Protests staged since Sunday against a planned paraxylene plant in Maoming, Guangdong province, seemed to die down on Wednesday. But the quandary for a local government seeking a balance between development and stability never ends.

More than 1,000 locals have protested in front of Maoming's government building, in scenes that reflect growing public opposition across China to projects deemed dangerous or polluting. The Maoming protesters have smashed office windows and billboards in a display of their anger over the mooted local production of PX, a commonly used petrochemical.

Though the government pledged on Monday to consult the public before moving forward with the PX facility, protests continued into a third day. They even spread to Guangzhou on Tuesday, when hundreds rallied near the Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall, close to the Guangdong provincial government office.