3.1 Priority Concerns Related to Chemical Production, Import, Export and Use

The chemical industry is one of the major industrial pollution sources. The major pollutants discharged by chemical industrial production include oil, sulfur, phenol, cyanide, mercury, chromium, lead, cadmium, organic phosphorous, organic chlorine, vinyl cyanide, aromatic amine, nitrobenzene and nitrogenous heterocyclic compound. These toxic and hazardous substances are seriously detrimental to both human beings and the environment. In China, the priority concern during chemical production, import, export and use is given to satisfying the demands of the national economy. Simultaneously, attention is paid to their pollution effect on the environment and the damage they do to human health, two major issues facing China today. The Chinese Government has formulated various laws, regulations, standards and policies to strengthen management over the production, transportation, storage, marketing, use, import and export of chemicals. Environmental protection agencies, and medical, health and epidemic-prevention bodies at various levels exercise supervision and monitoring of chemicals, make appraisals, tackle pollution, and prevent and treat health problems. The Toxic Substances Control Center of the Chinese Academy of Preventive Medical Science was established on April 23, 1999, and a national network concerned with this work is now taking shape. Table 3.1 lists problem areas, and Table 3.2 lists priority concerns related to chemicals.

3.2 Air Pollution

In China, air pollution is mainly caused by smoke, and the major pollutants are sulfur dioxide and smoke. The year 1997 witnessed a total emission of sulfur dioxide of 23.46 million tons. The annual mean value concentration of sulfur dioxide was in the range of 3～248 microgram/cubic meters, and the national mean value concentration was 66 microgram/cubic meters.

In 1997, the average annual pH value of rainfall nationwide was between 3.74 and 7.79. Acid rain pollution in central China and the southwestern regions was serious. Such pollution tended to spread in south China., while remaining serious in the Tumen and Qingdao areas in the north.

The annual mean value concentration of nitrogen oxide was in the range of 4～140 microgram/cubic meters, and the national mean value concentration was 45 microgram/cubic meters.

Table 3.1 Description of Problem Areas

The annual mean value concentration of total suspended granules was in the range of 32～741 microgram/cubic meters, and the national mean value concentration was 291 microgram/cubic meters. There are 67 cities in the country where such concentration exceeded the State’s second-class standard (200 microgram/cubic meters), making up 72 percent of the total number of cities.

Table 3.2 Priority Concerns Related to Chemicals

The Chinese Government pays great attention to air pollution, and has adopted some positive and effective measures to improve the quality of the atmospheric environment.

By the year 2000, all industrial pollution sources which discharge sulfur dioxide should meet the standard fixed by the State and should be subject to total discharge control. The State forbids the establishment of new coal mines where the sulfur content of the coal is more than three percent. The existing mines where the sulfur content is more than three percent shall limit production or be closed gradually. For new mines and the improvement of the existing mines where the sulfur content is more than 1.5 percent, coal washing and dressing facilities of corresponding scales must be installed. The existing mines where coal washing and dressing facilities are unavailable are required to build these facilities by stages, in accordance with State plans. The sulfur content of fuel coal and heavy fuel oil used in cities must comply with the prescribed standard of local governments. Except the heat and power plants where the electricity generation is determined by the heat generation capacity, no new coal-burning power plants may be built in the urban areas or on the outskirts of large and medium-sized cities. To build a new or transform an existing power plant where the sulfur content of burning coal is higher than one percent, desulfurization facilities must be provided. The existing power plants in this category were required to adopt measures to reduce the emission of sulfur dioxide before 2000 and to build desulfurization facilities or adopt other sulfur dioxide emission reduction measures of corresponding effect by stages before 2010. Chemical industry, metallurgy, building materials and non-ferrous metals enterprises which cause serious pollution must install technological waste gas treatment equipment or adopt other emission-reduction measures. While readjusting their industrial and product structure, these enterprises must make efforts to spread clean production, enhance technological transformation, promote the saving and comprehensive utilization of resources, and reduce the emission of sulfur dioxide. The marketing and use of sulfur coal have been restricted in some cities.

Enterprises producing arsenic, mercury, lead or tin, or refining oil by indigenous methods have been closed down.

