The Chinese government is drafting a National Program of Action (NPA) to protect its marine environment from land-based activities.

 

"The move is aimed at boosting and channeling China's efforts in marine environment protection," Zhu Guangyao, deputy director of the State Environmental Protection Administration (SEPA), said Wednesday at a forum on marine pollution

 

China's coastal waters face a serious threat of land-based pollution. Statistics from the SEPA said that nearly 31.7 billion tons of polluted water flowed into China's offshore waters in 2005, accounting for 60 percent of the total wastewater produced by the country.

 

Zhu said the major threats to the productivity and biodiversity of the marine environment result from human activities on land in coastal areas and further inland.

 

"To control such pollution, we must stop it at source," he said.

 

Zhu said the NPA will target 11 coastal provinces and municipalities and 10 state departments will be asked to contribute, including the State Oceanic Administration, the Ministry of Land and Resources, the Ministry of Construction and the Ministry of Transportation.

 

China is a member of the Global Program of Action (GPA) for the Protection of the Marine Environment from Land-Based activities. The United Nations Environment Program launched the GPA.

 

(Xinhua News Agency October 20, 2006)