The International Olympic
Committee (IOC)?Thursday praised Beijing's preparations
for the 2008
Olympic Games.
"The work that our Chinese friends are doing is truly
impressive," said Hein Verbruggen, chairman of the IOC Coordination
Commission, following three days of meetings with the Beijing
Organizing Committee for the 2008 Olympic Games (BOCOG).
The committee has earmarked US$12.6 billion to improve the
city's environment for the Games, and about US$5.3 billion has been
spent over the past several years to bring Beijing in line with the
green Olympic guideline.
The campaign to improve the city's environment, particularly air
quality, has achieved initial success, said BOCOG vice president
Jiang Xiaoyu.
In the first seven months of 2003 Beijing recorded Grade II
(good) air quality on 64 percent of the days.
Air pollution was once Beijing's biggest environmental problem,
partly caused by the use of coal for heating. Five years ago good
air quality was limited to just 28 percent of days annually.
Today natural gas has replaced the traditional fuel and other
measures have been taken to improve the environment. These include
cleaning up polluted rivers, building a green belt on the outskirts
of the city, phasing out diesel-fuelled buses, introducing cleaner
energy sources, and closing polluting industrial plants.
BOCOG has already attained three of this year's objectives,
namely the start of venue construction, signing of the frame
agreement for the establishment of the Beijing Olympic Broadcasting
Co and launching the 2008 Olympic Games emblem and marketing
plan.
The next meeting of the IOC Coordination Commission will be held
in Beijing in November 2004, after the Athens Games.
(China Daily September 5, 2003)