Pointing at the most polluting companies, the Chinese way
There is a word in Chinese, mianzi, which could be translated as "shame" or "fear of being ashamed" and which is considered an important concept in Chinese culture. Using mianzi as a weapon for environmental defense, a Chinese environmental organization called IPEA (Institute of Public and Environmental Affairs) has decided to publish a list of the most polluting industries in the country, pointing a finger so they get ashamed and change their practises.
"Access to information is a necessary condition to obtain the people's support," said IPEA's president Ma Jun. Therefore the list has been made available online for everybody. The source? The Chinese government's own official reports on pollution and fines, which are usually kept private.
Most of these industries are placed in the south of the country and near the Yangtze. They include Sinopec (an oil company), Sina-Mars/APP Group (paper), BP, Honda, Toyota, Ford and Michelin. While the list might not be accurate and probably does not include everything that really happens, it gives a good idea of the the situation. As Ma Jun said, "Once exposed, these companies are forced to give explanations about their activities".
Up to 9,400 companies have appeared in this black list, and they won't be removed until an external auditor certifies that the problem has been solved. The website also includes more information such as water pollution levels and air quality in 115 cities.
[Source ABC News, Ecoticias]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
GreatGreenHammer 8:40PM (1/03/2008)
Unfortunately, those companies owned or partly owned by high ranking communist officials will escape the dreaded "mianzi".
Interesting how most of the companies singled out for "mianzi" were foreign. Hmmmm. These companies wouldn't be from the same country that recently invited the Dali Llama to the White House would they?
Funny how the Chinese have access to the "mianzi list" on the internet while CNN is forbotten.
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Ernie 3:51AM (1/04/2008)
Mmm. Yes, but another important concept in China is that there's no shame in *doing* something, but rather in getting *caught*.
I also noticed that the "recyclers" that provide zero protection to their workers, subjecting them to severe heavy metal poisoning aren't on this list. Somehow I suspect that any one of them pollutes more than Toyota.
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GoodCheer 10:30AM (1/04/2008)
It is easy to be cynical about Chinese efforts at environmental (or worker) protection, and in many cases such cynicism is probably appropriate. I think the corruption alluded to above will continue to hamper progress for a long time. That being said, if there were to be steps in the right direction, would we be able to recognize them and applaud actions that are relevant and productive?
I know some people get all excited about China being "communist", but in many respects China has a freer market than almost anywhere else in the world (their government does not tell their car companies to build cars with any particular safety, emissions or mileage targets).
[Am I just being a troll?]
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