Environmental costs of local economy boosts must be weighed in the balance

IN XITUO, a town in Southwest China's Chongqing municipality, there is a local wetlands nature reserve that used to cover more than 13 square kilometers. However, local authorities destroyed one-fourth of it building an industrial park. Beijing News comments:

The importance of wetlands can never be overestimated. They are called the "kidneys of the earth", as they help promote water circulation, balance the climate, and prevent some harmful, even toxic waste, from posing health threats to people and animals.

Reports say the wetlands in Xituo town are beside the Yangtze River and they could help protect the river's ecosystem. The officials who destroyed one-fourth of the wetlands have already done irreparable damage to the local ecosystem, even to that of the Yangtze River as a whole.