Leading engineers and experts in China will be engaged in a joint
quest for key technological breakthroughs in the next few years to
give Beijing's woeful urban pollution and traffic jams a complete
overhaul in the lead-up to the 2008 Olympic Games.
Focus will be put on solutions for sandstorm defense, drainage,
water conservation, clean energy supplies, intelligent public
transport networks and management, as well as up-to-date digital
applications to offer Internet access, virtual mock sports training
sessions and anti-drug checks.
Athletes, visitors and residents in Beijing will be the biggest
beneficiaries of the technological drive, the cornerstone of the
Action Plan for a Scientific Olympics, which was initiated
yesterday.
The strategic plan includes nine governmental departments involved
in sports, science and education, top official think-tanks and the
municipal government of Beijing.
Xu
Guanhua, minister of Science and Technology in charge of the plan,
asked the top-notch experts yesterday to submit their initiatives
by the end of next month when they can be followed by debates and
feasibility studies.
A
panel made up of authorities in the fields of science, technology,
sports, the arts and management will be formed in the next few
months to evaluate the initiatives before they are acted upon.
"Technology renovation will be the key force behind the
preparations for the 2008 Olympics. The launch of the plan will
help produce up-to-date solutions to the major problems concerning
the Games," said Xu.
Beijing has been noted abroad for its urban pollution, including
murkiness, smog, sandstorms and exhaust emissions.
There is also concern over the capital city's heavy traffic
congestion, opaque transportation controls and its insufficiently
developed public transportation network.
But Lin Wenyi, vice-mayor of Beijing, said that the city will pump
the bulk of its financial budget in the next seven years into
infrastructure upgrades, environmental clean-up and protection of
culture relics.
More than 180 billion yuan (US$21.7 billion) will be poured into
utilities projects including the improvement of the public
transport network, urban landscaping and the removal of shabby
neighborhoods, while over 46 billion yuan (US$5.5 billion) will be
designated for environmental cleanup over the next few years.
Wang Dingzuo, vice-director of the Chinese Academy of Engineering,
said the action plan should also tackle the chronic issue of water
shortage, an acute problem facing the over 12 million people who
live in the city.
Wang said the engineer pool of his institute can be tapped for the
research. The central government has given the institute the
responsibility for the study of China's water resources and related
problems.
(China Daily 07/28/2001)