Stories of polluted Chinese rivers have been appearing in media all over the world. The most famous case this year has been that of pig carcasses in the Huangpu River, but as always, Guangdong Province has no reason to be smug about environmental issues.

Fish poisoned to death in Maoming

In March it was reported that fish in a river in Maoming had been poisoned to death. Now, Zhongshan has become the latest area to be affected by river pollution.

Local villagers have taken to their microblogs to complain about a chemical plant that they accuse of dumping chemicals into the local river and contaminating the water supply, The Nanfang Daily reports.

Residents in Shaxi Village have reported the Pegasus Synthetic Material Co., Ltd. for allegedly dumping illegally into the Shijiao River after a 10 year-old boy who lived nearby suffered nausea and many villagers in Shaxi complained about the vile odor.

A reporter from the paper went there and confirmed that the stench could be felt from 2 kilometers away. A subsequent investigation showed that dozens of residents of neighboring villages have complained about headaches, dizziness and nausea.

The plant responded that it had not been dumping waste systematically, but a worker had accidentally spilled a 200-liter styrene container and did not report it through the correct channels.

The clean-up operation

Local authorities have started a clean-up operation.

There have been calls for the plant to be moved, but local authorities question the practicality of such a procedure.

As we told you in January, NIMBYism is starting to rear its head in China.