The government Thursday unveiled a detailed mandate setting out how thousands of China's coal-fired power plants could be "desulphured."

 

Made public by the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), the mandate says the government could help provide technical guidance and support to power plants that are not technically familiar with the necessary new equipment.

 

The mandate also says that the government at various levels should play a bigger role in selecting technology, supervising installation and monitoring operations.

 

The mandate urges the government and the energy industry to speed up the desulphurization process, and calls for the establishment of a sound market monitoring system in three years' time.

 

The mandate requires that desulphurization equipment should be assessed in terms of advantages and disadvantages, investment utilization and localization after being put into operation. This exercise will help the planning and development of future projects.

 

"Desulphurization is essential if we are to protect our environment," said a commission spokesman.

 

Most of China's electricity is produced by burning coal, a process that produces sulphur dioxide (SO₂), a component of acid rain. Acid rain can erode buildings and harm crops, and prolonged exposure to SO₂ can lead to diseases such as lung dropsy.

 

East China, especially the area around the Yangtze River Delta, suffers the most from acid rain. If nothing is done now, the country will discharge 28 million tons of SO₂ by 2020, 16 million tons more than the country's atmosphere can accommodate, warned environmental experts.

 

Statistics from the State Environmental Protection Administration (SEPA) say the damage to the environment and human health from acid rain and SO₂ pollution translates into economic losses of 110 billion yuan (US$13.3 billion) a year.

 

To reduce these losses, China has decided to use technology that changes SO₂ into gypsum, a kind of building material.

 

The mandate encourages power plants to equip themselves with desulphurization facilities and has promised to offer preferential policies to help with the high costs.

 

For new coal plants that are already equipped, the government will offer subsidies. There is as yet no similar incentive for older plants.

 

An energy expert at Tsinghua University said the desulphurization units are expensive to install and operate and the new mandate goes some way to addressing the problem.

 

But the expert, who refused to be identified, was concerned that without full cooperation from environmental authorities, the effectiveness of this new regulation is uncertain.

 

He said the owners of the facilities have full authority over how they run their plants and the government cannot interfere in their choice of technology.

 

The main barriers to SO₂ and acid rain control come from the country's excessive demand for energy and a large number of small power plants that are coal-run.

 

China plans to shut down small coal-burning power plants when domestic energy demands can be met by alternative means.

 

Some plants that were closed have had to resume production to help meet current demands.

 

(China Daily May 20, 2005)