Guangzhou tries to win support for garbage incinerator

Authorities in China's southern metropolis of Guangzhou said they will not approve the construction of a garbage incineration facility if the project fails to pass evaluations concerning environmental protection, social risk and land acquisition.

In the week starting Wednesday, three departments in the city will consult residents living near the planned facility and ask if they are comfortable with the project.

On June 26, Guangzhou's urban planning committee designated a village in the Huadu District as the facility's primary location.

The decision sparked strong opposition from tens of thousands of local residents, with opponents saying the facility is too close to a densely-populated area.

"Why did the expert panel pick such a populous spot? There are plenty of empty places," said a villager surnamed Liu.

Others are concerned about possible health hazards, arguing that the facility will increase pollution, which is already heavy due to the large number of leather manufacturers operating in the area.

"We sifted through all viable locations. We also consulted experts from well-known institutions like Peking University," said Qiu Weibin, director of Huadu's urban management bureau. "The location is safe. With advanced technology and all-around supervision, we can guarantee that the incinerator would operate safely."

Local authorities have been trying to build the facility for years, but the public has yet to give approval. In 2009, local residents rejected the results of an initial environmental safety evaluation. Three years later, a second evaluation also failed to garner enough public support. A third evaluation began at the end of last year.

Other incineration facilities in Guangzhou have met similar opposition. In 2009, residents of the city's Panyu District protested against the construction of a garbage incinerator.

In a separate case, the municipal government had to relocate villagers living near the Baiyun District in order to built an incinerator there.

"We will not start the project as long as the public is against it," said a statement from Guangzhou's urban management committee.

With urbanization running high in China, governments in many large cities have been eyeing incinerators as a viable alternative to landfills. Although the governments have promised that the facilities would be operated safely and cleanly according to EU standards, few of the projects have won public support.

Urban residents are aware that landfills are no longer a practical option for taking care of the surging amount of refuse produced by big cities. However, few are willing to allow garbage incinerators to be built in their backyards.

Experts said the government's current method of tackling the problem, which simply involves stopping the projects after protests have already occurred, will undermine public trust.

"The government needs to consult the public at the beginning of the evaluation process, not after. It should provide adequate information and welcome public participation," said Peng Peng, a researcher at the Guangzhou Academy of Social Sciences.

He Yanling, a professor of public administration at Sun Yat-Sen University, said the government should establish a comprehensive mechanism for public communication in order to gain support for the projects.

"We can learn from international practices, such as creating laws to govern the rights and duties of every party involved in projects that everybody wants to shun," the professor said.