Ambitious Plan Ensures a Greener BeijingThe city of Beijing will invest a record US$6.6 billion, or 4 per cent to 5 per cent of its gross domestic product during 2003-07, on pollution control and ecological improvement to guarantee its successful hosting of a "Green Olympics" in 2008, Beijing Mayor Liu Qi said Thursday.Liu made the remarks at the closing ceremony of the three-day 21st Century Forum: Forestry and Environmental Protection, which attracted more than 200 government officials, well-known experts and entrepreneurs from home and abroad. According to Liu, Beijing has put US$5 billion into projects to control air and waste water pollution and pollution resulting from inadequate garbage treatment facilities since 1998, bringing about a great improvement in environmental quality. Over the next seven years, Beijing will tighten control of key pollutants and seek sustainable development, Liu said. Beijing will continue to accelerate readjustment of the structure of urban energy supply and ensure that the major energy source will shift away from coal to low-pollution or clean fuels. At the same time, the city will make maximum use of wind, geothermal and solar energy to provide hot water and make full use of natural lighting to reduce energy consumption in the Olympic Village and competition arenas. In addition, the city will build 12 sewage treatment plants and adopt more measures to reduce urban domestic refuse. Beijing has also mapped out an ambitious blueprint to make the city greener by planting trees and grass on a large scale to accelerate natural ecological renewal, the mayor said. The green urban area of Beijing will reach 45 per cent by 2007 from today's 36 per cent, with 15 square meters of public green land per capita. On top of this, the forest coverage of mountainous areas will reach 70 per cent by 2008, he added. The 21st Century Forum was initiated and was sponsored by the National Committee of the Chinese People's Politic Consultative Conference, which invited eminent people from home and abroad, and experts and scholars on world megatrends and crucial issues of common concern to mankind. Since 1996, two international conferences of the forum have been held in Beijing. Source: China Daily |
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