Biz Scene: LOCAL

Recycling boost

Chongqing, located on the upper reaches of the Yangtze River, plans to invest 50 billion yuan to develop its recycling and environmental protection programs in the 2006-10 period, an official said.

Vice-Mayor Huang Qifan said on Monday the investment will be mainly used for technological innovation aimed at curbing pollutant discharge and saving energy.

By 2010, the energy consumption for per unit of gross domestic product is expected to drop 20 percent from the 2005 level and the urban sewage treatment rate will rise to 90 percent from 65 percent in 2006, said Huang, at a national conference held in Chongqing, one of the first group of 10 pilot cities listed in late 2005 for developing recycling across the country.

Airport approval

The Three Gorges Airport has received regulatory approval from several agencies for regularly scheduled international flights, Xinhua reported.

The airport has invested about 100 million yuan to upgrade its infrastructure. An international hall measuring 3,600 sq m and 3.58 km of roads and runways have been completed.

Regular flights to the Republic of Korea, Japan, Hong Kong and Macao special administrative regions, and Taiwan Province, are scheduled to start in 2008.

The Three Gorges Airport opened in 1997, with 26 passenger routes to domestic cities.

Industrial park

Shenzhen, an economic hub neighboring Hong Kong, plans to build an industrial park in Kunming, capital of Southwest China's Yunnan Province, by joining forces with local government, Xinhua reported.

The two sides plan to build the park into a manufacturing base for exports to Southeast and South Asia. Shenzhen will transfer some of its hi-tech companies and manufacturing industries to the park.

Industrial output of the park is expected to reach 5 billion yuan by 2010, according to officials with Kunming government overseeing the park's construction.

Aquatic export

Zhanjiang, a coastal city in South China's Guangdong Province, exported 80,000 tons of aquatic products in the first 10 months of this year, up 7.74 percent year-on-year. The aquatic export was worth $380 million for the period, a year-on-year increase of 6.23 percent.

Officials from the local entry-exit inspection and quarantine bureau said that they have adopted stricter measures to guide local industries to comply with higher standards on food safety, avoiding trade barriers from foreign countries.

(China Daily 11/28/2007 page15)