Environmental impact of project was not assessed
The State Environmental Protection Administration yesterday ordered a halt to a controversial lake-restoration project at Beijing's Old Summer Palace.
Environmentalists and media reports last week described the decision to line the lake's 1.5 million square metre bed with plastic sheeting - to prevent water seepage - as a threat to the site's famed ruins and Beijing's fragile environment.
Yesterday the administration said the project must be halted because it had not undergone the required environmental impact assessment.
The environmental watchdog said the project managers needed to take into account the opinions of all sections of the community.
The administration said that under existing laws, an environmental impact report could be approved only after input from the watchdog, experts, the public and other departments.
