VZCZCXRO7879
RR RUEHCN RUEHGH RUEHVC
DE RUEHGZ #0648/01 3290551
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 250551Z NOV 09
FM AMCONSUL GUANGZHOU
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 1124
INFO RUEHOO/CHINA POSTS COLLECTIVE 0361
RUEHBJ/AMEMBASSY BEIJING 0900
RUEHGH/AMCONSUL SHANGHAI 0292
RUEHCN/AMCONSUL CHENGDU 0293
RUEHSH/AMCONSUL SHENYANG 0302
RUEHHK/AMCONSUL HONG KONG 0359
RUEHIN/AIT TAIPEI 0266
RUCPDOC/DEPT OF COMMERCE WASHDC
RHMFISS/DEPT OF ENERGY WASHINGTON DC 0040
RULSDMK/DEPT OF TRANSPORTATION WASHINGTON DC 0020
RUEATRS/DEPT OF TREASURY WASHINGTON DC 0202
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHDC 0341
RUEKJCS/DIA WASHDC 0337

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 GUANGZHOU 000648 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR EAP/CM, EB/ESC, OES/ENV, INR/EAP 
STATE PASS EPA 
BEIJING FOR FCS, ESTH AND DOE 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: ENRG SENV PGOV ELTN CH
SUBJECT: GOVERNMENT REPORT SPARKS CONTROVERSY OVER USE OF LIQUIFIED 
PETROLEUM GAS (LPG) IN PUBLIC TRANSPORT SECTOR 
 
GUANGZHOU 00000648  001.2 OF 003 
 
 
¶1. (SBU) Summary and Comment:  If disagreement among government 
entities regarding high-profile policy initiatives is rare in China, 
rarer still is it for these disputes to play out in the press.  But 
this is exactly what occurred last month when the Guangzhou 
Municipal People's Congress (GZPC) released to the media a report 
questioning the use of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) in the public 
transportation sector, a direct challenge to the Guangzhou 
Transportation Commission's 2003 LPG Advancement Plan.  The report 
triggered a public discussion on the merits of LPG vs. diesel use in 
city buses and taxis, forcing relevant government agencies to take a 
position on the issue.  Although the Chief of the Transportation 
Commission challenged the report's findings, subsequent remarks in 
which he called for improved maintenance of public buses and pledges 
to explore other clean fuel options indicate the government's 
position may have been influenced by the public debate triggered by 
the report.  End Summary and Comment. 
 
----------------------------- ---------------------------- 
REPORT GENERATES CONTROVERSY, FINDINGS PUBLICLY CHALLENGED 
----------------------------- ---------------------------- 
 
¶2. (SBU) As a result of incomplete combustion and leakage from 
modified engines, the hydrocarbon emissions from LPG vehicles that 
make up the bulk of Guangzhou's bus fleet are 127 times greater than 
those of diesel buses, according to a report drafted by five GZPC 
delegates.  (Note: Hydrocarbons are linked to ozone pollution and 
are considered to be highly dangerous pollutants.  Some, including 
benzene, are also carcinogenic.  End Note.) The report notes that 
more than 85% of the 8,000+ buses in Guangzhou run on LPG, most 
using diesel engines modified for LPG use.  Release of the report 
generated immediate controversy, especially because it directly 
challenged the municipal Transportation Commission's 2003 initiative 
to promote LPG as a clean energy option for public transportation. 
 
 
¶3. (SBU) The Guangzhou Environmental Protection Bureau (EPB) -- 
which initially opposed LPG use because of concerns over nitrous 
oxide emissions -- publicly challenged the scientific validity of 
the delegates' report by pointing out that the test only involved 
two buses.  A few days later the EPB announced the results of its 
own test of 171 LPG buses, claiming that 99.4% comply with emissions 
standards.  However, a local news report quoted a source alleging 
that the EPB instructed bus companies to select their best buses for 
purposes of the test. 
 
¶4. (SBU) The Transportation Commission also disputed the results of 
the delegates' report.  Xian Weixiong, Chief of the Transportation 
Commission, stated at a press conference that daily tests of LPG bus 
emissions confirm that these buses "generally comply" with existing 
standards.  In response to these public statements, People's 
Congress delegates sharpened their criticism of the Transportation 
Commission, arguing that the entity had no legal authority to 
interfere in decisions over fuel use.  The Deputy Director of the 
People's Congress, Zhou Qingqiang, stated at a press conference that 
the Transportation Commission should limit itself to studying fuel 
options, enhancing safety measures for the public transport sector, 
and monitoring emissions. 
 
