Nanjing, capital of east China's
Jiangsu Province, has told municipal
government offices not to turn on air conditioning until 33 Celsius
degree, in a sign of local administrations answering the call of
the central government to save energy.
An official with the municipal bureau of agriculture and
forestry said at the beginning his colleagues sometimes felt
uncomfortable without air conditioning, but now they have got used
to it.
"As government officials, we shall do our part in saving
energy," the official said.
The temperature bar for air conditioning was first set at 28
Celsius degree and later 30 Celsius degree last year.
Taicheng Mansion, a building in downtown Nanjing housing ten
municipal bureaus, has not turned on air conditioning so far this
year while the bureaus bought electric fans to combat heat.
Under a five-year plan through 2010, China has pledged to cut
energy consumption per unit of gross domestic product (GDP) by 20
percent, or four percent each year, but consumption fell by just
1.23 percent last year.
The central government has repeatedly ordered local
administrations to take measures to save energy, including closing
down firms with high energy consumption but low productivity.
Beijing and Yangzhou, an eastern city, have recruited "energy
police" to check whether energy consumption in offices, hotels and
other big buildings meet national standards such as keeping the air
conditioning no cooler than 26 degrees Celsius and heating no
higher than 20 degrees Celsius.
The central government launched a week-long campaign earlier
this month to raise awareness of the need to save energy, with
government ministers saying all sectors of society have a
responsibility to reduce consumption.
As part of the campaign, members of the public will be urged to
use public transport or bikes to travel to work and to reduce the
use of air conditioners at home.
(Xinhua News Agency June 25, 2007)
