China pulls bank loans to 12 major polluters - Reuters

[Eugene]

Source: Reuters

China pulls bank loans to 12 major polluters
Fri Nov 16, 2007 1:28am EST

BEIJING (Reuters) - Twelve polluting enterprises
have had crucial bank loans recalled, suspended
or rejected as China's new "green-credit policy"
kicks into action, Friday's China Youth Daily said.

Decades of heavy industrialization have made
water from some of China's lakes and rivers so
polluted it is no longer usable, with untreated
waste from factories and other enterprises
pumped directly into water sources.

The report did not name the companies but
outlined several cases of which one involved a
brewery in east China's Anhui province, whose
application for a 10 million yuan ($1.35 million)
bank loan was rejected due to continued
violations in waste-water discharge.

In another case, a power company in Chengdu,
capital of Sichuan province, had its bank
loans recalled after it failed to pass an
environmental assessment, Xinhua news
agency said.

-snip-

Read more: http://www.reuters.com/article/environmentNews/idUSPEK15200120071116

[AlecBGreen]

1. sounds good on the surface

but in China the guanxi, the personal relationships, usually trump government decrees. These guys will get their money. This is still an important gesture by the gov't though, if only symbollically.

[hatrack]

2. Yes, and they'll go to the bank down the street, or the bank in Bangalore . . .

Or Singapore, or London, or New York.

[progressoid]

3. I don't understand why the gov't needs to be so heavy handed about this.

I've been told for years by my RW friends that the market economy will fix it.

Like this: The consumers will stop buying their product when they find out about their bad business practices and the company will be forced to change or lose business.

See? Problem solved.

[hatrack]

4. Yeah, it's just like illegal drugs!

Now that people understand what dirty businesses the meth and cocaine trade are, they'll just stop buying meth and cocaine. That's why we don't have any drug problems here in the United States, right?

:eyes:

[robinlynne]

5. I find it an excellent move. China is also building entire green cities with

solar power recycled water, rooftop gardens.