Long-term protection

Qin, from Wuhan University, said: "China is working to build a long-term environmental protection mechanism, such as amending and redrafting laws, issuing new laws and regulations, and comprehensive measures."

In addition to tough regulations and inspections, the public should be encouraged to participate in a national campaign and suggest policies.

"That would help supervision and play a role in making the policies scientific, he said, adding that if pollution occurs, the public and NGOs should have easy access to public interest litigation, which would force companies to behave properly.

Wang Lu, from the Jincheng Consultancy, said the elimination of the environmental threat caused by real estate development in Hainan is a simple matter.

"All the real estate developers and local governments need to do is follow the regulations and laws instead of thinking about how to bypass them to maximize short-term profit," he said.

As a result of the crisis caused by the pollution scandal, the fate of Ocean Flower Island is uncertain.

"One thing is sure－there won't be another project like this in Hainan or any part of China again," said Wang Lan, the property speculator from the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region.

Zheng Jinran and Wu Yiyao contributed to this story.