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Research on Public Nuisance Disease Litigation and Its Law Questions in China

Presented by Wang Canfa

Wang Canfa is a Lawyer, Director of the Centre for Legal Assistance to Pollution Victims, and Professor at the Chinese University of Political Science and Law in Beijing. Prof. Wang was included in the Time Magazine's list of "Heroes of the Environment" in October 2007. http://www.time.com/time/specials/2007/article/0,28804,1663317_1663320_1669921,00.html For more information on the NGO founded by Prof. Wang, please see http://www.clapv.org/

In Deep Water: Shortages, Pollution, and Ecological Destruction of China's
Water Resources

Presented by Dr. Jennifer Turner

While serious air pollution, growing solid waste, and rapid biodiversity loss are quite severe in China, the country's water problems are perhaps its greatest environmental and public health threat. The statistics on water in China paint a bleak picture. In terms of water quality, 40% of China's rivers
are so polluted they should not be used for industry or agriculture; 300 million people lack access to safe drinking water; and 30,000 children in China die from illnesses caused by drinking dirty water. Water scarcity is also severe, particularly in the north of China where by 2010 there could be as many
as 50 million environmental refugees fleeing water shortages and sand dunes. Dam and water diversion projects continue to displace hundreds of thousands of rural citizens.

Over the past few years the dire water quality and quantity problems have become higher priorities of the Chinese government and a growing area of activism with Chinese nongovernmental organizations (NGOs). This top-down and bottom-up focus on the country's water woes may ultimately become catalysts for major improvements in China's environmental governance system.

BIO

Jennifer Turner is the director of the China Environment Forum at the Woodrow Wilson Center. Besides putting on meetings and publications focusing on a variety of energy and environmental challenges facing China, she has coordinated several research exchange activities in China, the United States, and Japan bringing together Chinese, U.S., Japanese, and other Asian experts on
issues of environmental nongovernmental organizations, environmental journalism, river basin governance, water conflict resolution, and municipal financing of environmental infrastructure. She also serves as editor of the Wilson Center's journal, the China Environment Series.

Her most recent publications include co-author (with Kenji Otsuka) of a Wilson Center report: Reaching Across the Water: International Cooperation Promoting Sustainable River Basin Governance in China and Co-author (with Lü Zhi) "Building a Green Civil Society in China." State of the World 2006. Washington, DC WorldWatch Institute.

Dr. Turner received her Ph.D. in Public Policy and Comparative Politics from Indiana University, Bloomington, in 1997. Her dissertation examined local government innovation in implementing water policies in the People's Republic of China. Her current research focuses on environmental civil society, water resources protection and food safety issues in China.

Presentation Title: The Story of Three Villages

Presented by: Dr. Jackson Tung, Chief Scientist, Yunnan Heath and Development
Research Association (A Kunming, Yunnan, P. R. of China based NGO)

Presentation Abstract: The NGO Yunnan Health and Development Research Association (YHDRA) has been active in the southwest China area for more than 15 years. It has build a strong reputation in improving rural health care system, addressing the needs of migrant workers from rural to urban areas, and HIV/AIDS prevention work for major infrastructure construction projects. YHDRA used a multi-disciplinary team which combines social sciences and medical sciences people to achieve the desired results.

YHDRA recently received several grants to focus its effort on "Environment and Health (E&H)" issues. With this new focus, YHDRA expanded its expert panel to include many of the environmental sciences. YHDRA continued to utilize its social scientists and health care professionals to examine the E&H issues in rural villages.

Dr. Tung will report on the effort of studying three villages under very different scenarios. The three villages are Heijing, Waka, and Mungla. Heijing is a historic village in Yunnan that lost its earlier salt producing industry. Salt production made the village famous but also caused significant environmental damage. It is now faced with new issues of building a tourism business and dealing with a tobacco farming community. Waka is a resettlement village established by the government 20 years ago. Moving Tibetan households from high mountain areas to low valley areas caused some food related health
problems. The government is now stuck with a water supply project that costs several million RMB that the village may never be able to afford without the government subsidy. Mungla is a town near Yunnan and Laos boarder. It has seen significant development due to the construction of a major highway (Kunming to Bangkok highway). When this highway opens for traffic in 2008, Mungla will
become the most convenient overnight stay town for people travel to/from Kunming. Sex trade is already on the rise. The method of transmission of HIV/AIDS is changing from primarily intravenous drug use to sexual contact. With the increased prosperity, many people in Mungla are upgrading their straw roof to asbestos roof. People in the area (including government officials and health care professionals) are largely unaware of the health concerns associated with asbestos!
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Environment and Health Minimize
Environment and Health in China – Interdisciplinary Perspectives

Convenor: Dr Anna Lora-Wainwright, Manchester University

Reports on environmental degradation in China appear everyday in the Chinese press, alongside government plans to deal with pollution and appease discontented masses. Issues surrounding environment and health in China are also frequently debated in academic writing. To date, the literature on this area is rich with data from the point of view of environmental agencies and NGOs, but lacks in depth social science analysis of the issues involved. Where such analyses exist, they concern either health issues (notably healthcare reform, SARS and AIDS) or environmental issues (such as water and air pollution or food safety). Environmental pollution remains largely discussed in terms of its threat to continued economic development, and with reference to social stability, leaving the connection between environment and health largely unexplored.

BICC will sponsor a seminar in Oxford on 29th November and a workshop in Manchester on 30th November 2007.

 

These two events will bring together scholars with backgrounds in anthropology, development studies, economics, political science, law, as well as NGO workers. They will offer a forum for debating the relationship between environment and public health in China from a range of social science perspectives. Environmental pollution is not only a development concern that influences productivity but also a medical and social welfare issue affecting on human health. Building on this premise, the seminar and workshop are intended to further interdisciplinary understanding of the socio-political, cultural and economic contexts within which the connection between environment and health is situated.

Environment and Health in China, University of Oxford

Dame Jessica Rawson

Professor of Chinese Art and Archaeology, University of Oxford, and Warden of Merton College

Jennifer Turner 

Director of the China Environment Forum (Woodrow Wilson International Centre for Scholars)

Wang Canfa

Lawyer, Director of the Centre for Legal Assistance to Pollution Victims, and Professor at the Chinese University of Political Science and Law in Beijing

10-1pm, Thursday November 29th

Old Indian Institute, Broad Street

In association with the Environmental Change Institute and

The James Martin School of the 21st Century

International Workshop on 'Environment and Health in China - Interdisciplinary
Perspectives' at the University of Manchester


30th November 2007, 1-5 pm


Whitworth Council Chamber (Whitworth Building), building 51 on the campus map
(http://www.manchester.ac.uk/visitors/travel/maps/numerical/)


Hosted by The Centre for Chinese Studies and The Society and Environment
Research Group (SERG), University of Manchester

1.00 pm           Welcoming remarks and introduction by Anna Lora-Wainwright


1.10 pm           Wang Canfa   (see above)


1.40 pm           Jennifer Turner (see above)


2.10 pm           Jackson Tung, Chief scientist, Yunnan Health and Development
Research Association


2.40 pm           Open discussion


3.00 pm           Tea break


3.30 pm           Roundtable discussion on research priorities, challenges and
solutions, chaired by Isabel Hilton, journalist, broadcaster and founder and
editor of chinadialogue.net, a Chinese-English website devoted to debating
environmental issues in China
 

For any further information please contact Dr Anna Lora-Wainwright for the workshop in Manchester or Dr Jimin Zhao  for the seminar in Oxford
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