Give law greater clout in battle against pollution
By Jiang Ping (China Daily)
Updated: 2006-07-31 10:12 Clashes between the public and private rights find an expression in various
forms. Water and air pollution caused by economic growth and urbanization, for
instance, negatively impact people's lives and cause health problems. The
government is expected to do something in this regard but, to our regret,
relevant government departments have actually done little, which very much
damages government credibility among the public.
It should be borne in mind that the legal awareness of the Chinese people is
being heightened as the nation becomes increasingly law-governed.
The Chinese people's greater awareness of their legal rights automatically
requires that their environmental rights are guaranteed. This, in turn, prompts
the government to strengthen the law enforcement in this regard.
Besides law enforcement, more authority should be given to relevant
government departments so that their responsibilities will cover wider areas,
which facilitates the tackling of environmental problems. This is because
environmental matters involve different sectors and localities. The polluted
Songhua River, for example, flows through Jilin and Heilongjiang provinces in
the northeast of the country.
In the past, the Yellow River and Huaihe River water conservation committees
were set up to supervise water conservancy and flood-control tasks in the
valleys of these two major rivers. These two specialized committees have made
impressive accomplishments.
Tackling water pollution today requires the establishment of such specialized
and co-ordinating organizations.
In addition, we need legislation covering specific river valleys or regions
as a complement to existing environmental protection decrees, which are largely
general in nature. For example, why should we not draw up a law tackling dust
storms in North China and why should we not enact the decree involving the
protection of water resources in the valley of the Songhua River?
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