https://www.scmp.com/rss/280359/feed Paraxylene (PX) is a chemical essential to the process of manufacturing plastic bottles and polyester clothing which is dangerous if inhaled or if absorbed through skin, causing different degrees of damage to abdominal organs and the nervous system. China is the world’s largest PX producer and consumer as of 2010. Safety concerns over PX factories have prompted environmental protests in China. en https://assets.i-scmp.com/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www.scmp.com A blaze at a Fujian chemical plant roared back to life last night several hours after it was reportedly extinguished, fanning fears over public safety and environmental fallout from controversial petrochemical projects. State broadcaster CCTV reported that some firefighters were recalled to the paraxylene (PX) plant in Zhangzhou after fires restarted at 7.40pm, despite officials saying at 4.40pm that fires burning in three massive storage tanks had been put out. Watch: Initial blaze at Fujian... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/1759834/fujian-chemical-fire-comes-back-life-fanning-environmental-fears?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/1759834/fujian-chemical-fire-comes-back-life-fanning-environmental-fears?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 07 Apr 2015 15:15:45 +0000 At least 14 people were injured, with six in a stable condition in hospital, after a series of explosions at a chemical factory in southern China on Monday evening. It was the second time in two years that there have been blasts at the plant in Zhangzhou in Fujian province. Firefighters had brought the blaze under control on Tuesday morning and fires in two of three burning oil tanks had been extinguished, the fire department in Fujian province said in a statement on social media. The explosions... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/1758087/chemical-plant-china-explodes-second-time-two-years?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/1758087/chemical-plant-china-explodes-second-time-two-years?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 06 Apr 2015 13:30:15 +0000 The latest public protests over paraxylene (PX) manufacturing followed a disheartening pattern: a local government suddenly unveils the planned project to the public, who in turn demand additional information - such as an environment impact assessment report showing that the proposal is safe. Residents' fears escalate into anger, then they take to the streets, often sparking a showdown with authorities. With the current outcry over a proposed PX facility in Maoming in southern Guangdong... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/1477045/science-students-embroiled-plant-safety-debate?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/1477045/science-students-embroiled-plant-safety-debate?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 11 Apr 2014 19:45:00 +0000 Several hundred people in Maoming in southern Guangdong staged another rally yesterday against a proposed chemical plant, with the public still apparently deeply distrustful of assurances from officials that no decisions have been made on whether to push ahead with the scheme. Protesters marched from outside Maoming government headquarters to People's Square in the afternoon, carrying red flags and placards condemning the authorities' use of force against demonstrators and demanding that the... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/1465140/people-maoming-and-shenzhen-stage-fresh-protest-over-planned-px-plant?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/1465140/people-maoming-and-shenzhen-stage-fresh-protest-over-planned-px-plant?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 04 Apr 2014 19:30:00 +0000 A Sunday rally against a petrochemical plant in the southern Chinese Province of Guangdong was instigated by “a group of outlaws,” the Maoming city government said, reacting to a rare show of public discontent in a city plagued by corruption scandals. Photos uploaded to social media showed several people lying seemingly unconscious in pools of blood on the southern city’s streets. The participants in the protest speak of arbitrary violence by members of the police against peaceful... https://www.scmp.com/news/china-insider/article/1461609/violence-arrests-guangdong-city-maoming-locals-rally-against?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china-insider/article/1461609/violence-arrests-guangdong-city-maoming-locals-rally-against?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 31 Mar 2014 06:15:30 +0000 Expanding plants making the dangerous chemical paraxylene (PX) will no longer need ministerial approval - a move to cut red tape that could upset environmentalists and other opponents of the controversial facilities. PX plant expansions and alterations are among 25 types of projects that the Ministry of Environmental Protection has decided local environmental bureaus can approve "to simplify procedures and improve efficiency", according to a statement on its website. PX is widely used in the... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/1378798/fears-over-expanded-paraxylene-projects-beijing-decentralises-approval?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/1378798/fears-over-expanded-paraxylene-projects-beijing-decentralises-approval?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 12 Dec 2013 01:06:58 +0000 A paraxylene (PX) plant exploded in Fujian province yesterday - just as the Communist Party's main mouthpiece was publishing an article highlighting the industry's safety record. Although the blast in Zhangzhou had no reported casualties or toxic leaks, it is likely to renew safety and environmental concerns over the country's PX plants. Such facilities have been a growing target of protests, despite the state media's efforts to reassure the public. The 4.30am explosion occurred after hydrogen... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/1293070/paraxylene-plant-expodes-zhangzhou?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/1293070/paraxylene-plant-expodes-zhangzhou?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 30 Jul 2013 08:55:10 +0000 One of two rallies in the southwest in protest at controversial chemical plants went ahead yesterday, but a second was thwarted. Hundreds protested in Kunming, Yunnan province, but a march in Chengdu, Sichuan province, was prevented by police. The rallies were timed to coincide with the anniversary of the May 4 student demonstrations in Beijing in 1919. More than 1,000 people gathered in the centre of Kunming to oppose plans to build a petrochemical plant in the satellite city of Anning where... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/1230117/kunming-residents-rally-against-chemical-plant?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/1230117/kunming-residents-rally-against-chemical-plant?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 04 May 2013 12:32:19 +0000 Taiwanese conglomerate Far Eastern Group is eyeing the development of petrochemical plants in the United States, fuelled by cheap energy as the US exploits its shale gas reserves, company's chairman and chief executive says. Douglas Tong Hsu told the Post: "We are now looking at investing in the US" on the back of the growth of shale gas energy projects. The plants would potentially cost hundreds of millions of US dollars to build, but Hsu said shale gas will "potentially be one of the cheapest... https://www.scmp.com/business/commodities/article/1216903/far-eastern-looks-west-growth?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/commodities/article/1216903/far-eastern-looks-west-growth?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 17 Apr 2013 16:00:00 +0000 Mainlanders are increasingly taking to the streets in protest over industrial development, a phenomenon analysts say is a serious challenge for local officials. In the latest case, big demonstrations in the Zhejiang city of Ningbo successfully halted a plan to expand a Sinopec petrochemical complex. Analysts said it had once again shown how rising environmental activism nis challenging an outdated mode of local governance - where decisions are made behind closed doors and critical information is... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/1073485/protests-over-industrial-projects-challenge-mainland-officials?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/1073485/protests-over-industrial-projects-challenge-mainland-officials?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 30 Oct 2012 16:00:00 +0000 China’s eastern city of Ningbo detained more than 50 people over violent protests last week that successfully blocked a planned chemical plant, state media said on Tuesday. Ningbo city said on Sunday that work on the 55.9-billion-yuan (US$8.9 billion) oil and petrochemical complex would stop after thousands of local residents clashed with police in a week-long protest over pollution fears. Police detained 51 people who clashed with police last Friday, throwing stones and overturning two... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/1073342/more-50-detained-china-pollution-protests?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/1073342/more-50-detained-china-pollution-protests?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 30 Oct 2012 11:42:53 +0000 Ningbo residents reacted warily yesterday to the city government's decision to halt the expansion of a Sinopec petrochemical complex, with hundreds of people continuing to protest. Experts said the stand-off highlighted deepening distrust of government on the mainland. Ningbo police rejected a rumour that a university student had been killed in a riot in the northern Zhejiang city over the weekend, and said a woman had been detained for spreading the rumour. Searches for "Zhenhai", the district... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/1072760/ningbo-residents-doubt-pledge-halt-chemical-plant-expansion?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/1072760/ningbo-residents-doubt-pledge-halt-chemical-plant-expansion?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 29 Oct 2012 16:00:00 +0000