Hundreds march to oppose battery plant

Local residents carrying green ribbons circled the Songjiang district government offices on foot Wednesday afternoon to continue their protest of a lithium ion battery plant planned to be built in the district, the protestors said Wednesday.

The protestors numbered in the hundreds, according to pictures and discussion posted Wednesday on a QQ chat group started by the residents.

The protest marked the second time Songjiang residents have organized a demonstration against the battery plant, which will be built by Hefei Guoxuan High-tech Power Energy Co Ltd. Dozens of cars bearing green ribbons drove around the district government offices on April 21 in a similar demonstration.

The Songjiang district government announced Monday that the plant would no longer be built with facilities for battery production, which might cause pollution.

The production of lithium ion battery is composed of three parts: materials production, battery cell production and battery assembly.

Materials production included the production of the batteries' anode and cathode. It may cause pollution, according to the letter released by the district government last Friday. However, the government said the plant in Songjiang will only be responsible for battery cell production and assembly, which won't cause environmental problems if the waste water and gas is properly treated.

At the end of last year, the Shanghai Research Institute of Chemical Industry distributed 150 questionnaires to gather public comment about the project. It found 68 percent of the people surveyed supported the project.

"We want the government hold public hearings again to collect suggestions from the public because 150 is only a small part of the 80,000 residents who live near the factory," said a local resident who requested anonymity.