Lanzhou Municipal Government has decided to close 31 paper making companies to reduce the pollution to the Yellow River that flows through the city.
The pollution problem of the Yellow River at the Lanzhou section has been widely reported in local media, and local reports say that paper making is one of the main sources for the pollution. Since 2001, Lanzhou has invested a total of RMB210 million to straighten out the industrial emissions and at the same time it has controlled the total emissions of waste water.
Lanzhou Municipal Government says it has revoked the business licenses of the 31 companies, stopped supplying water and electricity to them and destroyed their production facilities so that their operations can't be resumed. The Lanzhou Municipal Government has also asked for proper work to be done to deal with issues related to the shutdown of these companies.
In 2006, local media report that Lanzhou emitted a total of 168.80 million tons of waste water, of which 42.25 million tons were industrial waste water, accounting for 25.21% of the total.
