It Would Take 7% Of GDP For China To Clean Up Pollution From 2004 Alone

[hatrack]

BEIJING - It would cost China about US$136 billion, close to 7 percent of GDP, to clean up all the pollution pumped out in the country just in 2004, the national environmental protection watchdog said on Thursday.

A one-off, direct investment to clean up all the pollution for that year would cost 1.08 trillion yuan (US$135.9 billion), with most of that being put towards water pollution, according to the report on the State Environmental Protection Administration's Web site (www.zhb.gov.cn).

"These are figures that are extremely alarming, and show the environmental situation is very serious," Pan Yue, head of the environment watchdog, said in the report, adding that the real cost of pollution was likely higher. "The numbers show once again that the environmental crisis is an increasingly serious constraint on economic development," the report said. "Although this type of high consumption, high pollution, high risk development style has had a certain historical use, our economy has now entered a bottleneck period for resources and energy," it said.

The report issued a stark warning that words to clean up China's filthy environment must be followed by action. But it did not contain an estimate for 2005, nor did it provide any forward-looking predictions.

EDIT

http://www.planetark.com/dailynewsstory.cfm/newsid/38017/story.htm

[Deja Q]

1. Money vs Life.

:shrug:

[madrchsod]

2. the problem is corruption from the local shop to the government official

china has tough laws and the central government is committed to cleaning up the country. if i remember correctly those found guilty of "deaths by pollution" are executed. only one case that i know of in the usa has anyone been charged with murder of their workers or the general population.