China Chronicles July 29, 2012
- More rainstorms forecast for north, heat wave for south
CHINA'S meteorological authorities yesterday forecast rainstorms for the nation's northern areas, and a heat wave in the south.
Heavy rains and storms were forecast for northern parts of north and northeast China up until tomorrow, the National Meteorological Center said.
Torrential rains will hit eastern parts of Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, central-western parts of Heilongjiang Province, western areas of Jilin Province, central parts of Liaoning Province, northeastern areas of Beijing and Hebei Province and northern Tianjin.
Regions west of the Yellow River in Gansu Province, central parts of Shaanxi and Shanxi provinces, southern parts of Hebei and northern parts of Shandong Province will also see downpours.
And heavy rains are likely to hit most of Yunnan Province and Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, said the center.
In the same period, a heat wave is expected to scorch regions along the Yangtze, Huai and Han rivers and Chongqing municipality, with temperatures of 38 degrees Celsius.
Beijing issued an alert for possible geological disasters yesterday, as the rainstorms expected to hit the capital, could cause mudslides and cave-ins in Pinggu, Miyun, Huairou, Fangshan and Mentougou districts.
- 40,000 evacuated from homes as floods peak
MORE than 40,000 people in central China's Yellow River area have been evacuated from their homes to safer areas as flood waters peak in Shanxi and Shaanxi provinces.
The water flow at Wubu Hydro Station in Wubu County in Yulin City, in Shaanxi, reached 10,600 cubic meters per second on Friday, the highest level since 1989, the State Flood Control and Drought Relief Headquarters said.
Recent torrential rain has seen water levels rise on the main artery and tributaries of the Yellow River's middle reaches, said the flood control authority.
Famous tourism sites along the river, such as the Hukou area in Shanxi, have been closed to tourists until the alerts are lifted, said the authorities.
Downstream, Longmen Hydro Station recorded a water flow of 7,620 cubic meters per second at 7am yesterday, the highest level since 1996, it said.
Flood water has inundated low-lying areas and some water control and diversion projects, said officials.
The headquarters said residents in areas threatened by flooding have been relocated and that the two affected provinces have dispatched emergency personnel to strengthen checks on dams and increase flood control materials.
Rainstorms in Beijing last weekend killed 77 people, triggering public anger, with questions asked about emergency planning and the poor drainage system in big cities like the capital.
In the aftermath of the Beijing deaths, as the flood peak hit parts of central China, the authorities had demanded the quick evacuation of affected areas.
Meanwhile, train services on parts of the Southern Xinjiang Railway in northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region were suspended yesterday due to flooding, said the railway operator.
Flood water has covered sections of the track, halting services on the Turpan-Korla stretch of the railway line, said railway officials.
Hundreds of rescuers are working at the site and trapped passengers have been transferred from the area, said officials.
"Lucki ly, the train stopped in a small station where supplies were available," said a train passenger, surnamed Li, who yesterday had been trapped for hours on a train in Xinjiang.But other passengers were unable to stock up on provisions. One female passenger stranded on a train complained yesterday that she had eaten nothing since embarking on her journey.
- Power transmission project gets under way
CONSTRUCTION on a west-to-east ultra-high voltage direct current (UHV DC) power transmission project began in east China's Zhejiang Province yesterday, marking the nation's latest efforts to ease power shortages in its eastern regions.
The project, funded by the State Grid Corporation of China (SGCC), will transport about 40 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity annually from Xiluodu Hydropower Station in southwest China to Zhejiang after its scheduled completion in 2014.
This will help save 12.28 million tonnes of standard coal, which means the cut of 34 million tonnes of carbon emissions.
The SGCC, the nation's major power grid operator, will invest 23.86 billion yuan (US$3.79 billion) in the construction .
Starting in Yibin in Sichuan Province, the 1,679.9-kilometer transmission line will traverse Guizhou, Jiangxi and Hunan provinces to reach Zhejiang's central city of Jinhua.
SGCC Vice President Shu Yinbiao said that compared to previous projects, the line will be built with a greater transmission capacity, more advanced technology and a higher domestic manufacturing level.
The move came as China steps up the construction of UHV transmission projects since an increasing number of economically developed eastern cities have reported being affected by power shortages.
The project is the SGCC's third UHV DC power transmission project after the Xiangjiaba-Shanghai and Jinping-Nanjing transmission lines, completed in 2010 and 2012, respectively, said Liu Zehong, director of SGCC's DC power construction department.
The three transmission lines together will support a transmission capacity of 21.6 million kilowatts, Liu said.
These projects will also help fuel the exploration of clean energy in the country's water-rich southwestern regions and make water resources there an economic advantage, which will in turn promote balanced regional growth, Liu said.
By 2015, the SGCC aims to build three north-to-south UHV lines, which would deliver pow! er from the nation's northern energy bases, and three west-to-east UHV lines, which would transport coal electricity from the north and hydropower from the southwest and connect a line among the northern, central and eastern regions.
- Paper mill pipeline scrapped after outcry
A TOP official in Nantong City in Jiangsu Province said yesterday the construction of a discharge pipeline from a Japanese paper mill to the sea in Qidong City has been cancelled.
The project, in Qidong City, which is affiliated to Nantong, had led to a public outcry over pollution concerns.
Yesterday, many residents, who had taken to the streets to protest against the pipeline, dispersed after learning the news, Xinhua News Agency reported.
Zhao Nan'nan, an official with the Qidong government, said that following research and discussions the pipeline plan had been scrapped.
Media reports said the project "will not be restarted in the future."
