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The food safety watchdog of Guangzhou， capital of south China’s Guangdong Province， said it would expand inspections on May 19 after detecting cadmium in eight samples of rice products.
The move aims to ensure only quality rice， rice noodles and related products are sold in the southern metropolis where the grain is a staple food， according to a statement released by the Guangzhou Food and Drug Administration.
“All packages of tainted rice and rice noodles have been sealed shut，” it said.
From January to March， the administration checked 18 samples of rice from local markets and found eight had cadmium levels exceeding national food safety standards.
Cadmium is a highly toxic heavy metal used in pigments and batteries. Excessive cadmium intake can lead to kidney failure， lung impairment， bone diseases and cancer. Monitoring cadmium levels is a priority for many countries’grain production.
Cadmium-tainted rice products were found in two university cafeterias and two restaurants in Guangzhou， with some samples reaching twice the national limit of 0.2 mg per kg. Their suppliers are based in Zhuzhou and Hengyang cities in central China’s Hunan Province and Dongguan of Guangdong.
More tainted rice products were also found in Shunde District in Guangdong’s Foshan， the local Nanfang Daily reported on May 21. Inspectors found nine batches of tainted rice during a district-wide inspection campaign.
Contaminated rice has long been a problem in China. A Nanjing Agricultural University research in 2011 found that around 10 percent of rice sold across the country contained excessive amounts of cadmium.
“Cadmium in rice usually comes from the soil where it grows， and the soil was polluted by mining and chemical waste，” said Fan Zhihong， a food safety expert at Beijing-based China Agricultural University.
Soil pollution
Xu Xudong， Deputy Director of the Institute of Hydrobiology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences （CAS）， said that rice with excessive cadmium indicates that soil pollution in China has affected grain quality and safety.
“We have been concerned that accelerated urbanization will increase demand for land，”said Xu， warning that the nation’s total arable land acreage could fall below the government’s target for minimum availability of 120 million hectares. “But now， we should also worry about the damage from heavy metal pollution on cultivated land.” He said there could be immeasurable disaster if grain-producing areas are allowed to randomly introduce industries likely to bring heavy metal pollution in order to develop local economies， and called for immediate government measures to control soil contamination.
Pan Genxing， a soil scientist at Nanjing Agricultural University， said that the soil pollution in China is more severe than other countries， and the effect may last 30 years or worsen even further.
A Ministry of Environmental Protection（MEP） survey of 4.5 million square km of land indicates soil quality in more developed regions， such as the Pearl and Yangtze river deltas in south and east China and the Bohai Economic Rim surrounding Beijing and Tianjin， has
deteriorated to different extents.
China is facing a grave situation in soil pollution of arable land， with problems including expanding use of pesticides and chemical fertilizers， heavy metal contamination and pollution at mining and factory sites， said Zhou Yikai， an environmental medicine researcher at Huazhong University of Science and Technology in Wuhan， Hubei Province.
In 2010， the MEP found 960 industrial companies out of 10，896 made use of heavy metals violating environmental standards， leading to mass pollution of arable land.
Another major cause of soil pollution is the overuse of agricultural chemicals. Figures from the Soil and Fertilizer Institute under the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences（CAAS） show that in half of the regions surveyed， the average level of nitrogen fertilizer use is 318 kg per hectare， far exceeding the internationally accepted limit of 225 kg.
Zhuang Guotai， Director of the MEP’s Nature and Ecology Conservation Division， said that only 35 percent of fertilizer used by a typical Chinese farm actually contributed to the growth of crops， meaning the rest was washed into waterways or just left on the land.
According to Huang Hongxiang， a researcher with the CAAS’ Institute of Agricultural Resources and Regional Planning， year-round planting requires the large-scale use of pesticides and fertilizers and this inevitably creates soil and water pollution.
“Some kinds of pesticides and fertilizers can cause heavy metal pollution so we should reduce or avoid using them altogether，” Huang said.
Control efforts
A MEP report reveals that 21.5 percent of soil samples from 364 rural villages failed to meet national soil quality standards in 2011. In Hunan， where mining and nonferrous metal production are prevalent， 715，000 hectares of land， or roughly 3.4 percent of the province’s total area， are contaminated by heavy metals， a CAS report says.
Another study conducted by the Ministry of Land and Resources （MLR） in Hunan identified elevated levels of heavy metals in a 250 km by 10 km belt adjacent to the Dongting Lake， China’s second largest freshwater lake. Nearby crops， reeds and shellfish were found to have been contaminated with cadmium.
