The Environmental Protection Law at China’s environmental legislative system
China’s system of environmental legislation is established based on the Environmental Protection Law of the People’s Republic of China that was enacted in 1989. Under this law, other separate laws have been enacted for controlling pollution. Some of these laws are as follows:
China updated the Environmental Protection Law in 2015. This was the first major revisions. The revised law includes stricter punishments on polluters. It also allows non-governmental organizations to file environmental lawsuits against violators. The National People’s Congress revised other laws, including the Law on the Prevention and control of Air Pollution in 2018 and the Law on the Prevention and Control of Water Pollution in 2017. The Congress also adopted the Law on the Prevention and Control of Soil Pollution on August 31, 2018.
Law of the People’s Republic of China on the Prevention and Control of Air Pollution was enacted in 1987 and amended in 1995, 2000, 2015 and 2018. This Law is formulated in order to prevent and control atmospheric pollution, protect and improve people’s environment and the ecological environment, safeguard human health, and promote the sustainable development of economy and society. The concentration of the discharged pollutants may not exceed the standards prescribed by the State and local authorities. The quality standards for products containing volatile organic compounds, such as coal, petroleum coke, biomass fuel, and coatings, fireworks and firecrackers, boilers, etc., are developed and the atmospheric environment protection requirements are specified.
The environmental legislative framework to protect the air pollution is as follows.
Law of the People’s Republic of China on the Prevention and Control of Air Pollution
Law of the People’s Republic of China on the Prevention and Control of Water Pollution is formulated in order to prevent and control water pollution, protecting and improving the environment, and safeguarding the safety of drinking water.
The environmental legislative framework to protect the water pollution is as follows.
Law of the People’s Republic of China on the Prevention and Control of Water Pollution
Law of the People’s Republic of China on the Prevention and Control of Environmental Pollution by Solid Waste is the national primary law governing municipal and industrial waste management. This law lays out basic requirements for solid waste disposal for industrial facilities. It requires the specified facilities to get approval from the local environmental protection bureau for waste disposal plans prior to construction. The bureaus are also responsible for issuing permits for the collection, storage, and disposal of hazardous waste.
The environmental legislative framework on waste management is as follows.
Law of the People’s Republic of China on the Prevention and Control of Environmental Pollution by Solid Waste
Industrial chemicals are mainly regulated by the following regulations in China:
“Decree of the State Council No 591 Regulations on Safe Management of Hazardous Chemicals”
“Order of the Ministry of Environmental Protection No. 7 Environmental Management of New Chemical Substances”
Pursuant to article 15 of the Decree No 591, manufacturers of hazardous chemicals shall provide safety data sheet on the hazardous chemicals that are produced, post or affix a chemical safety label on the package. The contents in safety data sheet and chemical safety labels should meet the requirements of relevant national standards. The relevant standards in China are as follows:
On April 29, 2020, the Ministry of Ecology and Environment of the People’s Republic of China (MEE) issued the final Measures on Registrations of New Chemical Substances for Environmental Management under Ministry Order No. 12. The new Measures replaces the current 2010 version and comes into force on January 1, 2021, when the Order No.7 will be repealed.
Same as the current version, the new Measures require manufacturers and importers to register new chemical substances with MEE before placing the new chemical substances on the Chinese market. They also introduce a notification process for new uses of existing listed substances.
Law on the Safety of Hazardous Chemicals (Revision draft for solicitation of comments)
In order to strengthen the safety management of hazardous chemicals, prevent and reduce hazardous chemical accidents, the Ministry of Emergency Management organized the consultation on the draft of the “Law on the Safety of Hazardous Chemicals”, which had been open to the public comments until 1 November, 2020. If approved, it will replace Decree No. 591.
The draft law is applicable to the safety management of the production, storage, use, operation, transportation and disposal of hazardous chemicals. It consists of 11 chapters (Article 137), and based on the lessons learned from the explosion accident, “Safety of hazardous chemical disposal” etc. was added to clarify the responsibility for safety supervision of the disposal (Disposal safety). The State implements a hazardous chemical registration system.
Framework of EHS laws and regulations in China.
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On March 17, 2023, China’s State Administration for Market Regulation issued a Circular on Creating, Upgrading, Applying and Enforcing National Standards for Energy Conservation. The circular came into effect immediately.
