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THE WHITE HOUSE

Office of the Press Secretary


For Immediate Release April 8, 1999
            U.S.-China Forum on Environment and Development
      Co-Chaired by Vice President Al Gore and Premier Zhu Rongji
                     2nd Session, April 9, 1999
                            Washington, DC

                              FACT SHEET

Forum Background

Founding: Vice President Gore and then-Premier Li Peng co-chaired the first session of the U.S.-China Forum on Environment and Development in March 1997 in Beijing. The purpose of the Forum is to expand cooperation and intensify dialogue between the U.S. and China on issues related to sustainable development, particularly protection of the global environment. The Forum will hold its second plenary meeting April 9, 1999 in Washington in the Loy Henderson Conference Room at the Department of State.

During President Jiang's 1997 visit, former Secretary of Energy Federico Pena and State Planning Commission Vice Chairman Zeng Peiyan signed the Energy and Environment Cooperation Initiative (EECI), an outgrowth of the Forum designed to focus cooperative efforts on the intersection of energy and environmental science, technology, and trade. Specific target areas include: (1) urban air quality; (2) rural electrification; and (3) clean energy sources and energy efficiency.

Structure: The Forum is divided into working groups that address four broad areas of mutual interest: 1) the Energy Policy Working Group discusses issues of energy generation, and major energy-using activities in the industrial, transportation, building, and utility sectors; 2) the Environmental Policy Working Group consults and coordinates on multilateral and bilateral environmental issues, such as climate change, forestry, pollution prevention and control, waste management, remediation, and health impact of pollution; 3) Science for Sustainable Development looks at the application of science and technology to understand and foster sustainable development; and 4) Commercial Cooperation promotes trade in energy, environment, agriculture, and other aspects of sustainable development.

Co-chaired by representatives from various agencies, these working groups act as coordinating mechanisms for activities taking place under the Forum, as well as those outside its structure. Working groups schedule their own meetings and projects throughout the year. The full Forum gathers in plenary session when the two countries deem necessary to report to the Vice President and Premier on the progress of projects and to discuss further cooperation.

The Premier's visit provides an opportunity for the Vice President and Premier to discuss a variety of sensitive bilateral and global issues. Topics include economics, human rights, non-proliferation, and other security issues.

Activities: Through the Forum and the Energy and Environment Cooperation Initiative (EECI), the U.S. and China are working together to improve China's air quality monitoring network; implement projects in rural energy development, including solar power installations and biomass activities; train Chinese personnel in wind resource assessments, renewable energy business development, disaster response, integrated coastal management, and energy finance. The U.S.-China Oil and Gas Industry Forum helps U.S. companies identify new opportunities in China's energy sector, and promotes exchanges to help China secure reliable, economical and environmentally responsible sources of oil and natural gas. This has led to several major commercial contracts in the energy sector.

Forum Schedule

Friday, April 9, the second plenary of the U.S.-China Forum on Environment and Development begins at 10:00 with the opening remarks of the VP and Premier. These remarks are open to the press. The Vice President and Premier will depart after their remarks, and Dr. Neal Lane, the President's Science Advisor, and Madame Zhu Lilan, China's Minister of Science and Technology, will continue to co-chair the plenary session.

From 10:30 to 11:15 the VP and Premier will co-chair a business roundtable with 17 top executives of U.S. companies with commercial interests in the environment, automotive and energy sectors in China. The four working groups will have individual lunch events at various locations, followed by their respective working group sessions. At 1:20, the Vice President and the Premier will witness the signing of forum agreements and make brief concluding statements.

Current Work

The following major agreements and projects have been under negotiation by the two sides:

Working Group Co-Chairs


|                  |                       |                           |
| Working Group    |   U.S. Co-Chair       |   Chinese Co-Chair        |
|                  |                       |                           |
 ----------------------------------------------------------------------
|                  |                       |                           |
| Energy Policy    | David Jhirad,         | Song Mi, Director-General,|
|                  | Senior Advisor        | Department of Basic       |
|                  | for International     | Industries,               |
|                  | Affairs,              | State Development         |
|                  | Department of Energy, | Planning Commission       |
|                  |                       |                           |
 ----------------------------------------------------------------------
|                  |                       |                           |
| Environmental    | Administrator Carol   | Minister Xie Zhenhua,     |
| Policy           | Browner, EPA          | State Environmental       |
|                  | Undersecretary of     | Protection                |
|                  | State Frank Loy       | Administration            |
|                  |                       |                           |
 ----------------------------------------------------------------------
|                  |                       |                           |
| Science for      | Dr. Neal Lane,        | Minister of Science and   |
| Sustainable      | Assistant to the      | Technology Zhu Lilan      |
| Development      | President for         |                           |
|                  | Science and Technology|                           |
|                  |                       |                           |
 ----------------------------------------------------------------------
|                  |                       |                           | 
| Commercial       | Alan Bowser,          | Dai Yunlou, Deputy        |
| Cooperation      | Deputy Assistant      | Director-General,         |
|                  | Secretary for Basic   | Department of America and |
|                  | Industry, Department  | Oceanic Affairs, Ministry |
|                  | of Commerce           | of Foreign Trade and      |
|                  |                       | Economic Cooperation      |
|                  |                       |                           |

Secretary of Energy Bill Richardson and Secretary of Commerce William Daley will also attend the opening of the plenary session.

              US-CHINA FORUM ON ENVIRONMENT AND DEVELOPMENT
                          BUSINESS ROUNDTABLE
                          LIST OF PARTICIPANTS
                             April 9, 1999

Co-Chairs: Vice President Al Gore; Premier Zhu Rongji

Moderator: Robert A. Kapp, President of U.S.-China Business Council

ENERGY COMPANIES
Peter I. Bijur - Chairman and CEO of Texaco Corporation

John F. Imle, Jr. - President of Unocal Corporation

Terence H. Thorn - Senior Vice President, Environmental and International Government Affairs, Enron Corp.

Richard H. Matzke - President of Chevron Overseas Petroleum Inc.

D. Howard Pierce - President and CEO of ABB Inc.

Lee R. Raymond - Chairman and CEO of the Exxon Corp.

Steven R. Specker - President, General Electric Nuclear Energy Company

AUTOMOTIVE COMPANIES
Jacques A. Nasser - President and CEO of Ford Motor Company

John F. Smith, Jr. - Chairman and CEO of General Motors Corporation

ENVIRONMENTAL COMPANIES
Anthony J. Drexel Biddle III - CEO of Liberty-ELM Environmental, LLC

Michael R. Bonsignore - Chairman and CEO of Honeywell Inc.

Diane C. Creel - President and CEO of Earth Tech

Albert E. Gosselin, Jr. - President and Chief Engineer of Dasibi Environmental Corporation

Frederick J. Holland, P.E. - President of Camp Dresser & McKee International Inc.

Gerhard J. Neumaier - Chairman and CEO of Ecology and Environment, Inc.

Viet H. Ngo - President and CEO of Lemna International

Henry G. Schwartz, Jr. - President of Sverdrup Civil, Inc.