In a serious case of heavy metal pollution in Liuyang of Hunan in 2009， cadmium-containing pollutants from a chemical plant affected more than 500 people and polluted the land within a radius of 500 to 1，200 meters of the plant.
In addition to health hazards， soil pollution also leads to a reduction in grain production.
According to an MLR report in January， heavy metal pollution alone results in the loss of 10 million tons of grain and the contamination of another 12 million tons annually， incurring 20 billion yuan （$3.21 billion） in direct economic losses each year.
Gao Shengda， Secretary General of the China Environmental Remediation Industry Alliance， said that the nation must develop targeted soil remediation techniques and bring in advanced technology from overseas.
Hou Yanlin， a soil scientist with the Ministry of Agriculture （MOA）， suggests the government establish a monitoring and early warning system for soil contamination so that it can evaluate how severe and widespread the pollution is.
In January， the State Council， China’s cabinet， also publicized a circular on soil pollution that sets out a plan to contain the increasingly severe problem by 2015.
The circular ordered a thorough survey into soil conditions be conducted by 2015 and a system be established to protect arable land and sources of drinking water.
It proposed building a soil environment monitoring network to cover 60 percent of all arable land and drinking water sources that serve more than 500，000 people， so that regular surveillance will be possible for these regions.
The State Council also required rigorous controls on newly polluted soil， which prioritize the prevention of soil pollution and treatment of contaminated land.
These efforts have been widely expected to pave the way for the establishment of a national soil protection system and significantly improve the quality of the country’s soil by 2020.
Voices heard
“Soil pollution， if not brought under control， will become irreversible in a couple of years， posing serious threats to food safety， human health and social stability，” said Li Fasheng， a researcher with the Chinese Research Academy of Environmental Sciences.
Li believes that a soil protection law is urgently needed. “China has enacted laws against air and water pollution， but still lacks a policy framework and applicable laws to fight the contamination of the soil，” he said.
The call has been heard by state leadership.
At the 2012 session of the National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference （CPPCC）， the country’s top advisory body， Zhou at Huazhong University of Science and Technology proposed to speed up the legislation on the prevention and control of soil pollution.
Wu Qing， Director of Foshan-based Gujinlai Law Office， also focused her attention on the legislation of soil pollution prevention at the NPC annual session in March. More than 30 lawmakers echoed her call， Wu said.
In response to growing public expectations， the first draft of China’s Soil Protection Law has been completed， according to a report by Legal Daily on May 2.
Jointly formulated by eight different ministries including the MEP， MLR， MOA National Development and Reform Commission and Ministry of Industry and Information Technology， the legislation is meant to bring some form of management over the amount of toxins that are dumped into the soil， primarily farmland and urban industrial land where most of China’s soil pollution is found.
According to the Legal Daily report， the MEP invited several NPC deputies and CPPCC National Committee members who are interested in the legislation process to a symposium at the end of April. During the symposium， officials introduced China’s current soil situation and measures that will be taken for future protection.
In addition to facilitating soil protection efforts， people also pin high hopes on the new law to boost China’s environmental transparency.
According to a 2006-10 MEP investigation， half of the arable farmland in south China had been totally ruined by toxic levels of heavy metal and organic pollutants， while 10 percent of farmland in the Yangtze River Delta region had lost production capability due to heavy metal pollution.
Despite this， the ministry refused to release all results of the investigation. In January， Beijing lawyer Dong Zhengwei sent an application to the MEP asking the ministry to issue soil pollution data， as well as create detailed measures to handle the problem.
But the ministry said in February that the data are confidential and refused to release them. Dong was not satisfied and sent a second request.
The MEP issued its second response to Dong on May 5. It said that soil contamination is still being investigated and related data remain a state secret， adding that data will be released after further evaluation.
Ma Jun， Director of the Institute of Public and Environmental Affairs， said in an interview with Legal Daily that the public should have the right to be informed about the real situation as polluted soil may affect public health via food， crops and underground water.
Ma cited experience following the issuance of data on PM2.5， or airborne particles measuring 2.5 microns or less in diameter， as an example.
This year， real-time air-quality monitoring data detailing PM2.5 intensity in 74 major Chinese cities were made available to the public this year following complaints.
“The information must be in plain language， something made clear by the way the government handled the release of air-pollution information，” Ma said.
Ma said that compared with air and water pollution， soil pollution is much more difficult to judge by the public， which is one reason why the government should publish the information to keep them informed.
