Shanghai needs to push ahead with the implementation of the third phase of its three-year environmental action plan in an effort to accomplish the goals of the eleventh five-year plan period, the city's Mayor, Han Zheng, said at a conference yesterday.

Gardeners tend flowerbeds in Shanghai's Pudong Area.

Shanghai would focus on the objectives of the new round in its three-year environmental action plan and the task of reducing pollutant emissions.

In 2006 the city's emissions were controlled and this year's aim is 2 percent lower than that of 2005. The objective is that up to 2010 the city's emission levels of sulfur dioxide and chemical oxygen should be limited to 380,000 and 259,000 tons per year respectively. These are decreases of 26 percent and 15 percent based on the 2005 figures. 

Mayor Han pointed out that Shanghai's environmental protection and construction depended on legal administration, high-tech support and relevant reduction measures. Therefore, regulations and rules on environmental protection and transparent means of law enforcement were demanded.

He ordered all city departments to take responsibility for building an environmentally friendly city and a harmonious society.

(Shanghai Daily January 17, 2007)