Media wages war on waste By Liu Wei (China Daily) Updated: 2005-05-31 05:37
A media war on waste is being launched in Beijing with the help of the
general public.
Two telephone hotlines have been made available for anyone to report
companies or individuals who waste energy or water - and once the report is
made, local media will be notified and run stories about those responsible.
The move is being made as the summer season approaches and with it the peak
time for energy consumption, as air conditioners and electric fans are turned
on.
"In fact, two hotlines are not enough," said Guo Dehong, who answers the
telephone at the resource conservation centre affiliated with the Beijing
Municipal Commission for Development and Reform. The commission collects
information on people's lavish resource-consuming habits.
Most of the complaints he receives are about leaking taps and round-the-clock
lights at building sites.
He remembers one complaint, made about a tap that ran 24 hours a day for a
year at a colliery in Daxing District.
"Cases like this are to be reported to the related authorities and will be
put under the media spotlight," Guo said.
Pushing negative cases under the spotlight is part of the city's month-long
campaign in the sustainable development of resources, which is set to run
through the end of June.
Beijing's power shortages have reached desperately low levels, said Liu
Yinchun, official with the commission.
The city relies a great deal on resources from other provinces. About 70 per
cent of its power, 95 per cent of its coal, 100 per cent of the natural gas and
80 per cent of the crude oil are imported.
North China's Hebei and Shanxi provinces and the Inner Mongolia Autonomous
Region are the major sources of power for Beijing.
"Beijing is about 1 million kilowatts short of satisfying its total demand
for about 10.7 million kilowatts this year," said Chen Tiecheng, chief of the
coal and power division with the commission.
(China Daily 05/31/2005 page3)
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