Several deaths caused by cancer in recent years have stirred more fears among residents, said Zhang Tianjun, another local. Two women, one aged 30 and the other 45, and a 50-year-old man died of cancer last year.

"I don't know whether the cancer was caused by the pollution of the landfill or not, but the number of deaths among younger people has increased," said Zhang, 38. "Some other health problems, such as heart attacks, have also increased."

Power plant to be built

To prevent the garbage mountain from growing, authorities have drawn up plans for a waste incineration power plant.

"The landfill in Yuanfuzhuang has been operating beyond its capacity since it was put into use in 1994," said Fan Jinshun, of the Kaifeng city management bureau. "An incineration power plant will save as much as 80 percent of the area's farmland."

Rong Bo, manager of the contracted power plant project, said construction is scheduled to finish within a year, with the facility expected to handle 365,000 tons of waste a year.

However, resident An Ziming, 60, said many of his neighbors have raised concerns that burning waste will send more poisonous gases into the air and harm their health in the long run.

Waste incineration projects have met with resistance in other cities as well.

More than 2,000 people in Dagang township, near Guangzhou in Guangdong province, protested a government plan to build a waste incineration power plant there in July, Yangcheng Evening News reported.

The protest prompted the local government to suspend construction of the project, and the final site of the plant had not been decided as of April 26, Guangzhou Daily reported.

She also wants to live in the city with her husband and two children, but most properties downtown are out of their price range.

"It costs at least 200,000 yuan to buy an apartment in Kaifeng. Our family saves less than 10,000 yuan a year," she said.

The family has to pay for the medical expenses of Du's in-laws and her grandmother, and raising the 8-year-old son and 2-year-old daughter also cost much, she said.

Despite the many difficulties her family faces, Du said she will continue to save money because she does not want her children to grow up in a polluted area.

"What we want is really simple: Clean water and fresh air," she said.

Xiang Mingchao and Jiao Hongchang contributed to this story.