Guangzhou pursues green development

The Guanghzhou government released a series of regulations recently, to ensure local development is more energy conservative and carbon deductive during the 13th Five-Year Plan (2016-20). 

The government will make sure new streets have special lanes for pedestrians, cyclists, green areas, and fencing. 

Additionally, parking lots and areas around public buildings will be equipped with charging stations to encourage people to purchase new energy vehicles. 

Biodegradable plastic bags will be introduced to take the place of less eco-friendly products. 

Government funds will be supplied to schools, hospitals, museums, and industrial parks so that they can grow rooftop gardens. The city hopes for 2.5 million square meters of rooftop gardens by 2020. 

More lanes for buses will be created covering 400 kilometers by 2020, as well as 20 water taxi routes. 

Big data will be used to monitor the sorting of waste, with a system set up for recycling around the whole city by the end of 2017. 

To promote a stricter system for kitchen waste disposal, solid waste, oil and water will be separated before being disposed. By the year of 2020, Guangzhou is expected to be capable of a daily disposal of more than 4,800 tons of kitchen waste in a recycled and harm-free way. 

To encourage a green service system in shopping malls, hotels, restaurants – eco-friendly air conditioners, lights, elevators run using renewable energy such as solar, wind and heat. By 2020, Guangzhou is expected to be home to more than 10 green shopping malls, 20 green hotels, and 10 green tourism demonstration bases. 

It is also expected that more than 80 percent of local residents in Guangzhou will have to access gas in the city's five green districts before 2011. 

The roof of Nanyue Emperor Museum is transformed into a garden. [Photo by Luo Changwei/gztv.com]