China is forcing local government officials to take responsibility for energy efficiency. Over the weekend, the nation’s top legislature added amendments to its energy-efficiency law requiring energy-saving efforts to be evaluated in performance reviews for Communist Party officials.
The decision coincides with the release of a government report stating that birth defects in Chinese infants have increased nearly 40% since 2001. Government officials have linked the rise to continuing environmental degradation in the country.
The report, released by China’s National Population and Family Planning Commission, shows that birth defects rose from 104.9 per 10,000 births in 2001, to 145.5 in 2006, affecting almost one in 10 families.
To feed the energy needs of a booming population and economy China has relied heavily on coal-fired power plants for the past three decades, and the population appears to be suffering the consequences of intense pollution.
According to a report in the Beijing News, the northern province of Shanxi, a top coal producer plagued by emissions from coke and chemical industries, had the highest rate of birth defects.
The paper quoted An Huanxiao, director of Shanxi’s provincial family planning agency, as saying “The incidence of birth defects is related to environmental pollution. The survey’s statistics show that birth defects in Shanxi’s eight large coal-mining regions are far above the national average.”
The statistics also state that 2-3 million Chinese babies are born with “visible defects” each year, equal to 4-6% of all births (versus 3-5% rate of birth defects worldwide, according to the World Health Association.)
30% of those born with birth defects will die, 40% will be disabled and another 8-12 million children will develop defects after birth.
With no end in sight to the expansion of the country’s energy demand, the government is attempting to make energy conservation a requirement for advancement in the Communist Party. Local officials will now be rated on which energy-saving goals they achieve. In addition, energy producers will no longer be able to provide free energy to their employees. However, the new amendments do not address low state-mandated prices for power, which many believe is the root of energy waste within the nation.
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