“No matter what， a law on soil protection is urgently needed to make such obligations clear，” said Hou from the MOA.
The move aims to ensure only quality rice， rice noodles and related products are sold in the southern metropolis where the grain is a staple food， according to a statement released by the Guangzhou Food and Drug Administration.
“All packages of tainted rice and rice noodles have been sealed shut，” it said.
From January to March， the administration checked 18 samples of rice from local markets and found eight had cadmium levels exceeding national food safety standards.
Cadmium is a highly toxic heavy metal used in pigments and batteries. Excessive cadmium intake can lead to kidney failure， lung impairment， bone diseases and cancer. Monitoring cadmium levels is a priority for many countries’grain production.
Cadmium-tainted rice products were found in two university cafeterias and two restaurants in Guangzhou， with some samples reaching twice the national limit of 0.2 mg per kg. Their suppliers are based in Zhuzhou and Hengyang cities in central China’s Hunan Province and Dongguan of Guangdong.
More tainted rice products were also found in Shunde District in Guangdong’s Foshan， the local Nanfang Daily reported on May 21. Inspectors found nine batches of tainted rice during a district-wide inspection campaign.
Contaminated rice has long been a problem in China. A Nanjing Agricultural University research in 2011 found that around 10 percent of rice sold across the country contained excessive amounts of cadmium.
“Cadmium in rice usually comes from the soil where it grows， and the soil was polluted by mining and chemical waste，” said Fan Zhihong， a food safety expert at Beijing-based China Agricultural University.
Soil pollution
Xu Xudong， Deputy Director of the Institute of Hydrobiology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences （CAS）， said that rice with excessive cadmium indicates that soil pollution in China has affected grain quality and safety.
“We have been concerned that accelerated urbanization will increase demand for land，”said Xu， warning that the nation’s total arable land acreage could fall below the government’s target for minimum availability of 120 million hectares. “But now， we should also worry about the damage from heavy metal pollution on cultivated land.” He said there could be immeasurable disaster if grain-producing areas are allowed to randomly introduce industries likely to bring heavy metal pollution in order to develop local economies， and called for immediate government measures to control soil contamination.
Pan Genxing， a soil scientist at Nanjing Agricultural University， said that the soil pollution in China is more severe than other countries， and the effect may last 30 years or worsen even further.
A Ministry of Environmental Protection（MEP） survey of 4.5 million square km of land indicates soil quality in more developed regions， such as the Pearl and Yangtze river deltas in south and east China and the Bohai Economic Rim surrounding Beijing and Tianjin， has
deteriorated to different extents.
China is facing a grave situation in soil pollution of arable land， with problems including expanding use of pesticides and chemical fertilizers， heavy metal contamination and pollution at mining and factory sites， said Zhou Yikai， an environmental medicine researcher at Huazhong University of Science and Technology in Wuhan， Hubei Province.
In 2010， the MEP found 960 industrial companies out of 10，896 made use of heavy metals violating environmental standards， leading to mass pollution of arable land.
Another major cause of soil pollution is the overuse of agricultural chemicals. Figures from the Soil and Fertilizer Institute under the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences（CAAS） show that in half of the regions surveyed， the average level of nitrogen fertilizer use is 318 kg per hectare， far exceeding the internationally accepted limit of 225 kg.
Zhuang Guotai， Director of the MEP’s Nature and Ecology Conservation Division， said that only 35 percent of fertilizer used by a typical Chinese farm actually contributed to the growth of crops， meaning the rest was washed into waterways or just left on the land.
According to Huang Hongxiang， a researcher with the CAAS’ Institute of Agricultural Resources and Regional Planning， year-round planting requires the large-scale use of pesticides and fertilizers and this inevitably creates soil and water pollution.
“Some kinds of pesticides and fertilizers can cause heavy metal pollution so we should reduce or avoid using them altogether，” Huang said.
Control efforts
A MEP report reveals that 21.5 percent of soil samples from 364 rural villages failed to meet national soil quality standards in 2011. In Hunan， where mining and nonferrous metal production are prevalent， 715，000 hectares of land， or roughly 3.4 percent of the province’s total area， are contaminated by heavy metals， a CAS report says.
Another study conducted by the Ministry of Land and Resources （MLR） in Hunan identified elevated levels of heavy metals in a 250 km by 10 km belt adjacent to the Dongting Lake， China’s second largest freshwater lake. Nearby crops， reeds and shellfish were found to have been contaminated with cadmium.
