Tuesday, February 9, 2010

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China releases first pollution census

BEIJING -- China says its pollution levels might peak sooner than expected as it tries to balance economic and green concerns.

In its most ambitious measure of the effect of explosive development on its environment, China says its first national pollution census has mapped nearly 6 million sources of industrial, residential and agricultural waste.

The central government now has a year to use the census results to shape its next five-year environmental protection plan. China's vice minister of environmental protection says ministries are also studying the possibility of an environmental tax.

For the first time, China has factored agricultural sources into its pollution studies.

The central government, pressured by years of scandals over lax pollution controls, has been pushing for stronger regulation.

(Copyright 2010 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)