The Rise of a Green Society
465
Therefore, the public is paying more attention to environmental quality, which has
become a familiar and important topic among the public and media. I participated
in organizing a national environmental awareness survey in 1995, and the results
showed that 23.6% of the respondents had no idea of environmental protection,
16.5% of them had “very little” knowledge about it, 66.9% had “little knowledge,”
16.1% had “a fair amount of knowledge,” and only 0.5% considered themselves
as having “a lot of knowledge” about environmental protection. Meanwhile, most
urban and rural residents were unfamiliar with relevant policies and regulations. Only
31.8% considered themselves as “know something or know very well” (only 0.5%
thought they know very well), 42% “heard of them,” and 26.2% “never heard of
them.” However, according to the results of 2010 Chinese General Social Survey
(CGSS) that I participated in designing, 70% of the respondents realized China was
facing “very serious” or “quite serious” environmental problems, 65.7% of them
were “very concerned” or “quite concerned” with environmental issues, and only
3.1% “didn’t care at all.”
Third, social tension and conflicts arising from environmental damages (risks)
become increasingly marked. Easing social relation and dissolving social conflicts is
an important part of social construction. In a period of social transition, labor disputes,
land acquisition and demolition and social security used to be main reasons for social
conflicts. As people live a better life and become more aware of environmental rights
and interests, actual environmental damages and possible environmental risks also
become important reasons that aggravate social conflicts, making the green transformation of society an inherent need for promoting social harmony. According to
data published by the state, both the number of people petitioning against environmental pollution and the frequency of such petitions have increased in a certain
period of time. In 1987, 77,673 people petitioned against environmental pollution,
which increased to 139,424 in 2000. No statistics were available in 2001–2010, but
the number was 104,323 in 2015. Some petitions were made by large groups, the
number of which was 47,714 in 1996, 88,237 in 2005 and 48,010 in 2015. The
actual number of petitioning groups may be larger as the statistical specifications
have changed.
In the twenty-first century, environmental incidents usually involving tens of thousands of people captured extensive attention. Such examples as the PX event in
Fujian’s Xiamen in 2007, cadmium pollution in Hunan’s Liuyang, “lead in blood”
event in Shaanxi’s Fengxiang and the opposition to the construction of waste incineration power plant in Guangdong’s Panyu in 2009, PX event in Liaoning’s Dalian
in 2011, opposition to PC project in Tianjin, resistance against Oji Holdings Corporation’s project in Jiangsu’s Qidong and resistance to Hongda Group’s molybdenum
copper alloy project in Sichuan’s Shifang in 2012. The list goes on. Some of these
projects triggered protests and conflicts in the stage of environmental impact assessment, such as the event in Jiangsu’s Qidong, some caused conflicts during construction, and some after completion and operation, such as the PX event in Dalian.
Studies show that during the decade from 2003 to 2012, 230 environmental incidents of a rather large scale were reported by the media, with 58 in 2011, displaying
an obvious upcurve. Such a trend has been corroborated by leaders of environmental
465
Therefore, the public is paying more attention to environmental quality, which has
become a familiar and important topic among the public and media. I participated
in organizing a national environmental awareness survey in 1995, and the results
showed that 23.6% of the respondents had no idea of environmental protection,
16.5% of them had “very little” knowledge about it, 66.9% had “little knowledge,”
16.1% had “a fair amount of knowledge,” and only 0.5% considered themselves
as having “a lot of knowledge” about environmental protection. Meanwhile, most
urban and rural residents were unfamiliar with relevant policies and regulations. Only
31.8% considered themselves as “know something or know very well” (only 0.5%
thought they know very well), 42% “heard of them,” and 26.2% “never heard of
them.” However, according to the results of 2010 Chinese General Social Survey
(CGSS) that I participated in designing, 70% of the respondents realized China was
facing “very serious” or “quite serious” environmental problems, 65.7% of them
were “very concerned” or “quite concerned” with environmental issues, and only
3.1% “didn’t care at all.”
Third, social tension and conflicts arising from environmental damages (risks)
become increasingly marked. Easing social relation and dissolving social conflicts is
an important part of social construction. In a period of social transition, labor disputes,
land acquisition and demolition and social security used to be main reasons for social
conflicts. As people live a better life and become more aware of environmental rights
and interests, actual environmental damages and possible environmental risks also
become important reasons that aggravate social conflicts, making the green transformation of society an inherent need for promoting social harmony. According to
data published by the state, both the number of people petitioning against environmental pollution and the frequency of such petitions have increased in a certain
period of time. In 1987, 77,673 people petitioned against environmental pollution,
which increased to 139,424 in 2000. No statistics were available in 2001–2010, but
the number was 104,323 in 2015. Some petitions were made by large groups, the
number of which was 47,714 in 1996, 88,237 in 2005 and 48,010 in 2015. The
actual number of petitioning groups may be larger as the statistical specifications
have changed.
In the twenty-first century, environmental incidents usually involving tens of thousands of people captured extensive attention. Such examples as the PX event in
Fujian’s Xiamen in 2007, cadmium pollution in Hunan’s Liuyang, “lead in blood”
event in Shaanxi’s Fengxiang and the opposition to the construction of waste incineration power plant in Guangdong’s Panyu in 2009, PX event in Liaoning’s Dalian
in 2011, opposition to PC project in Tianjin, resistance against Oji Holdings Corporation’s project in Jiangsu’s Qidong and resistance to Hongda Group’s molybdenum
copper alloy project in Sichuan’s Shifang in 2012. The list goes on. Some of these
projects triggered protests and conflicts in the stage of environmental impact assessment, such as the event in Jiangsu’s Qidong, some caused conflicts during construction, and some after completion and operation, such as the PX event in Dalian.
Studies show that during the decade from 2003 to 2012, 230 environmental incidents of a rather large scale were reported by the media, with 58 in 2011, displaying
an obvious upcurve. Such a trend has been corroborated by leaders of environmental