"Tofu-dreg project" (Chinese: 豆腐渣工程) is a phrase used in the Chinese-speaking world to describe a poorly constructed building, sometimes called just "Tofu buildings". The phrase was coined by Zhu Rongji, the former premier of the People's Republic of China, on a 1998 visit to Jiujiang City, Jiangxi Province to describe a poorly-built set of flood dykes in the Yangtze River.[1] The phrase is notably used referring to buildings collapsed in the 2008 Sichuan earthquake disaster.[2][3][4][5][6][7]
| Tofu-dreg project | |||||||||||
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| Simplified Chinese | 豆腐渣工程 | ||||||||||
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In China, the term tofu dregs (the pieces left over after making tofu) is widely used as a metaphor for shoddy work, hence the implication that a "tofu-dreg project" is a poorly executed project.[8]
According to Chinese architect Li Hu, tofu-dreg projects in China are vastly outnumbered by buildings without construction flaws. Li said that in most cases, ill-constructed buildings don't collapse but merely have a reduced lifespan or leakages.[9]
2008 Sichuan earthquake
During the 2008 Sichuan earthquake, many schoolhouses collapsed; resulting in the death of students. These buildings have been used to exemplify tofu-dreg projects. The collapses were linked to allegations of corruption in the construction of Chinese schools.
…School construction is the worst. First, there’s not enough capital. Schools in poor areas have small budgets and, unlike schools in the cities, they can’t collect huge fees, so they’re pressed for money. With construction, add in exploitation by government officials, education officials, school managers, etc. and you can imagine what’s left over for the actual building of schools. When earthquake prevention standards are raised, government departments, major businesses, etc. will all appraise and reinforce their buildings. But these schools with their 70s-era buildings, no one pays attention to them. Because of this, the older school buildings are suffer[ing] from inadequate protection while the new buildings have been shoddily constructed.
— A construction engineer using the pseudonym "Book Blade" (书剑子) [10]
On May 15, 2008, Geoffery York of The Globe and Mail reported that the shoddily constructed buildings are commonly called "tofu buildings" because builders cut corners by replacing steel rods with thin iron wires for concrete reinforcement; using inferior grade cement, if any at all; and using fewer bricks than they should. One local was quoted in the article as saying that "the supervising agencies did not check to see if it met the national standards."[11]
The state-controlled media has largely ignored the tofu-dregs schoolhouses, under directives from the propaganda bureau's instructions. Parents, volunteers, and journalists who have questioned authorities have been intimidated or arrested.[12][13][14][15] In order to silence the issue, riot police officers broke up protests by parents; the authorities set up cordons around the schools; and officials ordered the Chinese news media to stop reporting on school collapses.[16]
Climate change
Construction emissions
Tofu-dreg construction stems from speedy, shoddy work and often uses cheap and quick materials, mainly concrete.[17] The speedy construction and pouring of sub-standard concrete leads to poor building and infrastructure quality, causing the issues seen during natural disasters like the Wenchuan Earthquake.[17] Concrete production contributes to large percentages of individual greenhouse gases,[18] and construction contributes to about 40% of the world's greenhouse gas emissions, mostly coming from the materials used.[17][19] From 1980 to 2011, China led in cement production, producing more cement in a two-year period than the U.S. produced in the entire 20th century.[17][page needed] All of this cement production has led to vast emissions of greenhouse gases; China's emissions from cement alone rivaled total greenhouse gas emissions of entire countries.[17] Tofu construction only leads to more construction when buildings must be replaced; after the Sichuan Earthquake, China finished close to 29,692 projects to rebuild areas affected by the earthquake.[20] Even without natural disasters, Chinese constructions have still failed: "One Australian reporter counted four collapsed bridges in just nine days in July 2012."[17] Chinese officials acknowledge these issues as well, giving life expectancies of buildings and warning of future collapses of buildings as they age and reach certain life spans.[17] Even in reconstruction efforts, tofu-dreg construction remains prevalent: Sources from the post-earthquake county of Yongcheng reported moving into buildings already having cracked walls in newly built apartments.[21]
Overall effect
Tofu-dreg construction is connected to grandeur projects of Chinese government entities, many of which are wholly unnecessary to their intended purpose and are constructed simply to show outsiders that China is developed. By allocating the country's best resources to wealthy cities, China's rural areas are subjected to repeated infrastructure disasters, which not only leads to the expenditure of more natural resources in order to rebuild, but also releases pollution during infrastructure collapses.[17] China's construction industry is a significant contributor to the overall climate crisis, and although China has made plans to reduce the nation's carbon emissions with renewable energy and upgraded industrial equipment, the majority of China's rural and poor areas continue to depend on materials such as cement and steel which carry a heavy carbon footprint.[22] The result, as exemplified by tofu-dreg projects, is recurring collapses and intense natural resource use. In addition, poorly-constructed work areas (such as factories) have led to devastating events such as factory fires, pipeline leaks, and workplace explosions.[17]