ABSTRACT
As China’s environmental degradation persisted in the past decades, the central government has gradually revised its economic development policies, emphasizing the importance of transforming the strategy of economic development into a sustainable development model that aims to construct an “environmental state” (Mol and Carter 2006). However, persistent public dissatisfaction and mass protests caused by serious environmental pollution suggest that the situation has not improved significantly (Economy 2007). In urban areas, environmental hazards caused by large-scale projects, such as waste incinerator plants, chemical plants, and high-speed railways, have become a contentious subject among urban residents. Although public participation in the process of environmental impact assessments (EIA) has been legally stipulated, the lack of organized social interest among the residents ultimately limits transparency and public participation (Tang et al. 2005, 24). To protect themselves, urban residents have deployed various strategies to influence government policy and reduce damage. In the cases of the anti-PX projects in Xiamen in 2007 and Dalian in 2011, and the prolonged resistance against the waste incinerator plant in Liulitun, Beijing (2007–11), for example, residents successfully forced the government to stop or remove the project out of the area.
