Fifty-two of the 57 speakers at a public forum Thursday opposed
the development of a chemical plant in the city of Xiamen, Fujian
Province.
Provincial authorities had invited residents to share their
views and give suggestions on the proposed development of the plant
in Haicang district.
A further 42 participants will get the chance to voice their
views today.
Some of those who opposed the scheme are believed to either own
or have plans to buy an apartment in Haicang.
They argued that Xiamen has long been known for its beautiful
scenery and for being one of the most livable cities in China.
Other representatives said the government should find a way to
balance the economic development of the area with environmental
concerns.
The authorities put the paraxylene (PX) plant, which was to be
built 16 km from the city center, on hold in May after coming under
pressure from locals opposed the project.
Paraxylene is a highly polluting, cancer-causing petrochemical
used to make purified terephthalic acid, a raw material for
producing polyester film, packaging resin and fabrics. Health
experts have also said it can cause fetus abnormalities.
The 10.8 billion yuan ($1.5 billion) plant for the Tenglong
Aromatic PX (Xiamen) Co Ltd was expected to produce 800,000 tons of
paraxylene and add about 80 billion yuan a year to the local
economy.
The authorities started soliciting opinions from the public
following the publication last Wednesday of an environmental
assessment report by experts from the Chinese Research Academy of
Environmental Sciences (CRAES).
It said public participation was an important step in the
environmental assessment of urban planning.
The CRAES report advised Xiamen's urban planners to choose
between developing Haicang district into a sub-center of the city
or creating an industrial zone focused on the chemical
industry.
It also indicated that creating an industrial zone would require
demolishing a number of houses, relocating residents and conducting
strict safety controls over the chemical plant.
Participants in the forum were chosen by lottery on Tuesday,
under the supervision of the Xiamen notary office, from the 624
people who registered online or by calling a hotline number.
A further 100 people were selected as alternative
representatives. More than 100 people were disqualified for
providing invalid ID numbers, the local government website
stated.
(China Daily December 15, 2007)
