|
|
|
Pollution in Taihu Lake, China: causal chain
and policy options analyses |
| Liang WANG1,Yongli CAI2,Liyan FANG3, |
| 1.School of Resources
& Environmental Sciences, Shanghai Key Laboratory for Ecology
of Urbanization Process and Eco-restoration, East China Normal University,
Shanghai 200062, China；College of Urban and
Resource Environment, Yancheng Teachers University, Yancheng 224002,
China; 2.School of Resources
& Environmental Sciences, Shanghai Key Laboratory for Ecology
of Urbanization Process and Eco-restoration, East China Normal University,
Shanghai 200062, China; 3.School of Foreign Languages,
East China Normal University, Shanghai 200062, China; |
|
|
|
|
Abstract Taihu Lake is located at the densely populated region of the eastern coast of China. Taihu Basin is one of the most developed regions of China. Over the past decades, especially since the reforming and opening-up of China in 1980s, the lake has received more and more pressure from a variety of interlinked human activities, including industrial pollution, fertilizer and pesticide application, eutrophication, overfishing, etc. Water quality has been deteriorating sharply in the lake. In this paper，we made a comprehensive assessment of the environmental and socio-economic issues to affect Taihu Lake ecosystem health. Pollution was identified as the most serious environmental concern. The root causes of these environmental problems are recognized to be diverse, including dense population, high urbanization, heavy industrialization, fast economic development, insufficient sewage treatment, weak public awareness of environment conservation, and lack of institutional capacity and insufficient enforcement through regulations and legislation. On the policy part, past and current policies and measures are reviewed, especially the “Zero” discharge action and phosphate ban in detergents in Taihu Basin. In order to mitigate environmental problems, some further policy options have been proposed, including: improving the fishery management; strengthening cross- provincial collaboration; making efforts to reduce flood disaster and increasing investment to new environmental protection technologies. It is important to assess the economic, social and environmental values of natural resources (soil, water and organisms) in order to allocate them efficiently and fairly between the present and future generations.
|
| Keywords
pollution
Taihu Lake
causal chain analysis (CCA)
policy options analysis (POA)
|
|
Issue Date: 05 December 2009
|
|
|
Belausteguigoitia J C(2004). Causal Chain Analysis and Root Causes: The GIWA Approach. Ambio, 33: 1–2
|
|
Duda A M(2003). Integrated management of land and water resources basedon a collective approach to fragmented international conventions. Phil Trans R Soc Lond, 358: 2051–2062
doi: 10.1098/rstb.2003.1410
|
|
Fan C X, Ji J, Chen H S (1997). The current eutrophication statusand trend of Lake Taihu and its comprehensive control countermeasure. Shanghai Environment Science, 16(8): 4 (in Chinese with English abstract).
|
|
Gao J F, Mao X W(2002). Economicdevelopment and its impact to flood disaster in Taihu Basin. Journal of Lake Science, 14(1): 47–52 (in Chinese withEnglish abstract)
|
|
Hu B B(2003). Analysis on effect of water pollution in Lake TaihuBasin on water quality of Lake Taihu. ShanghaiEnvironment Science, 22(12): 1017–1021 (in Chinese)
|
|
Huang W Y, Yang G S, Xu P Z(2002). Environmental Effect of “Zero”Actions in Taihu Basin. Journal of LakeScience, 14(1): 67–71 (in Chinese with English abstract)
|
|
Liang W, Jia Q F, Hua Y J(2001). Influence of alga contamination onthe quality of drinking water in the Taihu area. Jiangsu Prev Med, 12(1): 1–2 (in Chinese)
|
|
Lin Z X(2002). Analysis of water environmental change in Taihu watershed. Journal of Lake Science, 14(2): 111–116 (in Chinesewith English abstract)
|
|
Liu H Z, Ren L J, Hu M(1998). The countermeasures in Tai-lake pollutioncontrol. Science of Environment Protection, 24(6): 5 (in Chinese with English abstract)
|
|
Qin W, Liang S R, Jia W F(1997). Dynamic and increment measures ofSalangidae population. Fresh Fisheries, 27(6): 3–6 (inChinese)
|
|
SEPA (2005a). State Environmental Protection Administration of China. The restircted standard data of municipal wastewatertreatment plant runoff retrived, september 23 2005 (in Chinese)
|
|
SEPA (2005b). State Environmental Protection Administration of China. The regulations and laws about water pollutionfines can been found in (in Chinese)
|
|
Shi J H, Wang H(1997). Countermeasureabout eutrophication in Taihu Lake. ProtectWater Resources, 12: 12–15 (in Chinese with English abstract)
|
|
Shu J H, Huang W Y, Gao G, Zhou X W, Jiang Y C(2002). Effect of phosphatebanned in detergents in Taihu region. Detergent& Cosmetics, 25(2): 26–28 (in Chinese)
|
|
Qu J, Xu Z, Long Q, Wang L, Shen X, Zhang J, Cai Y(2005). EastChina Sea, GIWA Regional assessment 36. Kalmar: Kalmar University Press
|
|
Wang X J, Ma T(2001). Applicationof remote sensing techniques in monitoring and assessing the waterquality of Taihu Lake. Bull Environ ContamToxicol, 67: 863–870 (in Chinesewith English abstract)
doi: 10.1007/s001280202
|
|
Xie H B, Chen W(2002). Impactsof change of structure on the water environment in Taihu Basin: Acase study of Suzhou-Wuxi-Changzhou district. Journal of Lake Science, 14(1): 53–59 (in Chinese with English abstract)
|
|
Yang G S, Wang D J(2003). TaihuBasin, Economic Development · Water Environment · Waterdisaster. Beijing: Science Press (in Chinese)
|
|
Yao S M, Zhu M, Chen Z G(2001). Cities in China. Heifei: Chinese Scientic CollegePress, China (in Chinese)
|
|
Yu J, Yang J(2001). Nationalefforts to tackle pollution in Taihu Lake. China Environment News. Site accessed 24th May 2001 (in Chinese)
|
|
Viewed |
|
|
|
Full text
|
|
|
|
|
Abstract
|
|
|
|
|
Cited |
|
|
|
|
| |
Shared |
|
|
|
|
| |
Discussed |
|
|
|
|
