An international symposium on how to combat the major problem of control and disposal of solid waste in cities begins today in Fuzhou, capital of east China's Fujian Province.

The symposium will focus on how to improve technology and industrial equipment in order to reduce the discharge of solid waste, the China Society of Environmental Science told reporters at a press conference earlier this week.

The topic is high on the agenda for many industries after compulsory regulations were introduced requiring firms to discard technology and equipment which fails to meet official standards for environmental protection.

Recycling of renewable waste, considered another major approach to solving the enormous environmental problems caused by solid waste, will also be focused on during the symposium.

Statistics from the State Environmental Protection Administration show that the amount of rubbish generated by cities- one kind of solid waste-is on average growing by 8 percent annually across the country. A total of 29 million tons of industrial solid waste was discharged last year.

"Pollution caused by solid waste has become a big problem," said Quan Hao, managing director of the society.

"To ensure that we can keep such pollution under control, it's really important to rein in the discharge of solid wastes as well as to dispose of them properly," said Quan.

The symposium has attracted more than 100 representatives including delegates from Japan, Germany and South Korea.

(China Daily November 8, 2002)