A CCTV News screen grab shows the arm of a sick student. (Photo/Chinadaily.com.cn)
Environmental NGOs are suing three chemical plants in a high-profile case of alleged soil contamination that may have affected students at a school in eastern China.
Zhang Jianwen, spokesman for Changzhou Intermediate People's Court in Jiangsu province, confirmed on Sunday that a public interest lawsuit has been filed with the court.
The suit has been brought by the groups Friends of Nature, China Biodiversity Conservation and the Green Development Foundation.
The court accepted it after receiving the indictment and related material.
Last month, blood samples taken from students at Changzhou Foreign Language School reportedly showed abnormal readings after the students moved to the school's new campus near the former sites of the chemical plants.
The nongovernmental organizations allege that the three chemical factories polluted the environment. They have asked the court to order the factories to remove pollutants and to pay environmental restoration fees, according to the indictment.