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On April 14, 2023, China’s Ministry of Emergency Management published the Standard that Sets Criteria for the Risk of Serious Accidents in Industrial and Trading Companies. This is a revision …
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On April 10, 2023, China’s Ministry of Finance, Ministry of Ecology and Environment and Ministry of Industry and Information Technology published an experimental, “Green Data Center” standard that defines requirements …
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On March 27, 2023, China’s Ministry of Ecology and Environment published draft revised Measures on Pollutant Discharge Permits1. The ministry is seeking comments on the draft through April 24, 2023. …
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On April 11, 2023, the State Administration for Market Regulation and the Standardization Administration of China jointly notified the WTO of the draft of the mandatory national standard (GB) “Limits …
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On March 30, 2023, the government of Sichuan province, China, published Regulations on Soil Contamination Control, which will come into effect July 1, 2023.
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On Feb. 20, 2023, China’s National Development and Reform Commission published “guiding opinions” on the replacement and upgrading of key products for saving energy and reducing carbon emissions in an …
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On Feb. 21, 2023, the Shanghai Maritime Safety Administration published a short report on a violation of the regulations on hazardous chemical transportation by ship in the Yangtze River. …
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On Feb. 27, 2023, the Development and Reform Bureau of Zhuhai city, Guangdong province, China, announced the Plastic Pollution Control Program for 2023–2025. Although this program is similar to the …
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On Feb. 23, 2023, the Department of Ecology and Environment of Anhui province, China, published draft regulations on the prevention of pollution from ships in the Yangtze River.
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On March 16, 2023, China’s Ministry of Ecology and Environment published on its website the “Technical Guidelines for Discharge Outlet Measurement Site Setting of Stationary Pollution Sources.” The ministry is …
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On Feb. 17, 2023, China’s National Technical Committee for the Standardization of Water Conservation1 published draft national standards for water-saving companies in the paper, fermented food and construction materials industries. …
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On Feb. 27, 2023, the Department of Ecology and Environment of Guangdong province, China, announced a Program for New Pollutant Control. This program includes environmental assessments in the chemical industry …
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On Dec. 30, 2022, China’s Ministry of Ecology and Environment issued a new ecology and environment standard called the Technical Specifications for Setting Identification Sings of Hazardous Waste (HJ 1276-2022). …
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On Jan. 20, 2023, China’s Ministry of Ecology and Environment issued a revised national standard called the Standard for Pollution Control on Hazardous Waste Storage (GB 18597-2023), for the rigorous …
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On March 15, 2023, China’s Ministry of Ecology and Environment published two sets of draft regulations on chemicals that have been added to the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants …
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On Feb. 16, 2023, China’s Standardization Administration published guidelines on national standards development for 2023. For example, the chemical safety of consumer goods as well as the safety of lithium-ion …
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On Jan. 28, 2023, the Municipal Bureau of Ecology and Environment, Municipal Development & Reform Commission, and six other government departments of Shanghai, China, announces a Program for Synergistic Reduction …
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In January 2023, the government of Hebei province, China, announced a program for carbon emissions peaking. This program has been developed to fully implement national policies for carbon emissions peaking …
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On February 16, 2023, China’s National Development and Reform Commission published revised evaluation indicator systems for the clean production of electrolytic manganese as well as sodium hydroxide and polyvinyl chloride. …
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On Feb. 2, 2023, China’s Ministry of Ecology and Environment issued two national ecology and environment standards called the “Technical Specifications of Contaminated Soil Remediation — Biopiling” (HJ 1283-2023) and …
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On Feb. 13, 2023, China’s Ministry of Emergency Management published draft Guidelines on the Safety Risk Management of Chemical Industrial Parks. The ministry will accept comments on the guidelines through …
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On December 29, 2022, the National Standardization Administration of China released the mandatory national standard “Limitations on Harmful Substances in Musical Instruments” (GB 28489-2022). Compared to the draft submitted to …
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On Dec. 29, 2022, China’s Standardization Administration published a mandatory national standard called the Minimum Allowable Values of Energy Efficiency and Energy Efficiency Grades of Fluorescent Lamps for General Lighting …
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On Jan. 19, 2023, the Provincial Development and Reform Commission, Economy and Information Technology Department, and Science Technology Department of Zhejiang province, China, announced the Program to Promote the New-Energy …
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On Dec. 30, 2022, the Department of Environment and Ecology of Zhejiang province, China, announces the Program for New Pollutant Control.
