Dalian chemical plant initiates halt
Source: Xinhua |
August 17, 2011, Wednesday
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
FUJIA Chemical Plant in the northeast city of Dalian, under orders to shut down the facility, initiated procedures to stop production on Monday, the port city government said yesterday.
Although the order to halt "immediately" was issued on Sunday by city authorities, the production cycle did not allow for an all-at-once stop due to safety concerns.
With the stop-production procedures now in effect, no more raw materials have gone onto the production line. The government will release the final decision about the plant in one or two days, authorities said.
The plant is a producer of PX, a carcinogenic petrochemical used to create raw materials for the production of polyester film and fabric. The critical issue is that safety and risk control at the plant in Dalian are far below standards, said petrochemical industry insiders on the condition of anonymity.
More than 12,000 Dalian residents took to the streets on Sunday demanding that the plant be relocated over concerns of potential toxic chemical leaks.
"It's a time bomb," said one of the protesters, surnamed Wang.
Calls to relocate the plant mounted after large waves whipped up by Tropical Storm Muifa breached a dike near the plant earlier this month. The dike was built to protect the plant from floodwaters.
Local residents have been concerned that a flood could damage the plant and cause it to release toxic chemicals.
The plant, one of China's largest PX producers, went into operation in 2009 and was capable of producing 700,000 tons of the compound annually, according to the company's website.
The plant contributes 2 billion yuan (about US$311 million) to the local government in taxes every year.
Since June 2009, Dalian residents have occasionally gathered in the city's square to protest the local government's move to accept the plant, after the coastal cities of Shanghai, Xiamen and Qingdao had all rejected it due to environment concerns.
Protestors on Sunday said that Dalian would be ruined if there was a major accident at the chemical plant.
Although the order to halt "immediately" was issued on Sunday by city authorities, the production cycle did not allow for an all-at-once stop due to safety concerns.
With the stop-production procedures now in effect, no more raw materials have gone onto the production line. The government will release the final decision about the plant in one or two days, authorities said.
The plant is a producer of PX, a carcinogenic petrochemical used to create raw materials for the production of polyester film and fabric. The critical issue is that safety and risk control at the plant in Dalian are far below standards, said petrochemical industry insiders on the condition of anonymity.
More than 12,000 Dalian residents took to the streets on Sunday demanding that the plant be relocated over concerns of potential toxic chemical leaks.
"It's a time bomb," said one of the protesters, surnamed Wang.
Calls to relocate the plant mounted after large waves whipped up by Tropical Storm Muifa breached a dike near the plant earlier this month. The dike was built to protect the plant from floodwaters.
Local residents have been concerned that a flood could damage the plant and cause it to release toxic chemicals.
The plant, one of China's largest PX producers, went into operation in 2009 and was capable of producing 700,000 tons of the compound annually, according to the company's website.
The plant contributes 2 billion yuan (about US$311 million) to the local government in taxes every year.
Since June 2009, Dalian residents have occasionally gathered in the city's square to protest the local government's move to accept the plant, after the coastal cities of Shanghai, Xiamen and Qingdao had all rejected it due to environment concerns.
Protestors on Sunday said that Dalian would be ruined if there was a major accident at the chemical plant.
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