31 mins, 2009
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China's rapid industrialisation has come at a heavy price - polluted waterways and huge health problems. This film follows two Chinese environmentalists risking threats and violence to locate the factories polluting their water.
CHONGQING: The film begins in Chongqing, one of China's new mega cities, home to six million people, and a major centre of industry. Like elsewhere in China Chongqing's rapid industrialisation has come at a heavy price. Many of its waterways are now polluted.
THE ACTIVISTS: Wu Deng Ming is a local environmentalist. Together with his colleague, Yonghchen Wang, he monitors the toxic discharges from the factories which are responsible for much of China's water pollution. China now allows non-government organisations to operate, but activists like Wu and Ms Wang still face harassment from both the state and the factories.
WATER POLLUTION: According to Ma Jun, water pollution is the most serious environmental issue facing China. 60% of the waterways are contaminated. That means 320 million people don't have access to safe drinking water. The health consequences are devastating. Strong laws governing pollution do exist, but are regularly flouted. Fines for violations are too small to deter polluters.
THE ROLE OF THE WEST: And while the West may not produce the pollution, they, in effect, import it into China. One economist estimates that 20% to 30% of China's pollution comes from the manufacturing of goods for export. Meanwhile multinational companies are threatening to leave China if local environmental laws are applied.
GOVERNMENT CRACKDOWN: China's government is increasingly concerned about its toxic rivers. In one district, local officials are cleaning up a river polluted by factories. Local people complain of the effects on their health: "It has affected our eyesight. Many people have developed kidney stones and gall bladder problems. It has also caused numbness in hands and feet."
THE FIGHT GOES ON: Under the new official crackdown, companies who can't deal with their waste won't be allowed to build factories. And those caught polluting might be shut down. But strong resistance to change still remains. Wu and Wang are violently attacked on a visit to a polluting factory.
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