Transcripts

China's Pre-Olympic Anti Pollution Plan

SUZANNE PRATT: With fewer than 50 days until the summer Olympics in Beijing, officials today announced a new measure to cut the city's chronic air pollution. Half of Beijing's 3.3 million cars will be banned from the streets. China will also shutter factories that taint the air. As Shannon van Sant reports, some of those factories are rushing to boost output before they're closed.

SHANNON VAN SANT, NIGHTLY BUSINESS REPORT CORRESPONDENT: Employees at the Hongye steel mill are hard at work. But on July 20, one of Hongye's three production lines at this branch will close, costing the factory $5,800 for every day of lost production. Hongye is one of 25 factories required to reduce emissions by 30 percent. It's part of the government's plan to clear the air before 10,000 athletes and half a million visitors arrive for the Olympic games this August. Deputy director Zhang Weimin says Hongye steel mill has been preparing for this emissions cut for years.

TRANSLATION OF: ZHANG WEIMIN, DEPUTY DIRECTOR, HONGYE STEEL MILL: Since 2003 and 2004, Hongye steel mill has implemented energy-saving measures and reduced emissions. The total investment over the past few years amounted to more than half a million U.S. dollars; the subsidy from the government was more than $115,000.

VAN SANT: Between July 20 and September 20, factories like Hongye will reduce or cease production and construction at hundreds of building sites across Beijing will stop. The Beijing government says these measures will lift the heavy blanket of smog that covers the city many days of the year. But some athletes plan to wear face masks when not at competition and many are training in Japan, Korea and Singapore in the days just before their events to avoid the pollution. The Beijing environmental protection bureau insists air quality won't be an issue for the games and beyond. Du Shaozhong, a spokesman for the bureau, says the factory closures are part of a long-range plan to improve Beijing's environment.

TRANSLATION OF: DU SHAOZHONG, DEPUTY DIRECTOR & SPOKESMAN, BEIJING MUNICIPAL ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION BUREAU: All these measures have short- term and long-term effects. The long-term effects are in agreement with the greater goal of restructuring the economy, environmental protection and improved air quality.

VAN SANT: Short-term effects for the Hongye steel mill include a loss of more than $365,000 in revenue. Hongye's Zhang Weimin says the mill has boosted output to compensate.

WEIMIN: After the spring festival, we increased the production of some of our big products so that sales won't be greatly affected. While the factory closures are already affecting the local economy, experts say it will take more than short-term shutdowns to create a long legacy of cleaner air in Beijing.

VAN SANT: While the factory closures are already affecting the local economy, experts say it will take more than short-term shutdowns to create a long legacy of cleaner air in Beijing. Shannon van Sant, NIGHTLY BUSINESS REPORT, Beijing.