By Ministry of Environmental Protection, National Bureau of Statistics and National Development and Reform Commission

Ministry of Environmental Protection initiated a checkup on major pollutant discharges of all provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities in the first half of 2008 in line with related provisions. The results showed that total COD discharge across the country stood at 6.74 million tons, down 2.48% compared with the same period of 2007 (6.91 million tons) and SO₂ emissions amounted to 12.13 million tons, down 3.96% against that of 2007 (12.63 million tons). From January to June, altogether 40.6 GW coal-fired desulphurization units were built and put into production throughout the country, phasing out 8.36 GW small thermal power units. The newly added capacity for treating municipal sewage totaled 6.78 million tons/day and progress has been made in restructuring energy-intensive and high emission industries such as iron and steel, cement, coking, papermaking, alcohol and monosodium glutamate.

As confirmed, a group of sewage treatment plants were found incompliant either for lagged construction of the main body of project and supporting networks, or running at low capacity for a long time, abnormal operation without good reasons, substandard outflow or ineffective disposal of sludge. These plants include Lvliang Sewage Treatment Plant of Shanxi Province, Huhhot Xinxinban Sewage Treatment Plant and Gongzhufu Sewage Treatment Plant, Inner Mongolia, sewage treatment plant in the north of Siyang, Suqian City of Jiangsu Province, Lianhe Sewage Treatment Plant, Jiaxing City of Zhejiang Province, Haozhou Sewage Treatment Plant of Anhui Province, Xianghu Sewage Treatment Plant and Honggutan Sewage Treatment Plant of Nanchang, Jiangxi Province, Hongguang Sewage Treatment Plant, Jingzhou, Hubei Province, Linxiang Sewage Purification Center of Yueyang, Hunan Province, Nan'an Sewage Treatment Plant of Qingyuan Water Corp. Yibin City of Sichuan Province, Kunming Anning Sewage Treatment Plant and Yangzonghai Sewage Treatment Plant of Yiliang County, Yunnan Province. Another group of power plants were found to have abnormal operation of desulphurization facilities, which include Baoding Thermal Power Plant of Datang Group, Taiyuan No.1 Thermal Power Plant of China Guodian Corporation, Huaning Power Plant, Wulanchabu of Inner Mongolia, Qiqihaer Thermal Power Plant of China Huadian Corporation, Wuhan Iron and Power Co., Ltd, Chenzhou Power Plant of China Resources Power Holdings Co., Maoming Ruineng Thermal Power Plant of Guangdong Electric Power Development Co., Laibin Power Plant of Guangxi Fangyuan Electric Power Co., Sichuan Huayingshan Power Plant of China Guodian Corporation. According to related provisions, MEP decided to make above cities and enterprises public and order rectification completed by the end of this year. Provincial environmental protection departments shall report their rectification progress to MEP. Those failed to meet rectification requirements or complete the tasks on time will face temporary suspension of environmental impact assessment of construction projects which may lead to newly increased COD discharge in accordance with provisions of General Work Plan for Energy Conservation and Pollutant Discharge Reduction and Measures for Assessment of Reducing Total Discharges of Major Pollutants. Authorities concerned will withhold desulphurization electricity charges of related power plants and recover the full SO₂ emission fees in line with Administrative Measures on Desulphurization Electricity Charge and Operation of Desulphurization Facilities of Coal-fired Power Units (provisional) (NDRC Pricing No. [2007]1176).

Major Pollutant Discharges of All Provinces, Autonomous Regions and Municipalities in the First Half of 2008

Note: The statistic data of Hong Kong SAR., Macao SAR. and Taiwan are not included in the report.