In a serious case of heavy metal pollution in Liuyang of Hunan in 2009， cadmium-containing pollutants from a chemical plant affected more than 500 people and polluted the land within a radius of 500 to 1，200 meters of the plant.
In addition to health hazards， soil pollution also leads to a reduction in grain production.
According to an MLR report in January， heavy metal pollution alone results in the loss of 10 million tons of grain and the contamination of another 12 million tons annually， incurring 20 billion yuan （$3.21 billion） in direct economic losses each year.
Gao Shengda， Secretary General of the China Environmental Remediation Industry Alliance， said that the nation must develop targeted soil remediation techniques and bring in advanced technology from overseas.
Hou Yanlin， a soil scientist with the Ministry of Agriculture （MOA）， suggests the government establish a monitoring and early warning system for soil contamination so that it can evaluate how severe and widespread the pollution is.
In January， the State Council， China’s cabinet， also publicized a circular on soil pollution that sets out a plan to contain the increasingly severe problem by 2015.
The circular ordered a thorough survey into soil conditions be conducted by 2015 and a system be established to protect arable land and sources of drinking water.
It proposed building a soil environment monitoring network to cover 60 percent of all arable land and drinking water sources that serve more than 500，000 people， so that regular surveillance will be possible for these regions.
The State Council also required rigorous controls on newly polluted soil， which prioritize the prevention of soil pollution and treatment of contaminated land.
These efforts have been widely expected to pave the way for the establishment of a national soil protection system and significantly improve the quality of the country’s soil by 2020.
Voices heard
“Soil pollution， if not brought under control， will become irreversible in a couple of years， posing serious threats to food safety， human health and social stability，” said Li Fasheng， a researcher with the Chinese Research Academy of Environmental Sciences.
Li believes that a soil protection law is urgently needed. “China has enacted laws against air and water pollution， but still lacks a policy framework and applicable laws to fight the contamination of the soil，” he said.
The call has been heard by state leadership.
At the 2012 session of the National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference （CPPCC）， the country’s top advisory body， Zhou at Huazhong University of Science and Technology proposed to speed up the legislation on the prevention and control of soil pollution.
Wu Qing， Director of Foshan-based Gujinlai Law Office， also focused her attention on the legislation of soil pollution prevention at the NPC annual session in March. More than 30 lawmakers echoed her call， Wu said.
In response to growing public expectations， the first draft of China’s Soil Protection Law has been completed， according to a report by Legal Daily on May 2.
Jointly formulated by eight different ministries including the MEP， MLR， MOA National Development and Reform Commission and Ministry of Industry and Information Technology， the legislation is meant to bring some form of management over the amount of toxins that are dumped into the soil， primarily farmland and urban industrial land where most of China’s soil pollution is found.
According to the Legal Daily report， the MEP invited several NPC deputies and CPPCC National Committee members who are interested in the legislation process to a symposium at the end of April. During the symposium， officials introduced China’s current soil situation and measures that will be taken for future protection.
In addition to facilitating soil protection efforts， people also pin high hopes on the new law to boost China’s environmental transparency.
According to a 2006-10 MEP investigation， half of the arable farmland in south China had been totally ruined by toxic levels of heavy metal and organic pollutants， while 10 percent of farmland in the Yangtze River Delta region had lost production capability due to heavy metal pollution.
Despite this， the ministry refused to release all results of the investigation. In January， Beijing lawyer Dong Zhengwei sent an application to the MEP asking the ministry to issue soil pollution data， as well as create detailed measures to handle the problem.
But the ministry said in February that the data are confidential and refused to release them. Dong was not satisfied and sent a second request.
The MEP issued its second response to Dong on May 5. It said that soil contamination is still being investigated and related data remain a state secret， adding that data will be released after further evaluation.
Ma Jun， Director of the Institute of Public and Environmental Affairs， said in an interview with Legal Daily that the public should have the right to be informed about the real situation as polluted soil may affect public health via food， crops and underground water.
Ma cited experience following the issuance of data on PM2.5， or airborne particles measuring 2.5 microns or less in diameter， as an example.
This year， real-time air-quality monitoring data detailing PM2.5 intensity in 74 major Chinese cities were made available to the public this year following complaints.
“The information must be in plain language， something made clear by the way the government handled the release of air-pollution information，” Ma said.
Ma said that compared with air and water pollution， soil pollution is much more difficult to judge by the public， which is one reason why the government should publish the information to keep them informed.
“No matter what， a law on soil protection is urgently needed to make such obligations clear，” said Hou from the MOA.