The wake-up call from Xie Zhenhua, the head of the State Environmental Protection Administration, is based on the expectation that China's economy almost inevitably will quadruple by 2020, the China Daily reported.

"The country's resources and the environment will not last if the conventional development model doesn't change," he said, according to the newspaper.

"The faster an economy grows, the more it harms the environment," he was quoted as saying.

Xie called for new policies, laws and regulations on issues such as recycling home appliances and construction materials.

The government should also continue to promote clean production technologies among local enterprises and consumers should be made more aware of "green products," he said.

"Circular economy" is a key-word, repeatedly mentioned by Xie in the China Daily report, apparently referring to new ways of production and consumption that ensure a certain level of sustainability.

Some provinces, ranging from tropical Hainan island to Jilin in the middle of China's northeastern rustbelt, have tried to relaunch themselves as "eco-provinces," the newspaper said.

They have developed regulations that, if implemented, could lead to the creation of pockets of "circular economies" within the next 20 to 40 years, it said.

There is growing awareness in China of the environmental cost of rapid economic growth.

A government report published late last year showed about two-thirds of China's 668 largest cities were facing water shortages due to over-use of water resources in agriculture and industry.

TERRA.WIRE