Jane Nees BOP Regional Councillor www.janenees.co.nz

I recently represented the Bay of Plenty Regional Council on a visit to China with Opotiki District Council.

The purpose of the trip was to discuss aquaculture developments off the coast of the eastern Bay of Plenty. The discussions were very encouraging and the relationship with potential Chinese partners is very positive.

An added bonus of the visit was an understanding of the scope and scale of the transformation occurring in China.

Socially, the standard of living of many in the population is increasing dramatically. The cost of living is escalating as people move to a more sophisticated lifestyle – this is the result of a move to the cities, particularly to the eastern coastal areas. Nearly 50 per cent of the Chinese population now live in urban centres, attracted by the available work, however, there are suggestions of growing labour shortages because of the one child per couple policy and the increasing length of education.

Economically, growth in China is compounding at about 10 per cent a year. This shows in the many new modern buildings and factories and in a massive expansion of infrastructure. One south-eastern city that had 100km of railways and 100km of expressways 10 years ago, now has 1500km of rail and 2000km of expressway.

This infrastructure is being proactively planned and built with capacity for growth – one city official told me they estimate the required capacity and then double it. Planning is innovative – for example, highways are stacked one on top of another to accommodate the massive increase in cars.

There are still huge environmental problems in China, but at a national and city level, an improved environment is now a key objective. There have been huge tree planting programmes in the cities I visited and the air is noticeably cleaner. The sky was blue and generally clear while I was in Beijing and Yantai – no sign of the choking smog of yester-year.

One gets the sense that China's development as a super-power is exponential. I left with a sense of awe and envy at the speed they get things done, but a feeling that their growth may prove to be a case of having a tiger by the tail unless carefully managed. In comparison, we have no growth problems at all.

If you have any views on this or any other issue, please phone 07 579 5150, email neesj@xtra.co.nz or visit www.janenees.co.nz