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.
China
On November 3, 2022, the Ministry of Ecology and Environment of China released a draft opinion solicitation for the “National Implementation Plan for the Distribution of Total Carbon Emissions Trading …
China
On Sept. 30, 2022, the Department of Housing and Urban-Rural Development of Zhejiang province, China, released a local standard to evaluate “sponge cities”. A sponge city is a city that …
China
On Nov. 10, 2022, China’s State Administration for Market Regulation and other government bodies and organizations announced an Action Plan to Improve the Quality of Products, Construction Work and Services …
China
At a regular press conference Oct. 27, 2022, China’s Ministry of Ecology and Environment released its 2022 report on the country’s policies and actions regarding climate change. The ministry prepared …
China
On September 8, 2022, the Ministry of Ecology and Environment, the National Development and Reform Commission, and 15 other administrative agencies of China promulgated the “In-depth action plan for the …
China
At a regular press conference of China’s Ministry of Ecology and Environment on Sept. 28, 2022, Yan E, a Deputy Director of Department of Laws, Regulations, and Standards talked about …
China
On Oct. 30, 2022, China issued the Yellow River Protection Law, which will come into effect April 1, 2023. This law introduces to the Yellow River basin a ban on …
China
On October 24, 2022, the China Coating Industry Association announced that it would conduct a survey on the use of 73 chemicals in the Coating industry, including PFCAs, UV-350. The …
China
China
On Sept. 28, 2022, the Standing Committee of the People’s Congress of Hebei province, China, published revised “Hebei Regulations on the Control of Solid Waste Environmental Pollution,” which will come …
China
On Oct. 9, 2022, China’s Certification and Accreditation Administration issued a revised list of standards used to specify couplers for household and similar uses (e.g., connectors and plugs that connect …
China
On October 14, 2022, the State Post Bureau of China held the regular press conference of the fourth quarter of 2022. At the press conference, the implement progresses of “9917” …
East Asia
The Pollutant Discharge Permit System is how the Ministry of Ecology and Environment in China monitors and enforces legal restrictions on polluting entities and polluting behaviors.While it boasts a major …
China
On July 11, 2022, the State Administration for Market Regulation released the national standard “General rules for equipping and managing the water metering devices in water-use organizations” (GB/T 24789-2022). This …
China
On September 22, 2022, the Ecological Environmental Department of Jiangsu Province of China announced 10 cases of violation of VOC emission rules. Fugitive emissions are the irregular discharge of air …
China
On July 25, 2022, the Shenzhen Municipal People’s Government, China, promulgated the “Shenzhen Sponge City Construction Management Regulations.” The regulations came into effect on September 1, 2022. A sponge city …
China
On October 2, 2022, the Jiangsu Provincial People’s Government, China announced the “Jiangsu Province Carbon Peaking Implementation Plan.” The plan presents targets such as achieving a total capacity of more …
China
On October 13, 2022, the People’s Government of Beijing Municipality, China announced the “Beijing Carbon Peaking Implementation Plan.” The plan proposes targets such as achieving a share of renewable energy …
China
On Sept. 27, 2022, China’s Ministry of Ecology and Environment published a report on cases where some companies were punished for violating the Measures on the Environmental Management and Registration …
China
On Sept. 29, 2022, China’s Zhejiang province published revised regulations on solid waste environmental pollution control, which will come into effect Jan. 1, 2023. The revised regulations set out the …
China
On Sept. 21, 2022, China’s Shandong province published provincial regulations on solid waste environmental pollution control that are based on a national law called the Solid Waste Environmental Pollution Control …
China
On Sept. 26, 2022, China’s Ministry of Transport issued revised regulations on safety in the railway transportation of dangerous goods, which will come into effect Dec. 1, 2022. Under the …
China
On Sept. 23, 2022, China’s State Council issued “opinions” on advancing the reform of regulatory systems for electrical and electronic equipment. The opinions set out measures such as adding lithium-ion …
China
On Sept. 30, 2022, The Department of Ecology and Environment of Zhejiang province, China, released a draft plan for new pollutant control to seek public comments, which will be accepted …
China
On Sept. 9, 2022, China’s State Administration for Market Regulation published revised Measures on National Standards, which will come into effect March, 1, 2023. The measures are subordinate legislation of …
China
On Aug. 26, 2022, the Shanghai Municipal Development & Reform Commission, Shanghai Municipal Commission of Economy and Informatization and other eight departments of the government of Shanghai, China, announced a …
China
