations on energy
conservation and environmental protection will be prosecuted.
The circular also asked enterprises to pledge to the government
that they will fulfill their goals for energy efficiency and
discharge reduction.
Enterprises that illegally discharge pollutants will be fined
heavily and their leaders and staff responsible will be prosecuted,
it said.
The State Council has set up a leading group to oversee the
national efforts for energy efficiency and discharge reduction.
Its major tasks are to make plans for energy saving and
discharge reduction and coordinate help to resolve major problems
arising in the process, said the circular, without naming the
leading group members.
The office of the leading group will be in the National
Development and Reform Commission. The State Environment Protection
Administration is authorized to deal with issues related to
pollution control and discharge reduction.
Major energy efficiency/pollution control?targets
of the General Work Plan for the year 2010:
-- Energy consumption per 10,000-yuan of gross domestic product
reduced from 1.22 tons of standard coal in 2005 to below one ton,
down by about 20 percent;
-- Water consumption per unit of industrial value added reduced
by 30 percent;
-- Discharge of major pollutants reduced by 10 percent;
-- Discharge of sulfur dioxide reduced from 25.49 million tons
in 2005 to 22.95 million tons;
-- Chemical oxygen demand (COD) reduced from 14.14 million tons
in 2005 to 12.73 million tons;
-- The ratio of national urban treated sewage reaching at least
70 percent;
-- The ratio of comprehensive utilization of industrial solid
wastes reaching 60 percent or more.
-- Daily urban sewage treatment capacity increased by 45 million
tons;
-- Daily recycled water utilization capacity increased by 6.8
million tons;
-- Capacity to reduce chemical oxygen demand (COD) increased by
three million tons;
-- Putting into operation desulfurization units with a combined
capacity of 355 million kilowatts;
-- Building coal gangue-fueled power plants with a combined
generating capacity of 20 million kilowatts.
Major energy efficiency/pollution control targets of the
General Work Plan for the year 2007:
-- Daily urban sewage treatment capacity increased by 12 million
tons;
-- Daily recycled water utilization capacity increased by one
million tons;
-- Capacity to reduce chemical oxygen demand (COD) increased by
600,000 tons;
-- Putting into operation desulfurization units with a combined
capacity of 35 million kilowatts;
-- Starting construction of coal gangue-fueled power plants with
a combined generating capacity of five million kilowatts.
(Xinhua News Agency June 3, 2007)