Electronic waste

China approved a draft law on the management of electronic waste on August 20, aiming to reduce the pollution it causes.

China will set up a mechanism to encourage recycling and centralized treatment of electronic waste. This will be supported by a special fund, according to the proposed law.

It also stipulated the respective responsibilities of manufacturers, retailers, repair and customer service providers and recycling companies in regards to the collection and treatment of electronic waste. These included used TV sets, refrigerators, air conditioners and computers, among others.

Air-quality Commitment

Beijing's air quality has been up to Olympic standards, according to the Beijing Municipal Bureau of Environmental Protection.

"In the 18 days between August 1 and 18, Beijing's air quality was within the standards to host the Olympics. Of the 18 days, Beijing reported Grade-I air quality on nine days, and in the other nine days, the city's air quality was Grade II," Du Shaozhong, Deputy Director of the bureau, told a press conference on August 19.

Population Rise

Hong Kong's population in mid-2008 reached 6, 985,200, up 59,300, or 0.9 percent on the same period last year, the Census and Statistics Department of Hong Kong said on August 14.

Births and the inflow of one-way permit holders were key constituents of the rise, according to the department. The population's natural increase was 34,100, resulting from 75,200 babies born to both Hong Kong and non-Hong Kong residents and 41,100 deaths.

Culturally Strong

South China's Hunan is determined to become a province with one of the strongest cultural industries in the country, according to Jiang Jianguo, a member of the Standing Committee of the Communist Party of China Hunan Provincial Committee at a recent press conference in Beijing.

The province has made broadcasting and publications two engines of its cultural industry, supported by the media and entertainment industries, he said.

The Supergirl contests, Blue Cat cartoons, and Xiangxi minority cultures are what comes to people's minds nowadays at the mention of Hunan, the birthplace of the People's Republic's founder Mao Zedong.

Last year, Hunan's cultural industry generated a total output value of 92 billion yuan ($13 billion), contributing 6.5 percent to the local economic growth.

More Lines

Plans are afoot to add six more rail lines to the Qinghai-Tibet railway to boost the region's economy, a railway spokesman said on August 16 at the Beijing International Media Center.

Included in the country's medium- and long-term railway network plan, the six lines are expected to be completed and put into operation before 2020, Wang Yongping, a spokesman of the Ministry of Railways, said.

Construction on the Golmud-Dunhuang section is likely to begin first. The official said experts have already been dispatched to the region to work on the route design.