At the afternoon session of the Green Forum, held in connection with the 2012 Macao International Environmental Co-operation Forum & Exhibition (2012MIECF), government officials, experts, scholars and environmental industry representatives from various regions discussed about promotion of the low carbon development and coordination of the environmental protection with the economy, so as to ensure sustainable economic growth, besides other issues, such as energy conservation and new energy. At the "Environmental Policy and Low Carbon Economic Development Forum", Mr. José Luís de Sales Marques, President of Institute of European Studies in Macao, said that the Macao Government has the responsibility to promote environmental protection in order to ensure sustainable development, namely by introducing improvements to the public transport service and to encourage low-carbon transportation with a view of enhancing the air quality in the city. Mr. Zhou Guoying, Head of the Planning and Finance Division of Environmental Protection of Guangdong Province introduced the goals set under the 12th 5-Year Plan of the PRC and the strategy to implement such goals. In turn, Mrs. Sandra Herrera Flores, Vice-Minister of Promotion and Environmental Law, Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources of Mexico, Mr. Cassio Marx Rabello da Costa, Industrial Policy Specialist, Brazilian Industrial Development Agency and Mr. Paulo Lemos, Deputy Director-General of the Portuguese Environment Agency, introduced the environmental policy of their own countries and shared with the audience their experience in the course of developing a green economy. At the "Techniques and Equipments for Environmental Industry: Business Opportunities", the Secretary-General and representatives of the environmental industry business associations in the Pan-PRD Region introduced the planning and development direction of the environmental industry in the course of the 12th 5-Year Plan of the PRC, which is to gather the advantages of each province to promote the enhancement of the industry to eventually achieve a sustainable development. Mr. Fred Ma, President of Macao Association of Environmental Protection Industry suggested the Macao SAR Government to expeditiously enact laws to regulate construction projects and the use of water by the local enterprises, and also to train professionals in the environmental technology, to promote the development of the local environmental industry. Mr. Ou Jun, Acting Secretary-General of the Environmental Protection Industry Association of Guangdong Province affirmed MIECF´s role as a platform for the environmental industry in the Pan-PRD Region to exchange and cooperate with the international market. In turn, the Green Chemical Forum discussed about Energy Conservation and Efficiency, having invited a number of experts and industrialists to explore green ideas for the sustainable development of China´s petrochemical enterprises. Mr. Yang Tiesheng, Deputy Director General of the Department of Energy Conservation and Resources Utilization of the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology of the PRC, stressed the importance of green development and the promotion of energy saving and carbon reduction. He said that industry plays an important part in the development of the country and that people should also be aware of the important role assumed by the industrial sector in promoting a green development. Mr. Sun Weishan, Deputy Secretary-General of China Petroleum and Chemical Industry Federation and Mr. Fang Xiahua, Vice Chairman of China Chemical Energy Conservation Technology Association gave their respective opinions on how to strengthen the energy industry saving system and the capacity building.
