• Sat   • Dec 21, 2013   • Updated: 7:12am CommentInsight &
Opinion  Ningbo protests against growth at any cost  PUBLISHED :
Tuesday, 30 October, 2012, 12:00am UPDATED : Tuesday, 30
October, 2012, 3:04am  China's days of pursuing growth above all
else are over. Protest upon protest over industrial projects
that citizens see as damaging to health and the environment make
that plain; people are no longer willing to put up with
pollution and the consequences. Officials in the eastern city of
Ningbo in Zhejiang province should have been aware of the need
for changed ways, yet were unprepared for demonstrations over
the planned expansion of a petrochemical plant that led to
clashes with police at the weekend. They have halted the
expansion, scrapping a controversial facility, and promised
public consultations and greater transparency.  It would seem a
victory for protesters, but not all residents see it that way.
Authorities ignored weeks of petitioning against expansion of
the plant, operated by oil and gas giant