Search

The article reports that western China regions such as Qingtongxia are avoiding the energy conservation demands being released by the central government in Beijing. The government declared that electricity prices be raised to force companies wasting energy out of business. But this region took Qingtongxia Aluminum Group off the national power grid and hooked them up to the local power company to avoid Beijing restrictions.

For farmers whose lives in this traditionally Tibetan area revolve around its Buddhist temple, an aluminum smelter that belches gray smoke in the distance is less a symbol of material progress than a daily reminder of Chinese disregard. ''Look at the walls of our temple, they have all gone grimy with the smoke that pollutes our air,'' said a 40-year-old Buddhist peasant named Caidan. The big factory, said a man sitting next to him, benefits only members of the Han Chinese majority. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]