In the middle of August this year, a hearing was held in Beijing to find out the facts concerning the erection of a transmission pylon for a power line that had a supervoltage of 220 KV and a height of 50 metres. Construction of this monster structure, one of the key projects of the city, began in January this year. And it has ever since aroused serious apprehensions and complaints from the work units and a residential community nearby.

The hearing on the environmental hazard posed by the tower, chaired by the Beijing Environmental Protection Bureau (BEPB), was the largest of its kind the capital had ever seen in terms of its scale and the number of organizations and local residents participating. And the high degree of concern displayed by the general public was unprecedented.

The locals and the work units along the route of the power line held that the electromagnetic radiation emitted from such power lines could result in serious, and in some cases, irreversible health problems for those exposed to them for a prolonged time. So all the workers and residents at risk cried out with one voice against the erection of the steel colossus.

They applied to the BEPB for a public hearing on this issue, as they believed the occasion would provide the government with a good opportunity to listen to what people around the area had to say. And the BEPB granted their application in no time at all.

A heated debate took place during the hearing between the two contending parties, the power company responsible for the work on one side, and the affected masses on the other. Both sides held firmly to their positions, quoting authoritative sources to make out their cases, and exerting themselves to the utmost to try and argue things out. The environmental protection authorities promised to make a timely judgment based upon the facts and opinions presented. Only one decision was made on the spot: the project was to be put on hold for the time being until a solution was found.

By coincidence, here in Shanghai, at roughly the same time, a similar situation turned up when a neighbourhood hospital tried to move into a high-end residential community and found itself facing strong opposition from the majority of owners there who were worried that the water and atmosphere in the area might be contaminated by emissions of harmful medical wastes from the hospital.

What inspiration can we draw from these two cases? In the first place, they were both about environmental concern, with clashes between the city authorities and ordinary people, arising from infrastructure projects that might be detrimental to the environment.

If a community fails to present itself as a place with a cozy, comfortable and friendly environment to live in, we can hardly talk about leading a good quality life, even if we own a residence with large floor space, a state-of-the-art structure and garish interior decoration. And this heightened environmental awareness will in turn help spur higher-ups to give top priority to the quality of the environment in their decision-making. Any new construction job must be properly balanced against the potential adverse consequences it may have on the environment. It may be impossible to completely assess the consequences of introducing a new project or technology, but critical questions in reference to its introduction must be asked.

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