In a recent investigation, a reporter in Foshan City, Guangdong Province, uncovered a concerning situation: a newly built chemical company is located just 10 meters away from a large prison, separated only by a narrow road. This alarming proximity has raised serious safety and security concerns.
The company in question is Foshan Gaoming Gaoyi New Chemical Co., Ltd. Its plant is situated on the southeast side of Foshan Prison, covering an area of 100 mu (approximately 6.7 acres). The project has a total investment of 67,544,300 yuan and was launched in January of this year. As of now, one-third of the construction is complete, with around 20 million yuan already invested. Once operational, the facility will produce 90,000 tons of formaldehyde and 100,000 tons of butyl acetate annually, using raw materials such as methanol, ethanol, acetic acid, and sulfuric acid. It also includes a chemical storage tank area.
On August 19, Foshan Prison submitted a document (No.99, 2005) to the Guangdong Provincial Prison Administration, detailing the potential security risks posed by the nearby chemical company. According to the company's "project safety pre-evaluation report" and "environmental impact assessment report," it claims to be located in a sparsely populated non-residential area. However, the reality is that Foshan Prison lies directly to the northwest of the factory, with the closest distance between them being just 10 meters. This concealment of the actual proximity seriously violates basic site selection requirements for industrial facilities.
Foshan Prison spans 1,500 mu and houses over 3,500 inmates. The chemical company’s production facilities and hazardous chemical storage tanks are only 10 meters away from the prison’s sports ground and within 500 meters of the closed surveillance area where prisoners are housed. According to national regulations, harmful substances must be at least 1,100 meters away from residential areas downwind. The entire chemical plant is within 1,000 meters of the prison, posing a significant threat to both staff and inmates.
In the event of a gas leak or explosion, the consequences could be catastrophic. Unlike ordinary citizens, prisoners cannot easily evacuate. Evacuation would require extensive planning, mobilization of personnel, and pre-determined routes—none of which can be done quickly in the case of an emergency. If inmates were exposed to toxic substances, the impact would be severe, both domestically and internationally. Such incidents could not be tolerated by any level of government.
Moreover, the psychological stress on prison staff and inmates is already high. The presence of the chemical plant has increased their anxiety, creating additional security risks. Prisons are often referred to as “explosives†due to the nature of the people they house. Now, with the chemical company nearby, the risk of a major accident has become even more pressing.
Given these concerns, Foshan Prison has strongly urged authorities to relocate the chemical company as soon as possible. In early September, Xu Sanyuan, head of the Foshan City Safety Supervision Bureau, led an inspection team to investigate the site. They found that the company had not completed all necessary procedures and had started operations without proper approval from the planning and fire departments. The unauthorized project should be halted for further investigation.
The Foshan municipal government has since announced that a third-party assessment and public demonstration will be conducted to evaluate whether the chemical project poses a threat to the prison. This step is crucial to ensuring the safety of both the prison and the surrounding community.
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