Latest comments posted about The terrible cost of China’s growth (part two) on ChinaDialogue en-gb http://www.chinadialogue.net/article/show/single/en/686-The-terrible-cost-of-China-s-growth-part-two- http://staging.chinadialogue.net/images/cdlogo.gif http://www.chinadialogue.net/article/show/single/en/686-The-terrible-cost-of-China-s-growth-part-two- In the concern of environmental protection and development of society itself, the single source of support from the goverment is far less than enough. China needs to give non-governmental organizaitons reasonable space to develope. These organizations can play a positive role in environmental issues, help-poverty, disaster relief, etc. They also encourage the whole society to work together and public to take part in ecomonic issues. Giving non-governmental organizations more space is also a necessary condition to Civil Society Thu, 14 Feb 2008 21:19:22 +0000 http://www.chinadialogue.net/article/summary/686#comment-7048 http://www.chinadialogue.net/article/summary/686#comment-7048 Should the index for Chinese ordinary people's involvement in environment protection be calculated by taking into consideration four factors: awareness, behaviors, science and technology, as well as satisfaction of the current environment situation? In this technology era, the index should indicate the use of technology in China's environment protection. Lower public awareness and inadequacy in actions sound the alarm that China is in urgent need of efforts in environment protection. This also means there is a tough task in front of us. To increase awareness and enhance actions, more media, education, regulation and individual efforts are needed as they are key resolutions. luoyangzhangjixing@yahoo.com.cn Mon, 05 Feb 2007 15:15:32 +0000 http://www.chinadialogue.net/article/summary/686#comment-1321 http://www.chinadialogue.net/article/summary/686#comment-1321 The effects of Green GDP should be acknowledged and supported. Yet from the standpoint of state officials who assess government performance, the inadequate and contradictory statistics on Green GDP pose great difficulties for its implementation (for a more detailed account, see People’s University Professor Ma Zhong's article "Green GDP: Implementation in the Face of Difficulties” published on this website). What to do? The method proposed by Professor Ma Zhong is for Beijing and local governments to devise and implement ever stricter environmental conservation policies. Experts in the fields of environmental technology and enviromental economic studies can only promote a similar solution within their professional capacities. But whatever happened to the “short board on the wooden barrel” (i.e., the crux of the matter)? I think that scholars of political science and public policy should get involved. They should devise a workable policy framework for officials who assess government performance on sustainable development under the current political system. In other words, the comprehensive nature of environmental problems has yet to receive the comprehensive response it deserves. Especially in the sphere of environmental politics and policy, this most “intangible” of areas, what we really need is fundamental research based on indigenous and interdisciplinary collaboration to lay the groundwork for further action. Moreover, why have two experts in the field of environmental science not raised the issue of raising investment in and bolstering the development of environmental science research? Fu Huahui - Global Environment Research Center Wed, 24 Jan 2007 03:56:14 +0000 http://www.chinadialogue.net/article/summary/686#comment-1026 http://www.chinadialogue.net/article/summary/686#comment-1026 I learn from the German news magazine, Der Spiegel, that China Daily reported on Wednesday that China had "flunked the first test" in meeting goals aimed at saving energy and protecting the environment. The new targets for China's 2006-2010 Five Year Plan called for energy consumption per unit of GDP to be cut by 20 percent, while polluting emissions were to be cut by 10 percent. The target set for 2006 had been to reduce consumption by 4 percent and pollution emissions by 2 percent. In fact, things went in the wrong direction: there was an increase in energy consumption in the first half of 2006. Regulations and scale limits imposed fairly are necessary for ecologically efficient production - however, the problem in any society is that state regulators (officials) working closely with business are eventually "taken over" by them. A "revolving door" between business and state undermines effective regulation. Having developed capitalist enterprises as a means to its planning goals the Chinese state is now effectively captured by these business interests and has insufficient independent countervailing power to control their activities. To address this requires independent organisations and a free press - by people who do not have the goal of trying to "take power", only of trying to influence what those in power do by their wisdom. Why indeed would want to take over a state? It is too much work and too dangerous: "When Hui Tzu was prime minister of Liang, Chuang Tzu set off to visit him. Someone said to Hui Tzu, "Chuang Tzu is coming because he wants to replace you as prime minister!" With this Hui Tzu was filled with alarm and searched all over the state for three days and three nights trying to find Chuang Tzu. Chuang Tzu then came to see him and said, "In the south there is a bird called the Yuan-ch'u - I wonder if you've ever heard of it? The Yuan-ch'u rises up from the South Sea and flies to the North Sea, and it will rest on nothing but the Wu-t'ung tree, eat nothing but the fruit of the Lien, and drink only from springs of sweet water. Once there was an owl who had gotten hold of a half-rotten old rat, and as the Yuan-ch'u passed by, it raised its head, looked up at the Yuan-ch'u, and said, `Shoo!' Now that you have this Liang state of yours, are you trying to shoo me?" However, without threatening ambitions, independent organisations can be motivated to work for the revitalisation of old traditions - for example, those that we can find in the Huainanzi about standards of government and the relations between the governed and the people: "The law of ancient kinds forbade hunters to deplete the herds or to take the yearlings and forbade fishers to empty the ponds. Traps and nets were not to be set before certain times; wood was not to be cut before the leaves fell; fields were not to be burned before the insects went into hibernation. Pregnant or nursing animals were not to be killed; eggs were not to be taken from nests; fish less than a foot long were not to be caught." And "When society is orderly you protect yourself with justice; when society is confused, you protect justice by yourself." Sun, 14 Jan 2007 11:10:57 +0000 http://www.chinadialogue.net/article/summary/686#comment-931 http://www.chinadialogue.net/article/summary/686#comment-931 China is a too large country. The costs to its environment will affect the entire world, as much as the deterioration of its environment has been caused by the entire world. All the people in the world must help China, and not simply criticize it. After all, we only have one planet. If this cannot be done, there is no hope for our planet. Sun, 14 Jan 2007 03:02:54 +0000 http://www.chinadialogue.net/article/summary/686#comment-927 http://www.chinadialogue.net/article/summary/686#comment-927 The evaluating system for non-green GDP needs to be ended. Just as robbed fortunes cannot be equalled to laboured fortunes; GDP which does not take environmental cost into consideration should not be regarded as an achievement when officials' work is assessed. Otherwise, would this not mean that those who do more wrong are those who get promoted? Sun, 14 Jan 2007 02:55:26 +0000 http://www.chinadialogue.net/article/summary/686#comment-926 http://www.chinadialogue.net/article/summary/686#comment-926