Christian Science Monitor: A string of disasters in China has highlighted the government’s improved crisis response, but also the many challenges facing Beijing as it seeks to strike a balance between economic growth and protecting the environment. A large China oil spill near Dalian was followed on Wednesday by 3,000 chemical barrels being swept swept into a major river network in Jilin Province by flooding. The same day, authorities in Nanjing were struggling with the aftermath of a chemical explosion that …