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Smog and a hard place: China regions caught between economic woes and pollution war by www.expertcommodity.com

Amid a slowing economy and a slew of mixed signals from the environment ministry, China's embattled local governments are facing a dilemma: do they go all out to curb smog this winter, or do their best to keep factories humming?

China has promised to put an end to a "growth at all costs" economic model, which has blackened its skies and contaminated large stretches of its water and soil. The government just embarked on another winter campaign against polluters in a dozen smog-prone provinces and regions.

Environmental compliance has become a key test of political loyalty among local officials, but this year they must plot a course that will also keep the economy on track.

That could be tricky, as China's third-quarter growth is at its slowest since the global financial crisis a fact Beijing has acknowledged.

"Local governments in the polluting regions are working hard to reduce air pollution but also are exhausted," said Zhu Shu, the regional director of the East Asia Secretariat of the International Council for Local Environmental Initiatives (ICLEI), a Bonn-based think tank that helps local governments tackle pollution.

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Though local authorities have been asked to show more flexibility in cracking down on polluters, the new approach has already sown confusion. If officials show leniency, they are accused of chasing growth, but if they come down hard, they are considered brittle bureaucrats.

With the goalposts constantly shifting, few know how to strike the right balance, experts said.

"We have seen 'name and shame' statements from the Ministry of Ecology and Environment accusing (local governments) of either 'failing to do their duty' or 'overdoing it in a wrong way,'" said a researcher with ties to the ministry who declined to be identified because he is not authorized to talk to the media.