Abuse of power, worst form of pollution

11:39, May 14, 2010

By Li Hongmei

An untold number of cases related to toxics in recent years have greatly enlightened the ordinary Chinese in their chemical knowledge, and consequently, the abstruse chemical terms have almost become the street parlance. Even the housewives and retired grannies have already cultivated some awareness of, say, melamine in dairy products, elevated blood-lead level in children, and assorted contaminations stemming from various sources from chemical plants to just drinking an innocent glass of water.

Seen behind the pollution peril, the crux will come to light---the abused public power and the distorted social conscience, as it does in the following case recently reported by Beijing-based newspaper China Youth Daily, that a blacklisted toxic chemical plant sited in the densely populated Fengqiu County, in the central China's Henan Province had recently begun to produce methanol again with the explicit support of local authorities.

The locals said the plant was ordered to stop production ahead of the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games and then resumed operating early this year, and since then on, it had functioned around the clock, spewing toxic pollutants, till very recently, when the issue was exposed to the public glare by media.

For all these years, residents nearby repeatedly complained the gas from the factory was poisonous and killed farm animals, and a local man said his chickens were poisoned by the waste, but the local government turned a deaf ear to the public grievances, and a blast furnace inside the factory was still seen discharging smoke 24 hour a day.

It was also clear proof of heavy pollution that along the road, many trees on the factory side rotted away. Even worse, the waste water has polluted the local river as well as further downstream to the Yellow River.

Environmental experts also raised alarm on the toxic gas emission, stating the methanol waste, water and residue are toxic and cause significant harm to the human nervous system, damage the eyes, respiratory system, and may lead to cancer and leukemia.

China Youth Daily reported the chemical plant, named the Yellow River plant, was evolved from the Fengqiu Chemical Fertilizer Plant built in the 1970s. It was sold for purportedly less than market value in 2003 to Huang Jinci, a friend of Li Yinkui, the then Party secretary of Fengqiu. Li was accused of taking bribes and corruption in February 2009.

On May 7, 2010, according to the newspaper, the Fengqiu County government set up a working group to deal with problems related to the normal operation of the factory. But an anonymous official said the 18-member working group's purpose was not to deal with the toxicity of the plant but to "prevent locals from reporting this problem to officials higher up.” The residents were said to have made multiple complaints and even threatened to petition the case to higher-level authorities.

Appallingly and sickeningly, On May 10, 2010, the working group officially entered a village, close to the west side of the factory, to direct the relocation of the villagers. They forced 110 households to move because of the "construction of a new countryside," but actually for the expansion of the chemical plant.

China ushered in Index of Ecological Civilization Construction last year, which has since aroused some public awareness of the eco-environment, though far from enough. But one point is certain that the ecological civilization construction unnecessarily links up with the GDP yields. On the contrary, the governments at different levels will have to first of all bear in mind the common good to build up an ecologically sound environment.

The basis of the public power is the sense of public responsibility, which is inbred in the decision-making process whenever the public power is wielded. If the public power strays from the reverence for the public opinions, and even worse, when the authority is exercised at the expense of the public interests, it is not merely the dereliction of duty, but abuse of power, which proves more harmful than even toxic factories.

Evil is abuse of power, as goes the popular saying. It is evidently the worst form of pollution.

The articles in this column represent the author's views only. They do not represent opinions of People's Daily or People's Daily Online.