Sulfur dioxide emitted from coal power plants has become a major source of air pollution in China, and the emissions will continue to rise if clean energies are not properly developed, experts warned in Shanghai Monday.

Experts attending a symposium in this leading industrial center of China said that the structure of power generation is highly irrational, with coal power plants generating 81 percent of the country's electricity and accounting for more than half of the total annual coal consumption in the country.

The burning of coal produces such pollutants as sulfur dioxide,nitrogen oxide, suspended particles and mercury as well as carbon dioxide, which contributes to global warming.

The amount of sulfur dioxide emitted from the plants account for nearly half of the country's total, said Meng Wei, chief of the China Environment Science Institute.

After years of control efforts, sulfur dioxide in the air of some Chinese cities has been reduced to a certain degree, but there is no obvious decrease in the areas hit by acid rain which is mainly caused by sulfur dioxide, he said.

"This is directly linked with the high sulfur dioxide emissions from coal power plants," he said.

It is predicted that by 2020, the installed generating capacity of coal power plants in the country will reach 660 million kilowatts from 240 million kilowatts in 2000 to meet the increasing demand for electricity.

"This means that the emissions of sulfur dioxide, particles and nitrogen oxide will reach 21 million tons, 5 million tons and over10 million tons, respectively, if calculated on the current level " he said, warning of possible severe environmental degradation.

From a long-term perspective, the total emission of sulfur dioxide in the country should be kept under 12 million tons annually, with those from the power generating sector under 5.5 million tons, he quoted a recent study of his institute as saying.

Zhao Xizheng, general manager of the State Power Grid Development Company, said that it is urgently necessary to restructure the country's power generation by reducing the percentage of coal power stations while quickening the development of clean energies.

To date, hydropower stations account for 25 percent of the country's total installed power generating capacity, with wind and solar power stations making up a mere one percent.

"The government should further encourage enterprises to develop new and renewable energies to achieve sustainable development of the country," he said.

To that end, the Chinese Government has mapped out a series of programs, including one which set a target of cutting sulfur dioxide emissions by 10 percent by 2005, between 10 to 20 percent of which should be taken from the power sector.

The experts said that the target could be achieved if the government steps up its efforts in restructuring the power sector by giving more emphasis to clean energies.

China ranks second in the world in terms of installed power generating capacity and annual power generation, which stood at 356 million kilowatts and 1.6 trillion kw/hr at the end of 2002.

However, China's per capita consumption of electricity is only between one-sixth and one-tenth of that in developed countries.

It has been estimated that by 2020, the country's installed power generating capacity will have to reach 900 million kilowatts to meet the demands of rapid economic growth.

(Xinhua News Agency September 8, 2003)