Discharges of COD (chemical oxygen demand) and SO2 (sulphur dioxide) increased by 4.2 per cent and 5.8 per cent respectively from the same period last year, said Zhou Shengxian, minister of the State Environmental Protection Administration (SEPA)...investment in fixed assets developed so fast that pollution treatment supervisors were unable to keep pace, Zhou said...Fixed asset investment expanded by nearly 30 per cent...[by industries] including heavy polluters such as mining and auto manufacturing..."What needs to be focused upon is that some local industries operate seriously counter to environmental requirements," Zhou said...only 30-40 per cent of newly launched projects at county level have passed environmental impact assessment, according to Zhou.