(February 11, 2011) According to Chinese official state media, plans to build a power plant near Beijing have been halted over environmental concerns.  The plant would have been one kilometer from a canal that diverts water into drought-stricken Beijing.

A plan to build a waste incineration power plant in a Beijing suburb was dropped as residents stepped up a campaign against it over pollution concerns.

The power plant in the outlaying Liulitun area, which was listed as a key infrastructure project in Beijing’s 11th Five-Year Plan (2006-2010), was finally called off after relentless protests from residents over the past several years, Zhao Fengtong, Party chief of Beijing’s Haidian District, said at a recent meeting, The Beijing News reported yesterday.

The district government decided to cancel the plan after a thorough analysis, said Wang Weiping, an expert in garbage processing. Wang also admitted the fierce objections by residents was a major reason the plant will not be built.

“The government thinks it’s not proper to build a waste incineration power plant close to high-end residential complexes,” Wang was quoted as saying in the report.

According to nearby residents, the proposed power plant would be less than 1 kilometer from Jingmi Diversion Canal, which diverts water from Miyun reservoir to Beijing’s tap water supply system.

Experts said cancer-inducing chemicals produced when garbage is burned would fall into the canal, polluting the capital’s tap water and risking people’s health.

Beijing lists the canal as a first-class water resource protection area.