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China faces severe ocean pollution
(Xinhua)
Updated: 2006-01-11 09:34
China's ocean environment, especially the shallow waters just off the coast,
has been severely polluted by an increasing run-off of contaminants into the
sea. A report released by China's State Oceanic Administration says the country
is faced with severe challenges in handling the pollution of the ocean.
The report, China's Oceanic Environment Quality 2005, says that the ocean has
been polluted by a harmful algal bloom, a sudden, massive growth of microscopic
and macroscopic plant life.
It is estimated that last year there were over 80 incidents of algal blooms
in the shallow waters off China's coast, leading to direct economic losses of
nearly 8.6 million US dollars.
A spokesperson for the State Oceanic Administration, Li Chunxian, says a run
off of pollutants from the land is the source of the contamination.
"The run-off of pollutants from the land is heavy. That causes the
deterioration of ecological system in the ocean, rivers, bays and wetlands. The
pollutants contain substances that aid the growth of harmful algae. The
excessive run-off of pollutants also damages the ecosystems of coral reefs."
In addition, algal blooms cause fish to die by lowering the oxygen
concentration of the water.
Over the past five years, China has seen increased contamination of the
ocean. The total amount of waste water flowing into the ocean was over 31
billion tons, 9.6 billion tons more than in 2000.
The severe pollution has attracted the attention of environmental protection
authorities. Many provinces and regions have adopted measures, including control
on the run-off of pollutants and strengthening the monitoring of sea pollution.
Yantai, a city in east China, has been actively working on controlling
pollution of the ocean. Jiang Qingchun is an official working in this area.
"The oceans have a limited capacity to absorb pollution. Now we have less and
less fish and the ocean environment is deteriorating. We cannot endlessly
exploit the oceans any more. We should protect them. And we also cannot pour
rubbish into the ocean indiscriminately any more."
He adds that it is difficult for oceans to recover from pollution, and so the
pressing task is to reduce pollution in the future.
At present, China cannot recycle all the pollutants it produces due to
lagging recycling facilities and poor environmental awareness in some areas.
But the authorities have pledged to make more efforts to improve this
situation.
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