China's Ocean Pollution Growing Worse - China Daily

[hatrack]

EDIT

"The most heavily polluted areas are concentrated along the coastline, and include Bohai Bay and the mouth of the Yangtze, he said. Lying off the coast of North China, one of the country's most populous and developed areas, the Bohai Sea has witnessed the highest increase of pollution levels. An area of 27,000 square kilometres, accounting for 35 per cent of its waters, failed to reach clean water standards.

Discharge of land waste through ocean dumping is the major cause of ocean pollution, said (ed. State Oceanic Administration spokesman Chunxian) Li. The report revealed 80 per cent of sea areas near effluent outlets were heavily polluted. Resulting pollution has caused the closure of beaches and limited the recreational and aesthetic value of the sea.

What is more, most of the seafood harvested from the ocean comes from inshore waters and the pollution has affected aquatic products. "Pollution has undermined the multiple functions of the sea," he said.

In 2004, major pollutants carried by rivers such as the Yellow River and the Yangtze into the sea weighed 11.45 million tons. Li said land waste pollution, together with over-exploitation of resources had worsened the eco-system."

EDIT

http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/english/doc/2005-01/10/content_407389.htm

[NNadir]

1. China is of course, the poster child for the concept of "too many people."

At least though, the Chinese are trying to do something about their population problem - and their environmental problems, despite huge environmental set backs like the three Gorges Dam (probably one of the biggest diliberate environmental disasters of the late 20th century).

They know, it seems, that they can't breed forever, and that they can't burn coal forever. They are filthy by necessity, but we are filthy by choice. There is something of a moral difference there, I think.

The real question, on which the fate of the earth might well depend, is can they act fast enough on what they are learning?