China's Green Talk Founders On Corruption, Greed, Business Pressure - Asia Times

[hatrack]

BEIJING - China's resolve to abandon its decades-old habit of pursuing economic growth at any cost and instead promote energy conservation and environmental protection has stumbled because of resistance from development-minded local officials and powerful interest groups.

In an embarrassing blow to China's top leadership, which has cast itself as an advocate of green development, the country missed its much-publicized goals of reducing energy consumption and pollutants last year. Despite a target of cutting energy use per unit of gross domestic product (GDP) by 4%, consumption actually increased by 0.8% in the first half of the year and indices for the main pollutants continued to rise. Last year was "the most grim year for China's environmental situation", Pan Yue, deputy head of the State Environmental Protection Agency (SEPA), said in a statement last week. "The goals set out by the cabinet at the start of the year have absolutely not been achieved."

EDIT

The failure in energy-saving and pollution controls is seen as a result of the diehard attitudes of local officials who continue to tie their career achievements with GDP growth figures. After extolling the virtues of rapid economic growth for 27 years, Beijing is struggling to reverse the tide of its blind pursuit by establishing a "green development index" as a performance indicator.

The new green GDP index attempts to account for environmental degradation and resource depletion caused by economic development. Over the past two years, green GDP projects have been launched in some 10 Chinese provinces and municipalities, including the capital and the northeastern port hub of Tianjin. Yet central-government officials have conceded that such projects have met with resistance by local civil servants.

http://www.atimes.com/atimes/China_Business/IA17Cb02.html

[BayCityProgressive]

1. At leaset China has set goals

and can admit to mistakes. Hu Jintao is to the left of the previous leadership and has been trying to enforce more regulation. Hopefully he can tackle this issue. It's sad that the country has become so corrupt but at least they are trying...which is more than I can say for the US.

[Nihil]

2. Sadly, it's a very familiar story ...

> ... stumbled because of resistance from development-minded local
> officials and powerful interest groups.
> ...
> The failure in energy-saving and pollution controls is seen as a
> result of the diehard attitudes of local officials who continue
> to tie their career achievements with GDP growth figures.

It's the same problem across the world (and not always the fault of
"local" officials either).

[YankeyMCC]

3. They have at least identified the core of the problem ...

"...continue to tie their career achievements with GDP growth figures"

I'm not sure about the idea of a "green development index", I'd have to understand more of the details of that but they've at least recognized that growth does not equal better quality of life. Development must be defined as improvements not just unchecked growth.