Tobias Becker, senior vice-president of ABB China, makes a donation to Dong Yaohui, director of the China Foundation for Poverty Alleviation. It is ABB China's fifth donation to the New Great Wall Fund for College Students Program. More than 1,000 students from 37 Chinese universities have benefited from it. File photo

Isabelle Liu has a new habit: When she meets clients or partners, she must tell them about ABB's anti-desertification program.

"I always have the idea to have more people join in our program, making efforts all together to fight desertification," said Liu, vice-president of ABB China.

ABB, a leading power and automation technology group, has executed its anti-desertification program together with Ordos Electric Power Bureau of Inner Mongolia Electric Power Group, for 10 months.

The three-year environmental protection project is designed to help improve the environment of Inner Mongolia and build green barriers for Beijing.

"The idea came in 2006 as both parties talked about company cultures at a forum held in Inner Mongolia. We soon achieved the agreement that we could do something together not only for the local environment, but also beneficial for Beijing and the approaching Olympics," recalls Liu.

"ABB and Inner Mongolia Electric Power are not only close partners in business, but also share similar values in assuming social responsibilities. This includes a strong sense of responsibility towards Inner Mongolia and Beijing. Therefore, when this project was proposed, both sides were willing to take active action," says Liu.

China's economy also faced huge environmental challenges while developing rapidly, and desertification in the north was one cause of concern.

Located in the Inner Mongolia autonomous region, Ordos is one of the regions suffering serious desertification in China.

Beijing is severely affected by sandstorms as it is located below Inner Mongolia, directly affected by strong winds. Although a variety of effective measures have been introduced by governments at all levels, to completely hold back the pace of sandstorms still requires extensive participation of many parts of society.

In order to protect Beijing's environment and achieve a "Green Olympics", ABB initiated a project called "Reforest the Desert & Improve Our Homeland" within its Beijing companies in 2007.

Thousands of employees from ABB's five local companies in Beijing made donations, and 300,000 yuan was raised within a month.

At the same time, Ordos Electric Power Bureau also donated 300,000 yuan for the joint program. The two sides handed over the first-phase fund of 600,000 to China Green Foundation and committed it to setting up a special office to take charge of project implementation and fund management.

With a range of nearly 200m wide and 1.5km long, Phase I of ABB-Inner Mongolia Electric Power anti-desertification project is located under 110kV Shentu transmission line and 256# -263# high voltage power line in Wushen Qi Tuke Town of Ordos.

"The safety distance between the 110kV transmission line and the ground is 11 m. However, the desertification eats the distance everyday with sands float. Ordos Electric Power Bureau has to invest a lot to keep the safety distance every year," says Zheng Shiwen, director of the program with ABB. "We are happy that the program not only supports the future for a green environment, but also is a benefit for our partner."

The project uses ecological sand barriers and forestation to fix sand dunes. The coverage rate of summer vegetation of Phase I is expected to reach 65 percent or more. In one year, the coverage rate will be stabilized at 50 percent or more.

ABB will continue its cooperation with Inner Mongolia Electric Power over the next two years. The two sides will jointly invest in the implementation of Phases II and III.

This three-phase project is expected to be conducted on approximately 10,000-mu of desertification land.

"We are very pleased to contribute to protecting the environment of Ordos and Beijing," said Jia Shifang, director of the party committee of Inner Mongolia Electric Power Group.

"In Ordos, most power grids are constructed in desertification areas. Serious desertification and sandstorms not only affect the stability and life cycle of the grids, but also severely affect the environment of Beijing and its surrounding areas. We hope that our green corridor may bring some green to the Beijing Olympic Games and the life of Beijing residents," Jia added.

"In the coming two years, we will join hands with ABB to spend more efforts on the second and third phases, taking today's completion ceremony as a brand-new start. This project can help not only reduce power failure risks caused by sand erosion, but also improve our mutual living environment," said Hou Shengming, director general of Ordos Electric Power Bureau.

Inner Mongolia is one of China's most important energy sources. About one third of Beijing's total electricity consumption is from the area.

ABB's CSR activities in China cover education support, environmental protection, disaster relief and other charitable and public welfare undertakings.

ABB contributed nearly 10 million yuan for the snowstorm that hit southern China last year as well as the earthquake in Sichuan province.

The company performed many electric network repairs in quake-hit areas, provided financial support to underprivileged students from 37 universities for four consecutive years and set up various education support and senior citizen housing projects in Shanghai, Chongqing, Xiamen and other cities.

"Regarding a variety of challenges and difficulties faced by the nation, what we have done is still quite limited. However, it is important for us to continue our efforts year after year. And we hope that more enterprises and individuals will join in to sow hope together, to protect and improve our common home together," said Liu.

Last week, at the inauguration ceremony of its engineering company's new site on May 12, the one-year anniversary of the Wenchuan Earthquake, the company donated a portion of the event budget to support over 20 financially disadvantaged college students from the earthquake-stricken area in Sichuan.

During "ABB Automation World" on May 13 and 14, ABB made donation to ABB-New Great Wall Fund for College Students Program for the fifth consecutive year and to nursing homes for the elderly in Shanghai Program for the third consecutive year, to support vulnerable groups in the society.

"The current global financial crisis has hit every country and all entities. But we firmly believe that corporate citizen shall support charity activities and honor its commitment to social welfare projects more than ever before. At the time of crisis, the vulnerable groups need our care, support and help more than anyone," says Brice Koch, president of the ABB North Asia Region and chairman of ABB China.

(China Daily 05/18/2009 page10)