Denny Ellerman, October, 2001

As China\'s economy has grown, atmospheric pollution has become a greater problem and a matter of increasing concern to policymakers at all levels of government. One of the principal pollutants has been sulfur dioxide (SO₂), which is emitted in varying intensity when coal, China\'s most abundant fossil energy resource, is burned. Excessive SO₂ emissions can cause serious health problems locally from high ambient concentrations, as well as non-health-related damages that can occur from acidification at some distance from the source of emissions.