On Aug. 24, 2022, China’s Ministry of Finance announced a program to financially support the ecological protection and high-quality development of the Yellow River basin with state funds. The program …
China
On Sept. 14, 2022, the government of Tianjin, China, announced a program for carbon peaking. This program is developed by Tianjin city based on the central government’s “Opinions on Achieving …
China
In August 2022, the China Environment Publishing Group released its Q&A on the National Carbon Emissions Trading Market. The five-chapter document, which was reviewed and approved by the Department of …
China
On Sept. 14, 2022, the government of Tianjin, China, released draft measures setting limits on pollutant discharge by private companies and public entities. Comments on the draft will be accepted …
China
On Sept. 1, 2022, the General Office of China’s State Council announced a series of measures to restrict excessive packaging of goods. The measures include targets for 2025 as well …
China
On Aug. 17, 2022, the Department of Ecology and Environment of Sichuan province, China, published on its website a Draft Plan for Controlling New Pollutants. The department accepted public comments …
China
On Aug. 25, 2022, the China National Export Commodities Packaging Research Institute released an article explaining China’s national standard called Packaging Recycling Marking (GB/T 18455-2022). Here are its most notable …
China
On Aug. 5, 2022, China’s Ministry of Ecology and Environment and other government departments announced a Program for Ecological Protection of the Yellow River Basin. The program focuses on outstanding …
China
On Sept. 6, 2022, the Market Regulatory Administration of Jiangsu Province, China, issued a local standard called the Guidelines for Whole-process Environmental Management of Industrial Enterprises (DB/T 4342-2022), which will …
China
On Sept. 27, 2022, China’s Ministry of Ecology and Environment released a draft 2022 List of Key Controlling New Pollutants to seek public comments, which will be accepted through Oct. …
China
On Sept. 5, 2022, the China Household Electrical Appliances Association released a standard called “Safe service life for household electrical appliances Part 8：Tableware disinfection cabinet” (association standard T/CHEAA 0011.8-2022), which …
China
To protect the environment and reduce the use of plastic, on August 31, 2022, the Macao Special Administrative Region Government of China announced an amendment to the Article 5 (1) …
China
On Aug. 6, 2022, China’s Ministry of Ecology and Environment published an article on three cases of environmental impact assessment (EIA) report falsification, which took place in Jiangsu, Sichuan and …
China
On Aug. 18, 2022, at an Executive Meeting presided by Premier Li Keqiang, China’s State Council approved several policies that encourage the purchase of high-value goods, including new-energy vehicles among …
China
According to information released Aug. 31, 2022 by a source familiar with the matter, the Emergency Management Office of China’s Shandong province plans to fully implement the “one company, one …
China
On July 19, 2022, the Ministry of Ecology and Environment of China released a list of 22 chemical substances, which will be added into the “List of existing chemical substances”, …
China
On Aug. 15, 2022, the Municipal Bureau of Ecology and Environment and Municipal Bureau of Planning and Natural Resources of China’s Shanghai issued Measures for Identifying the Party Responsible for …
China
On July 19, 2022, the National Development and Reform Commission and other 6 central government departments jointly designated Beijing and other 59 cities as key cities to develop waste recycling …
China
On July 29, 2022, the Department of Ecology and Environment of China’s Guangdong Province announced an action plan for 2022–2025 to take measures against plastic pollution. The plan aims to …
China
On Aug. 3, 2022, the Municipal Transportation Commission and other two departments of Shanghai, China announced new rules for the road transportation and storage of dangerous goods/hazardous chemicals. The rules …
China
On July 29, 2022, the Department of Ecology and Environment of China’s Shenzhen city released a draft local standard called the Limit of Volatile Organic Compounds and Certain Harmful Substances …
China
At a press conference held by the Ministry of Ecology and Environment of China on July 21, 2022, Liu Zhiquan, the director of the Environmental Impact Assessment and Pollution Emission …
China
China’s Ministry of Emergency Management irregularly publishes explanatory information on hazardous chemicals in the “emergency online” section of its website. Here are some of the Q&A released in August 2022. …
China
A key focus area in the comprehensive use of resources in China, bulk solid waste consists of seven different types[1]: coal gangue, fly ash, tailings, industrial by-product gypsum, slag, construction …
China
On July 27, 2022, China’s customs published Q&A on the customs declaration of hazardous chemicals on its official account of WeChat. Below are the details. Question Answer About determining if …
China
On Aug. 1, 2022, China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, National Development and Reform Commission and Ministry of Ecology and Environment announced a program to ensure carbon emissions peaking …
