Both energy production and consumption maintained rapid growth in the first quarter of 2004. In some areas, the supply of electricity was still short of demand; in coal market weak supply faced an excessive demand, and price rising was overwhelming.

Domestic grain price shot up in the first quarter. It is predicted to rise continuously in the second quarter with variations among different items, and will be kept stable at a high level in the year.

The wild-life based industry has been growing rapidly in recent years. The development of this industry is of significant importance in China; however lacking of knowledge on this particular industry and defects in the industrial management has lead to negative impacts on the ecological environment and public health.

The rapid expansion of intensive livestock and poultry farms has caused increasingly serious pollution, which becomes a threat to the environment and the health of people.

Scarcity of water resources has become the "shortest piece of board on a barrel", impeding the balanced and sustained socioeconomic development.

In 2004, driven by a strong demand, the production of energy grew rapidly; the import of major energy products was increased significantly while export was reduced markedly.

The percentage of industrial pollution by small and medium-sized enterprises in China is rapidly shooting up and it has become a focus and a difficult issue for industrial pollution treatment in China.

The international experiences have proved that voluntary agreements are effective policy tools for driving forward the work of energy saving for energy consumption trades.