After the announcement, Qidong police published a post on their microblog asking residents to "go home with relief."
The project was planned by Oji Paper Co Ltd. Work had not started, said Qidong government officials.
The Japanese company said on its website that the pipeline "is just a supporting project item and the company has strict controls on the water quality."
Waste water would only be discharged after being processed properly, said the company.
But Qidong residents feared the discharge pipe would pollute the nearby Lusi fishery.
There were also concerns that the discharge from the paper mill could pollute Shanghai's Qingcaosha Reservoir at the mouth of the Yangtze River, from where most Shanghai residents receive their water.
The Shanghai water authority has sought to reassure city residents over the safety of their tap water.
- Officials punished over coach with 111 people
SIX officials in Taoyuan County of central China's Hunan Province have been given disciplinary demerits after a coach with 39 seats was found to be carrying 111 passengers, local authorities said Friday.
The coach, heading to Jiangmen City in the neighboring Guangdong Province, was discovered to have 111 passengers, including 22 students and children on July 4, said a statement issued by the provincial safety production commission office.
Six officials in the county traffic police department and traffic bureau were given administrative demerits or serious warnings according to the disciplinary rules of the Communist Party of China.
Coach driver Kang Lihui had his driver's licence revoked, received a life ban from the transport business and was fined 2,000 yuan (US$316).
A string of fatal road accidents involving overloading have occurred in recent years in China.
In November 2011, 22 people, including 20 preschoolers, died when a school bus, a nine-seat van illegally converted to hold 64 people, hit a coal truck.
- Strangler death sentence
A man was sentenced to death yesterday for killing 11 people in southwest China's Yunnan Province, a court ruling said.
Zhang Yongming, 57, was accused of strangling 11 people in Jinning County from March 2008 to April 2012, according to the Kunming Intermediate People's Court.
Zhang used various means, including dismemberment, burning and burial, to destroy the evidence, it said.
He was given a death sentence with a two-year reprieve in 1979 for intentional homicide. Zhang was released in September 1997 after receiving a number of sentence reductions, the ruling said.
Zhang was given of land by the village and a subsistence allowance from the local government, but he did not show any gratitude and continued to commit crimes, the ruling said.
He showed no remorse in court and refused to apologize to the relatives of victims.
- Patrol vessel launched
CHINA yesterday launched its largest and most advanced patrol vessel, Haixun01, in Wuhan, in central Hubei Province, in a move to maintain marine sovereignty and enhance rescue efficiency.
Haixun01 is the first Chinese patrol vessel to simultaneously incorporate marine inspection and rescue functions. It will carry out inspections, safety monitoring, rescue and oil spill detection and handling, said Xu Guoyi, head of the Shanghai Maritime Bureau, which will manage the ship.
It should go into service by the end of the year, Xu said.
The 5,418-tonne vessel is 128.6 meters long. Its sailing speed is 37 kilometers per hour and it has a maximum sailing distance of 18,520 kilometers without refueling, said Tang Gongjie, general manager of Wuchang Shipbuilding Industry Company Ltd, which built the ship.
It can hold 200 rescued people, and offer medical treatment. It also has a helipad.
Haixun01 will maintain maritime safety and safeguard sovereignty, said Huang He, deputy head of the Transport Ministry's maritime bureau.
- Hepatitis B carriers highlight discrimination
HUNDREDS of hepatitis B carriers gathered in downtown Chengdu, Sichuan Province, to cover their eyes, ears and mouths, symbolizing "see no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil," in a bid to raise awareness about their infection yesterday, World Hepatitis Day.
"Although the number of hep B carriers is huge in China, people are reluctant to accept them. I hope this performance art can bring the public's attention to the need for equal rights for those with hep B," said Cheng Zhuo, the organizer of the event in Chengdu.
Lei Chuang, a 25-year-old activist against hep B discrimination as well as a post-graduate student at Zhejiang University, initiated a "hep B carriers treat you to dinner" event on the Sina Weibo microblog platform this week, winning support from people living with hep B in 12 Chinese cities.
"Our focus is not the dinner itself. We are calling for a scientific spirit and equal rights," said Lei, a hep B carrier.
"We want to let more people understand hep B and eliminate social discrimination against us," he added.
Feng Bofeng, a human resources manager in Hangzhou, asked to have dinner with Lei.
"As an HR manager, I know companies' prejudice against hepatitis B carriers remains serious," Feng said.
"I want to challenge this," he said.
As of noon yesterday, 25 people in the southern boomtown of Guangzhou had taken to Weibo to join the local "hep B carriers treat you to dinner" event.
However, shifting widespread public attitudes is no easy task.
"People quickly run away when they hear the words 'hepatitis B.' Some even say it is infectious," said Yang Zhanqing, initiator of the "hep B carriers treat you to dinner" event in Zhengzhou, in central China's Henan Province.
About 93 million Chinese people are infected with the hepatitis B virus, 70 percent of whom are HB carriers, according to the Chinese Ministry of Health.
Although it has been scientifically proven that hep B can only be transmitted via blood, sex and ! mother-t o-fetus transmission, public sentiment has not caught up with science.
Chinese job hunters with hep B have long complained of discrimination.
In 2005, the government issued a standard that put hep B carriers among those eligible for the civil service.
In 2010, universities and enterprises were banned from screening for hep B in admission and recruitment processes.
"Discrimination against hep B carriers is easing but it is still worrisome in regards to employment," said activist Lei.
- Lujiazui,Shanghai
- Lujiazui,Shanghai
- Lujiazui,Shanghai
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