China
On July 28, 2022, China’s National Health Commission and State Administration for Market Regulation jointly issued 36 mandatory national standards for food safety along with revision tables for three standards. …
China
On April 15, 2022, China’s State Administration for Market Regulation released a recommended national standard called “Children’s Watches” (GB/T 41411-2022). It will come into effect on Nov. 1, 2022. The …
China
On July 19, 2022, China’s Ministry of Ecology and Environment issued new rules for labeling automated monitoring data of pollutant discharge. The rules aim to help establish a system to …
China
On July 28, 2022, China’s 13 central government agencies, including the Ministry of Commerce, announced a “Notice on Several Measures to Promote the Consumption of Green Smart Home Appliances,” which …
China
Waste Home Appliance Recovery: Accelerated Construction of a Recycling System and Implementation of Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) System The quality of life in China has consistently increased alongside rapid economic …
China
On July 11, 2022, the China Electronics Standardization Institute released a recommended national standard called the Specification of Green Supply Chain Management for Manufacturing Enterprises in Electronics Information Industry (GB/T …
China
On July 14, 2022, the China National Institute of Standardization released the second draft version of a national mandatory standard for server energy efficiency to seek public comments, which will …
China
On July 11, 2022, China’s State Administration for Market Regulation released a revised version of the recommended national standard “Packaging Recycling Marking” (GB/T 18455-2022), which will come into effect on …
China
On July 20,2022, the Ministry of Environment and Ecology of China released a “Notice on the public call for information of three persistent organic pollutants including Methoxychlor”, which are under …
China
On July 17, 2022, the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development and other three government departments of China announced a program to solve the issue of “black and smelly” water …
China
On July 1, 2022, China’s Ministry of Commerce released an industry standard called the Technical Requirements for End-of-Life Electric Vehicles Collecting and Dismantling to seek public comments. The standard includes …
China
On June 11, 2022, the Ministry of Ecology and Environment of China, the National Development and Reform Commission, the Ministry of Natural Resources, and the Ministry of Water Resources issued …
China
On July 5, 2022, China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology released draft measures to oversee industrial energy conservation to seek comments, which will be accepted through Aug. 5, 2022. …
China
On June 23, 2022, the Ministry of Ecology and Environment of China released the draft for opinions on “List of Solid Waste Classification”. The deadline for submitting opinions is July …
China
On June 23, 2022, the National Development and Reform Commission and other five government departments of China announced a comprehensive program to improve the water environment in the Lake Taihu …
China
On June 10, 2022, China’s Ministry of Emergency Management released experimental guidelines on the safety risk management of “hazardous chemical production construction projects”. A “hazardous chemical production construction project” refers …
China
On December 26, 2020, The China’s National People’s Congress published the Law of the People’s Republic of China on the Protection of the Yangtze River (the “Law”). The purpose of …
China
On June 30, 2022, China’s Ministry of Ecology and Environment, the department that processes new chemical registrations, published on its website FAQs on the registration of new chemical substances. This …
China
On July 20, 2022, China’s Ministry of Ecology and Environment announced on its website that it is seeking proposals for chemicals to be included in the First Plan for Prioritized …
China
On June 24, 2022, Zhuhai city, Guangdong province, China, published on its website a draft 2022 list of banned, restricted and controlled hazardous chemicals to seek public comments, which were …
China
On June 20, 2022, China’s Ministry of Ecology and Environment released a national ecology and environment standard called the Technical Guideline for Deriving Hazardous Waste Management Plans and Records (HJ …
China
On July 5, 2022, the Shanghai Municipal Bureau of Ecology and Environment announced a plan for 2022 to carry out compliance inspections of pollutant discharge permit holders across Shanghai, China’s …
China
On July 6, 2022, the Tianjin Ecology and Environment Bureau released a draft plan to develop a system to encourage the city’s whole community to reduce carbon emissions. Tianjin city …
China
On June 20, 2022, the Department of Housing and Urban-Rural Development of Jiangxi Province, China, announced a plan to address the issue of “black and smelly” water bodies in its …
China
