ChinaWatch: Striking A Balance?

Welcome to ChinaWatch, WMB’s digest of news from the country with the world’s second largest economy and our chief rival to global dominance. Our aim is to keep you informed.


World’s Biggest Polluter

China wants local governments to be more responsible for environmental protection as the world’s fastest-growing major economy seeks to reduce pollution, says Zhang Lijun, vice minister for environmental protection.

The Ministry of Environmental Protection has issued carbon dioxide emissions quotas to provincial governments for the five years through 2015 and will focus on preventing pollution from heavy metals, non bio-degradable waste and hazardous chemicals, according to Zhang.

“Grasping the balance between economic growth and environmental protection is the responsibility of all levels of government, especially local governments,” Zhang says.

China, the world’s biggest polluter, set a lower growth target for the period from 2011 through 2015 as compared with the previous five-year period to help reduce pollution, with Premier Wen Jiabao saying last month that the nation could no longer sacrifice the environment in return for economic expansion.

The nation failed to meet its energy conservation goal for the five years through 2010.

China’s economy surpassed Japan’s to become the world’s second largest last year as the nation posted annual growth of 10.3 percent and expansion at a 9.8 percent pace in the fourth quarter.

The Chinese economy passed Germany’s in 2007 and those of the U.K. and France in 2005. It also surpassed the United States during that period to become the world’s biggest energy consumer and its biggest emitter of greenhouse gases.

The Chinese government has set a target for slashing energy use per unit of gross domestic product by as much as 17 percent in the five years ending 2015.

China missed a target to cut consumption by 20 percent between 2006 and 2010, even after shutting at least 7,000 factories and banning discounts on electricity to high-consumption businesses.

Going Nowhere Fast

By 2020, China will be blanketed by high-speed rail. The Asian giant is investing $1 trillion to create 16,000 miles of high-speed rail track – roughly a third of the total length of the U.S. interstate highway system.

Trains will zip along at 200+ mph, opening inter-city opportunities for businessmen and engineers. Such opportunities have been available only to the wealthy elite who own private jets.

Much of the United States, meanwhile, is stuck in the slow lane, something that may have a dire impact on the nation's competitiveness.

In response to a slow recovery and growing conservative movement, many states have abandoned plans to deploy high-speed rail, despite President Obama promising as much as $53 billion in matching federal grants for state rail projects over the next six years.

Some states, including recession-clobbered Michigan, have effectively rejected projects by simply falling silent. Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder has simply stopped talking about the state's former project and has refused calls or discussions on the topic.

Other states, including Florida, are taking a more active stance. Florida Gov. Rick Scott, also a Republican, killed the Sunshine State’s high-speed rail project. The proposed line would have connected Tampa to Orlando, two of Florida's top metropolitan areas.

Scott cites a 2009 study, claiming the line's first operation year in 2015 would see a deficit with just 2.4 million riders, as a factor in his decision. He also cites advice from the libertarian Reason Foundation and the Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank.

ChinaWatch