One year after its implementation, the cleaner production project carried out by US-based Dow Chemical Company and the nation's environmental protection authority has generated 103.49 million yuan (US$12.9 million) in economic profit.

The 3-year Cleaner Production National Pilot Project already helped reduce wastewater by 3.38 million cubic metres, exhaust gas emissions by 554 tons, liquid waste by 432 tons and solid waste by 487 tons through its various measures.

The project has also helped cut back on electricity usage by 835,100 kilowatts per hour, released steam by 27,797 tons, water usage by 1.71 million tons and coal usage by 2,557 tons.

In its first year, it attracted 19 enterprise participants from various industries such as the chemical, dyeing, electronics, brewery and food sectors from seven provinces and municipalities, such as Liaoning, Shandong and Jiangsu.

The project is jointly run by the State Environmental Protection Administration (SEPA) and Dow.

Following an initial cleaner production audit, participating enterprises identified 798 improvement measures that ought to be implemented. So far, 538 measures have been actualized to bring about environmental changes.

Another 91 measures, to be put into effect in the future, are expected to achieve an estimated economic profit of 240.06 million yuan (US$29.93 million) annually.

In the meantime, more than 250 representatives from local environmental protection bureaus, cleaner production audit institutes and participating enterprises went through relevant training courses.

Wang Jirong, vice-minister of SEPA, said the pilot project has achieved important economic and environment benefits, representing a great start for the whole project.

She believed that there will be more achievement in the remaining two years of the project.

Jim McIlvenny, president of Dow Asia-Pacific, said that the project shows that cleaner production always pays, and that the US firm will continue to devote itself to the country's environmental protection efforts.

Dow has invested 6 million yuan (US$748,130) to support the project.

This year, 21 additional enterprises from another seven provinces, municipalities and autonomous regions, including Beijing and Inner Mongolia, will participate in the pilot project.

SEPA officials said the project starts with East China, and then moves to the middle part of the nation, and in the final year, it will focus on the western provinces.

The pilot project focuses on small and medium-sized enterprises from relatively high-polluted sectors.

China has a large number of small and medium-sized enterprises, operating with undeveloped technologies, low management skills, high-energy consumption and high pollutant emissions. These aspects result in heavy pressure on the environment and natural resources.

Those companies are generally weak in economic power, technology and management; they are usually unaware of cleaner production technology and management. Thus it is difficult for them to develop such a programme by themselves.

Dow is a world leader in science and technology, providing innovative chemical, plastic and agricultural products and services to many essential consumer markets.

The company's revenues in China last year reached US$2.3 billion.

China is now Dow's third-largest market, behind the United States and Germany.

(China Daily 04/13/2006 page10)

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