1. Better Air Quality in Asian and Pacific Rim Cities (BAQ 2002) 16-18 December 2002, Hong Kong SAR The Trend of Acid Rain in China W. Wang 1,3, T. Wang 2, J. Guo 3, G. Ding 4, Haireti 3 1 Chinese Research Academy of Environmental Sciences, Beijing (Email:wxwang99@hotmail.com) 2 Department of Civil & Structural Engineering, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong (Email: cetwang@polyu.edu.hk) 3 Center of Environmental Science and Technology, Beijing University of Chemical Technology, Beijing 4 Chinese Research Academy of Meteorological Sciences, Beijing

2. CONTENTS INTRUDUCTION BRIEF REVIEW OF ACID RAIN RESEARCH IN CHINA SOME RESULTS DURING 1980s-1990s CONTROL EFFORT DISCUSSION

3. INTRUDUCTION: WHAT IS ACID RAIN? Fig.1. Acid rain and its effect on environment (from D. I. Abriton, NOAA)

4. Fig.2. Consumption and composition of energy in China during 1949 - 2000 Oil Coal Total

5. A BRIEF REVIEW OF ACID RAIN RESEARCH IN the 1980s AND 1990s Acid rain research has been conducted for more than 20 years, since it was discovered in 1970s. It includes the following five stages: Phase I. Nationwide Acid Rain Monitoring (1981-1982) Phase II. Status and Damage of Acid Rain in representative areas (1985-1986) Phase III. Acid Rain Study (1986-1990) Phase IV. Acid Deposition and Ecological Effect (1991-1995) Phase V. State Plan of Acid Rain Control (1996-2000)

6. Fig.3. Contours of annual mean pH of precipitation in 1981-1983 Phase I. Nationwide Acid Rain Monitoring (1981-1982)

7. Fig.4. Contours of annual mean pH of precipitation in 1992-1993 Phase IV. Acid Deposition and Ecological Effect (1991-1995)

8. Fig.5. Contours of Annual mean pH of Precipitation in 2000 Phase V. State Plan of Acid Rain Control (1996-2000)

9. Table 2. The concentrations of SO 4 2- and NO 3 - in precipitation in acid rain areas 1992-1993 μeq./L

10. CONTROL EFFORT OF ACID RAIN IN CHINA In order to control acid rain, the Chinese government has taken several actions to reduce SO 2 emissions. Among them, the most effective measure was the industrial reforms, namely developing high- technology sectors, and shutting down facilities with severe pollution and poor economic performance. - Between 1996 and 2000, over 80,000 plants were forced to stop production or closed down, as a result, energy consumption especially coal consumption was reduced significantly: raw coal consumptions were reduced from 1.46 billion tons in 1996 to 1.2 billion tons in 2000, resulting in reduction of SO 2 and NO X emissions of about 4.5 million tons and 2 million tons respectively. This effectively prevented the further deterioration of acid rain in China and is unprecedented in the short time in the world’s acid rain history.

11. The estimated SO 2 and NO X emissions and observed rainwater acidity

12. Future Trend of Acid Rain in China ● The Chinese government plans to spend 300 billion RMB on air-pollution control in 2001-2005. With the consideration of need of heavy capital investments in SO 2 control technology and the high operating costs, economic reforms will continue to play a key role in the reduction of SO 2 emissions.

13. 3 Future Research Needs - Develop updated emission inventories - Investigate the cause of increasing trend of acidity in the northern region and some areas in the south - Understand better inter-region transport, ecological impact and sources of emissions warrant further research. -Address the linkage between acid rain and particulate matter and tropospheric ozone pollution

14. THANK YOU !