Strategy Misguided: the weak links between urban emission control measures, vehicular emissions, and public health in Guangzhou

Abstract

The surge in automobile use in the Pearl River Delta region has led to a substantial elevation of ambient concentrations of vehicle-based air pollutants. These pollutants have created a region-wide air pollution problem marked by a steady increase in the number of smoggy days in the Delta, presenting a serious threat to public health. Evidence gathered from Guangzhou suggests that the city's strategy for controlling urban air pollution has not been effective in tackling the newly emerging, combustion engine-generated class of pollutants because it is misguided by a highly selective and outdated urban air quality monitoring system. The disarticulation between vehicular emissions and urban emission control measures shows that a central government-prescribed methodology for air quality monitoring can strongly influence the policy priorities and administrative behavior of local government institutions.

Notes

^*Yok-shiu F. Lee is an Associate Professor in the Department of Geography at the University of Hong Kong. His current research interests include cross-border environmental management, river basin management, and cultural heritage management. He has published his research in Asian Geographer, Environmental Politics, Harvard International Review, International Development Planning Review, World Development and The China Quarterly. Carlos Wing-hung Lo is a Professor in the Department of Management and Marketing at the Hong Kong Polytechnic University, with research interests in the areas of Chinese law and government, environmental regulation, and corporate environmental management. His research has appeared in Journal of Public Administration Research and Theory, Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology, American Journal of Comparative Law, Journal of Public Policy, Environment and Planning A, World Development and The China Quarterly. Anna Ka-yin Lee is an M.Phil. candidate in the Department of Geography at the University of Hong Kong. She has recently completed intensive fieldwork research on Guangzhou's vehicular emissions control strategy. The research for this paper is funded by the project ‘Cross-Border Environmental Protection between Hong Kong and Guangdong Province’ of The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (Project a/c Code: 1-BB05). Able research assistance was provided by Tang Ho-ming.

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