China's Soil Pollution Too Bad for Farming in Many Areas

Soil pollution in China has become so bad that around two per cent of the country's arable land is now too polluted for farming. Around 3.3 million hectares - an area roughly the size of Belgium - has become too contaminated to safely grow food on, according to the government. The latest findings show that 30 years of rapid industrial growth brings with it large environmental costs.

Wang Shiyuan, vice minister of land and resources, told a press conference in Beijing on December 31sat 2013 that large areas of land have become too polluted for the growing of food crops. A national survey reveals that in total China has around 135 million hectares of arable land.

The fears over contaminated soil add to concerns that are already abundant in the country over polluted water and high emissions. However, it is not clear exactly what type of contamination has been found as China said in February of 2013 that it would not release the details of a soil pollution survey due to them being considered a "state secret". It is possible that the government feared that the results of the survey could lead to social instability.

Mr Wang said that currently water and air pollution are the country's main concerns, which could possibly be because of the worldwide media attention that these issues have resulted in. However, the problem of soil contamination is becoming more prevalent as more reports of polluted crops and rice are being made.

It is thought that rapid industrial growth is responsible for a large proportion of the soil pollution, although high usage of chemicals in farming has increased the amount of land that has been contaminated by pesticides, cadmium and other toxins. 

Areas that have been found to be too polluted are no longer allowed to be used for farming purposes, however; some contaminated crops have reportedly made it onto the market. The biggest fear in terms of the components that could be polluting the soil is cadmium. This heavy metal, when absorbed through rice, can cause severe damage to the kidneys.