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On Feb. 1, 2023, the Department of Ecology and Environment of Jiangsu province, China, announced a program for synergistic reduction of air pollutants and CO2 emissions.
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On Dec. 30, 2022, China’s State Administration for Market Regulation and Standardization Administration released a national standard called the General Specification for Remanufacturing of Used Office Consumables and Spare Parts …
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On Dec. 19, 2022, China’s Standardization Administration issued a mandatory national standard for toilet flush valve water efficiency called Minimum Allowable Values of Water Efficiency and Water Efficiency Grades for …
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On Dec. 29, 2022, China’s Standardization Administration issued a mandatory national standard for the safety of lithium-ion batteries and battery packs for portable electronic products (GB 31241-2022). This is a …
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On Jan. 13, 2023, China’s Ministry of Ecology and Environment and General Administration of Customs announced a revised procedure for the identification of solid waste in imported goods (Ministry of …
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On Jan. 13, 2023, China’s Shanghai announced an Action Plan on Controlling New Pollutants. The program, which is based on a national program for new pollutant control, includes measures and …
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On Jan. 16, 2023, the Provincial Department of Ecology and Environment of Shandong province, China, announced a program for ecological protection in the Yellow River basin.
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On Jan. 12, 2023, the Industry and Information technology Department of Jiangsu province, China, announced on its website a Plan for Carbon Emissions Peaking in the Industry Sector and Specific …
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On Dec. 30, 2022, the China Resource Recycling Association published an association standard called the Technical Specification for Pollution Control of Waste Packing Containers Recover and Disposal (T/ZGZS 0303-2022), which …
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On Dec. 12, 2022, China’s Ministry of Emergency Management released a draft mandatory national standard that sets out common requirements for static electricity accident prevention to seek public comments, which …
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On November 23, 2022, the Department of Ecology and Environment of Shandong Province released the draft of “Implementation rules of exemptions from the end of pipe treatment of VOC for …
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On Dec. 20, 2022, the Civil Aviation Administration of China published revised measures on the temporary storage of dangerous goods for air transportation (AC-276-TR-2022-01R1). The revised version will come into …
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On Dec. 20, 2022, the Provincial Development and Reform Commission and eight other departments of Sichuan province, China, announced a program that promotes electrification during the 2022–2025 period. This program …
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On Jan. 10, 2023, the Department of Ecology and Environment of Guangdong province, China, announced the enforcement of pollutant discharge limits in key areas. This announcement aims to promote soil …
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On July 5, 2022, China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology released draft measures to implement energy conservation audit in the industry sector, in order to seek public comments; and …
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On Dec. 28, 2022, China’s Ministry of Ecology and Environment issued experimental guidelines on setting soil remediation targets for land for development. Here is an overview.
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On Dec. 22, 2022, the Alliance of Technology Innovation in Extending Producer Responsibility, a Chinese NPO, published a 2022 report on the Implementation of Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) Schemes for …
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On December 1, 2022, the municipal government office of Nantong City, Jiangsu Province, China released the “Program of subsiding for clean alternatives to raw materials that generate volatile organic compounds …
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On Jan. 6, 2023, China’s Certification and Accreditation Administration announced a pilot program that implements a self-assessment scheme for the compulsory certification (“CCC certification”) of certain types of electrical and …
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According to a report published Dec. 2, 2022, by the Department of Ecology and Environment of Jiangsu province, China, Jiangsu Siyang Strait Environmental Protection Co., Ltd. (江苏泗阳海峡环保有限公司) sold the right …
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On Dec. 23, 2022, China’s Solid Waste and Chemicals Management Center, the government department that administers new chemical registration, published on its website nine FAQs on new chemical registration. …
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On Jan. 3, 2023, the Department of Ecology and Environment of Guangdong province, China, released a draft plan for 2023–2025 to reduce Volatile Organic Compound (VOC) and Nitrogen Oxide (NOx) …
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On Dec. 29, 2022, the Standardization Administration of China published a national mandatory standard called the General Rules for the Hazardous Chemicals Warehouse Storage (GB 15603-2022). This standard will come …
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On Dec. 12, 2022, China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, National Development and Reform Commission, Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development, and Ministry of Water Resources jointly issued “Guiding …
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