On June 21, 2022, China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology and other five government departments announced an action plan to improve water use efficiency in the country. The action …
China
On June 23, 2022, China’s six government departments, including the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology and the National Development and Reform Commission, announced an action plan to improve energy …
China
On May 31, 2022, the China National Light Industry Council released a public notice of association standards called the “Technical Specification for Green-design Product Assessment — Compressors for Room Air …
China
To accelerate the reduction of VOC emissions and continuously improve the air quality, on June 5, 2022, the Department of Ecology and Environment of Guangdong Province, China, released 11 technical …
China
China is currently the world’s largest vehicle consuming market, and the amount of the production and sales and possessing of vehicles have long maintained the top position in the world. …
China
China is currently the world’s largest vehicle consuming market, and the amount of the production and sales and possessing of vehicles have long maintained the top position in the world. …
China
On June 20, 2022, the Beijing Municipal Ecology and Environment Bureau released draft experimental rules for carbon emissions assessment in the environmental impact assessment of construction projects to solicit public …
China
On June 1, 2022, the Department of Ecology and Environment of Guangdong province, China, and the Guangdong Administration for Market Regulation issued a set of mandatory local standards called the …
China
On June 1, 2022, the State Administration for Market Regulation of China announced key areas of enterprise standards “Top Runner” for FY2022. Key areas of this year have been further …
China
On June 20, 2022, Shanghai International Port Group, the operator of the Port of Shanghai, announced the enhancement of safety measures for containers of hazardous chemicals. More specifically, the port …
China
On June 1, 2022, the Beijing Municipal Ecology and Environment Bureau released the draft for comments on revision of the mandatory local standard, “Emission Standards of Air Pollutants for Printing …
China
On June 7, 2022, the Beijing Municipal Ecology and Environment Bureau released a draft for comments on revision of the mandatory local standard, “Emission Standard of Air Pollutants for Automotive …
China
On May 19, 2022, the Beijing Municipal Market Supervision and Administration Bureau released several drafts for comments on local standards, including the “Specifications for Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment Recycling” …
China
On June 6, 2022, China’s Ministry of Ecology and Environment released national ecological and environmental standards called “Chemical substances environmental management—Terminology for testing of chemical substances” (HJ 1257-2022), which came …
China
On May 25, 2022, the Tianjin Municipal People’s Government released the 2022 Pollution Prevention and Control Plan. In the Plan, environmental targets for 2025 and 2035 are set out respectively. …
China
On June 16, 2022, China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology released a draft (pending approval) of mandatory national standards called Limits of Hazardous Substances for Musical Instruments to solicit …
China
On June 7, 2022, China’s Ministry of Ecology and Environment issued a Circular on Advancing the Digital Transformation of Hazardous Waste Management. The circular aims to ensure that the Solid …
China
On June 1, 2022, China’s State Administration for Market Regulation issued on its website implementation rules for spot checks of 15 types of products, including toys, hazardous chemical packaging, electric …
China
On May 30, 2022, China’s Ministry of Finance released its “opinions” on financial support for peaking carbon emissions and achieving carbon neutrality. The opinions set some objectives (e.g., to establish …
China
On May 27, 2022, the Standing Committee of the Zhejiang Provincial People’s Congress issued Provincial Regulations on Environmental Protection, which comes into effect on Aug. 1, 2022. The Regulations of …
China
On May 31, 2022, China’s Ministry of Ecology and Environment issued a National Ecological and Environmental Standard on Technical Specification for Pollution Control of Plastic Waste (HJ 364-2022), which came …
China
According to a report published by the Department of Ecology and Environment of Jiangsu province, China on June 10, 2022, it has launched a thorough inspection of pollution outlets into …
China
On May 31, 2022, the Ministry of Water Resources and the National Development and Reform Commission of China announced a notice for the implementation of the selection work for the …
China
China’s Shanghai Maritime Safety Administration has introduced a whitelist of goods that are not considered dangerous goods banned for transportation under the Yangtze River Protection Law. The Yangtze River Protection …
China (571)
*Hong Kong (8)
*Taiwan (120)
Japan (28)
South Korea (111)
Brunei (5)
Cambodia (2)
Indonesia (67)
Laos (12)
Malaysia (54)
Myanmar (4)
Philippines (79)
Singapore (72)
Thailand (133)
Vietnam (179)
Oman (2)
Saudi Arabia (5)
Australia (19)
New Zealand (10)
Global (14)