Between 1995-97 period, the annual average value of CFCS production was 44,932 (ODP) tons while the annual average value of CFCS consumption was 55,751 (ODP) tons. In accordance with the Montreal Protocol (amended in London), China began to freeze and cut down CFCS production and consumption on July 1, 1999. By the end of May 2000, the Chinese Government had formulated and put into effect 32 policies for protecting the ozonosphere. Legislation is now available for practicing a quota system on the production and import of ozonosphere depletion substances.

3.3 Water Environment

China has intensified its efforts to tackle environmental pollution in cities and key areas. Achievements have been made in control-by-stages of pollution in the Huaihe River valley, and the environmental quality in some regions has been improved. But the growth of population and economic development have exerted great pressure on resources, and the ecological environment in some areas continues to deteriorate.

China’s seven large water systems, lakes, reservoirs, underground water in some regions and coastal waters have been contaminated to varying degrees. The dry and semi-dry regions in the north and many cities suffer from serious shortages of water. Shortage of water resources and water pollution have become factors restricting China’s economic and social development.

The major indicators of river pollution are the levels of ammonia nitrogen and volatile phenol, the hypermanganate index, biochemical oxygen demand and total amount of mercury.

The pollution of large fresh-water lakes and urban lakes is of an intermediate level, and the pollution level of reservoirs is mild. The major indicators of pollution in large fresh-water lakes and urban lakes are the levels of total nitrogen and total phosphorous, the hypermanganate index and the biochemical oxygen demand.

The major indicators of large reservoir pollution are the levels of total phosphorous, total nitrogen and volatile phenol. Some lakes and reservoirs suffer from mercury pollution, while individual reservoirs suffer from arsenic contamination.

The major indicators of coastal water pollution are the levels of inorganic nitrogen and inorganic phosphorous. Of the country’s four seas, the East China Sea suffers from the most serious pollution, followed by the Bohai, Yellow and South China seas.

3.4 Industrial Solid Waste

Solid waste pollution has become another serious problem affecting the quality of the environment. It not only occupies land, but also contaminates underground water and other water sources, and emits toxic and hazardous fumes.

Over the past dozen years, the generation and stockpiling of solid waste increased year by year until the 1990s, when the momentum began to subside. After the adoption of certain effective measures, the amount of solid waste discharged dropped sharply from 133.06 million tons in 1986 to 22.42 million tons in 1995. The rate of comprehensive utilization increased from 23 percent in 1985 to 42.9 percent in 1995, and the amount disposed of rose from 116.96 million tons in 1991 to 142.04 million tons.

China is among the top ten producers and consumers of plastic products. In 1995, it produced 5.19 million tons and imported nearly six million tons of plastics. The national consumption of plastics that year amounted to some 11 million tons, of which 2.11 million tons were wrapping plastics, most of which is abandoned to pollute the environment in the forms of waste film, bags and tableware.

Urban garbage has increased in quantity annually with the growth of the urban population. In 1997, a total of 140 million tons of garbage and night soil were safely disposed of. The phenomenon of cities being besieged by garbage is serious.

3.5 Poisoning

According to national occupational poisoning reports, there are some 50,000 cases of occupational poisoning and 100,000 cases of pesticide poisoning a year in China (35 percent of harmful operating factories and mines were monitored. The rate of poisoning cases failing to be reported is some 80 percent). Food poisoning reports from 1989 to 1999 show that a total of 11,288 cases of chemical poisoning, 12,719 cases of bacterial poisoning, 448 cases of fungal poisoning, 2,111 cases of toxic animal food poisoning and 642 cases of toxic plant poisoning occurred during the period. The average annual incidence of poison-related diseases is around 5,000 cases. But with social development, the category of substances causing poisoning has changed. An investigation by a hospital in Shenyang City showed that of the poisoning cases, medicinal poisoning accounted for 56 percent, carbon monoxide poisoning accounted for 19 percent, food poisoning accounted for 5.5 percent, pesticide poisoning accounted for 5.5 percent and alcohol poisoning for 4.9 percent. These figures show that the incidence of poisoning in China has shifted from being mainly occupational and pesticide poisoning to medicinal poisoning and daily life-related poisoning, as in Western countries. Statistics show that poisoning in China is most prevalent among the population in the 20-39 age group, which makes up over 60 percent of those poisoned. This is different from the situation in Western countries, where children make up more than half of those poisoned.

BACK