China has developed its own environmental plans and strategies to address these issues, yet it lacks the institutional capacity to integrate these plans solidly into the future development plans of the country. China's population base of 1.15 billion is growing by 15 to 17 million each year, and is expected to reach 1.27 billion by the year 2000. Since only 10 percent of China's land is arable, a mere 7 percent of the world's cultivated land feeds 22 percent of the world's population. The distribution of water resources is uneven, with only 19 percent of the nation's total water resources available in northern China, where 64 percent of its cultivated land is located. Over 183 cities face water shortages, and in fifty cities this situation is severe.
Water pollution is a problem in both urban and rural areas.
Air is polluted from the burning of coal and from CO2 and SO2 gases, automobile exhaust, green-house gases and CFC emissions. Hazardous and non-hazardous waste management and disposal need revision. A vast array of natural resources are currently being managed or utilized in unsustainable ways. Soil erosion, deforestation, mineral resource exploitation, natural resources accounting methods and market exchange are issues that need to be addressed. The Chinese government and the international donor community recognize the severity of China's ecological and environmental problems, and are taking concrete steps to address them.