[Urbanstudy] Beijing to launch environmental police force

[Vinay Baindur]

http://www.indialivetoday.com/beijing-to-launch-environmental-police-force/
93170.html




*Beijing to launch environmental police force*
4 hours ago | Published by : newsagency

Beijing, Jan 7 (IANS) One of the world’s most polluted cities, Beijing will
set up a green police force to contain pollution which has reached endemic
proportions in the megapolis.

Besides, the authorities will ban 300,000 high polluting vehicles and shut
down the only coal-fired power plant and polluting factories in 2017.

Beijing will strengthen environmental protection in 2017 by organising an
environmental police force to step up supervision and accountability in its
16 districts, the city’s acting mayor Cai Qi was quoted as saying by Xinhua
news agency on Saturday.

“Open air barbecues, garbage incineration, biomass burning, dust from roads
— these acts of non-compliance with regulations are actually the result of
lax supervision and weak law enforcement,” said Cai at a meeting after a
spell of smog lasting more than a week in the city.

Cai said the city government will take tougher measures to tackle air
pollution in the new year.

The residents of Beijing rang in the first day of 2017 with heavy smog
blanketing the city. So much so that many fled to other parts of the
country for New Year’s revelry.

The city’s only coal-fired power plant will be closed until after the
heating season. Coal consumption will be cut by 30 percent to less than 7
million tonnes in 2017.

Another 300,000 high-polluting old vehicles will be phased out in 2017.
Cleaner gas and diesel will be put into use starting February 15.

Additionally, 500 manufacturing and polluting factories will be closed,
while another 2,560 will be upgraded to meet higher pollution treatment
standards.

Cai said the city will also build closer ties with neighbouring Hebei
Province and Tianjin Municipality in fighting air pollution.

Unbridled factories over the decades propelled economic development but
polluted the country.

Air pollution is one of the biggest problems of China, which has taken
steps in this regard.

Many top officials in provincial governments have been sacked for failing
to contain pollution.

In 2015, China shut down some 17,000 polluting units in the country.

–IANS

gsh/bg
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