The reality of environmental sustainability in China.

In the past two decades, China has impressed the world with its rapid economic growth and urbanization which has been responsible for eliminating much of the world's abject poverty. Its continued high single-digit growth promises to bring both societal improvements and growth concerns. From environment degradation to energy shortages, many studies have been conducted on the technologies and methods that might ameliorate these growing problems. The Chinese government has promulgated numerous environmental and development laws, decrees and policies, as the push for sustainable development showcased in the next Five-Year Plan demonstrates. Sceptics give little credit to China's sustainable development rhetoric and are correct in raising the issues of local government compliance and lack of public participation and support. But what differentiates this policy from past environmental rhetoric is that sustainable development presents itself to the Chinese as a real solution for a pressing issue. The 11th Five-Year Plan reveals that choice and the need to quickly enact sustainable development policy to maintain national stability. China has reached a point where it is desperate for energy, fearful of social instability and economically able to take action for sustainable development. Never before has this combination coincided with an emboldened environmental civil society and increased international pressure and aid. This combination of factors bodes well for China's urban sustainability policy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]