----------------------------------- ----------------------- 
LPG: CLEANER FUEL SOURCE FOR TAXIS, LESS EFFICIENT IN BUSES 
----------------------------------- ----------------------- 
 
¶5. (SBU) In general, LPG is a much cleaner fuel source than diesel, 
according to an environmental scientist at Sun Yat Sen University 
(SYSU).  To be precise, he pointed to scientific evidence that if 
properly combusted, the burning of LPG emits significantly lower 
quantities of particulate matter and carcinogenic hydrocarbons such 
as benzene as compared to diesel.  The scientist also said that a 
study he conducted along with researchers from the University of 
California-Irvine demonstrated that concentrations of particulate 
matter have been reduced in Guangzhou since LPG was introduced into 
the public transport sector in 2003.  Although LPG use generates 
higher concentrations of propane, propylene, and butane, the SYSU 
scientist argues that these gases are not as harmful as particulate 
 
GUANGZHOU 00000648  002.2 OF 003 
 
 
matter, since the latter is capable of penetrating respiratory 
tracts and reaching the lungs. 
 
¶6. (SBU) Why would municipal delegates attack LPG if it is cleaner 
than diesel?  The answer, as explained to us by one of the delegates 
who worked on the report, is that LPG is not necessarily a cleaner 
or more efficient fuel source for large vehicles like public buses. 
The logic behind this claim is that LPG is unable to fully combust 
in large tanks, resulting in the leakage of gas vapors.  The SYSU 
scientist said studies indicated that LPG-powered buses in Guangzhou 
had a leakage rate of 30%, which not only results in wasted energy 
but also generates emissions of unknown quantities of gaseous 
particles that could have negative health effects.  Furthermore, 
given that Guangzhou is one of the few cities in the world that uses 
LPG to fuel buses, the GZPC delegate says it is nearly impossible to 
find suppliers of engines designed exclusively for LPG use. 
Although bus companies were given RMB 20,000 (about US$ 2,900) per 
bus under the 2003 LPG subsidy plan to modify diesel engines to burn 
LPG, the delegate and scientist we spoke to both believe that many 
bus companies pocketed part of the money and only carried out 
partial modifications. 
 
¶7. (SBU) Even among those engines that have been fully modified for 
LPG use, few have been equipped with LPG-specific emissions 
catalysts, which need to be replaced every three months.  The 
combination of these factors --incomplete combustion of LPG in large 
tanks, the partial but not full modification of engines for LPG use, 
and the lack of LPG-specific catalysts -- could potentially 
translate into higher emissions of harmful pollutants from 
LPG-powered buses, according to the delegate and the scientist. 
While LPG may be a cleaner fuel source for smaller vehicles like 
taxis, the SYSU scientist contends that diesel may actually be the 
superior choice for large vehicles. 
 
¶8. (SBU) The GZPC delegate also claimed that -- in addition to 
environmental concerns -- the switch to LPG had raised costs for bus 
companies.  He said many bus companies had gone into debt since the 
switch because inefficient combustion had increased fuel costs 
overall. 
 
---------------------------------- ---------------------- 
MAINTENANCE, TRAFFIC FLOW DIRECTLY AFFECT EMISSION LEVELS 
---------------------------------- ---------------------- 
 
¶9. (SBU) Analyzing the report's conclusions from a different 
perspective, the SYSU scientist argues that the most effective way 
to bring down vehicle emissions levels, regardless of fuel source, 
is to ensure that buses and taxis are properly maintained.  The 
problem is that most taxi and bus drivers try to control costs by 
avoiding regular maintenance on their vehicles, he said.  In 
addition to poor maintenance, the scientist pointed to the frequency 
of traffic jams as a factor contributing to high emissions levels in 
Guangzhou.  Start-and-stop traffic aggravates gas leakage in LPG-run 
buses and long periods of idling generate higher particulate 
emissions from diesel-run buses. 
 
---------------------------------- ----------------- 
REPORT "PIONEERS" NEW MECHANISM AT PEOPLE'S CONGRESS 
---------------------------------- ----------------- 
 
¶10. (SBU) The five delegates who worked on the controversial report 
chose the topic themselves, according the co-drafter we spoke to. 
He pointed out that the Guangzhou Municipal People's Congress was 
the first municipal congress in China to permit delegates to explore 
and report on issues that directly concern them or the neighborhoods 
they represent.  The report on LPG emissions represents a "pioneer 
effort" under this new mechanism and the delegate expressed 
satisfaction that it had generated public debate that he believed 
had influenced the government's position. 
 
¶11. (SBU) Comment: Public statements made by the Chief of the 
Transportation Commission appear to confirm the delegate's 
assessment that the report achieved its objective of influencing the 
government.  When asked at a press conference whether LPG should 
 
GUANGZHOU 00000648  003.2 OF 003 
 
 
continue to be the primary fuel source given evidence that 
inadequately maintained LPG buses generate emissions of harmful 
pollutants, Transportation Commission Chief Xian Weixiong not only 
acknowledged that poor maintenance of LPG buses was a serious 
problem that needed to be addressed but also pledged to explore 
alternative clean fuel options.  End Comment. 
 
GOLDBECK