Hainan villagers clash with police over power station

Residents of a town in Hainan protesting the building of a coal-fired power plant threw bricks at police who fired volleys of tear gas and detained dozens in the country’s latest unrest over an environmental dispute, reports said on Monday.

At least 1,000 people in the small town of Yinggehai on China’s Hainan island launched several days of protests starting last week after construction resumed on the plant, which had been halted by earlier demonstrations.

Dozens have been injured and many detained by police, who have put the town under strict surveillance, residents said.

“They fired tear gas to disperse the crowds in the past few days,” said a resident surnamed Xian. “We don’t want a power plant here that will cause serious pollution.”

In July, a southern town in Sichuan province scrapped plans for a copper plant after thousands clashed with police, and another community in eastern Jiangsu province dropped a waste water plant after similar demonstrations.

The protests are especially sensitive because they come ahead of next month’s change in China’s top leaders, who will have to balance a push for economic growth with maintaining public stability. Meanwhile, local leaders must balance their desire to attract industry with a public who do not want it in their neighbourhoods.