China fully revises Measures on Pollutant Discharge Permits 
On April 1, 2024, the Ministry of Ecology and Environment promulgated the revised version of the Measures on Pollutant Discharge Permits. The revised Measures will come into effect on July 1, 2024, and at the same time, the old version of the Measures on Pollutant Discharge Permits (Trial) will be abolished.
In the revised Measures, the relevant articles have been revised in line with the provisions of the Pollutant Discharge Permit Management Ordinance, the superordinate law promulgated in 2021, and provisions missing in the current Measures, such as those related to “registered pollutant discharging entities”, have been added. Regarding pollutant discharging entities, revisions mainly include the addition of registration management to the classification management, the addition of documents to be submitted when applying for pollutant discharge permits, the strengthening of requirements for preserving relevant information, and the clarification of emission information to be disclosed. The specific details of these revisions are shown in the following comparison table.
Comparison Table
| Main revisions | Provisions in current Measures | Provisions in revised Measures |
|---|---|---|
| Addition of registration management to the classification management | Article 5 Pollutant discharging entities that generate or discharge regulated pollutants or cause high environmental damage shall be subject to key control of pollutant discharge permits, while other pollutant discharging entities shall be subject to simplified control of discharge permits.
The specific scope of the entities subject to key control and simplified control of pollutant discharging shall be decided in accordance with the regulations of the classification and control list of pollutant discharge permits for fixed pollution sources. The implementation details and requirements of the key control and expedited control shall be implemented in accordance with the technical norms and guidelines for pollutant discharge permits as stipulated in Article 11 of this Law. |
Article 4 Based on factors such as the amount of pollutant discharged, the amount of emissions, and the degree of impact on the environment, enterprises, institutions, and other manufacturers and operators shall be subject to key management, simplified management, and registration management.
The specific scope of pollutant discharge entities that implement key management and simplified management of pollutant discharge permits shall be implemented in accordance with the provisions of the classified management list of pollutant discharge permits for fixed pollution sources. The specific scope of entities implement pollutant discharge registration management shall be formulated and announced by the ecological environment department of the State Council. |
| Addition of documents to be submitted when applying for pollutant discharge permits | Article 26
(None as the contents has been deleted) |
Article 18 Pollutant discharge entities shall submit corresponding documents in accordance with the provisions of Articles 7 and 8 of the Measures and may provide supplementary explanations to the application materials and submit them to the approval department together.
When a pollutant discharging entities applies for a permitted discharge amount, it shall also submit the calculation process for the discharge limit value. If the total emission control indicators of key pollutants are obtained through emission rights trading, supporting materials for the emission rights trading indicators must also be submitted. Pollutant discharging entities that have built pollutant discharge outlets should submit a statement on the standardization of the discharge outlets. |
| Strengthening of requirements for preserving relevant information | Article 34 Pollutant discharge entities shall, in accordance with the provisions of the pollutant discharge permit, install or use monitoring equipment that complies with the relevant national environmental monitoring and measurement certification regulations, maintain monitoring facilities in accordance with regulations, conduct self-monitoring, and preserve original monitoring records. | Article 34 Pollutant discharge entities shall carry out self-monitoring and keep original monitoring records in accordance with the provisions of the pollutant discharge permits and relevant standards and specifications. The original monitoring records shall be preserved for not less than five years.
Pollutant discharge entities are responsible for the authenticity and accuracy of self-monitoring data and may not tamper with or forge it. |
| Article 35 Pollutant discharge entities shall, in accordance with the requirements for ledger records in the pollutant discharge permit, record according to the characteristics of production and pollutant discharge characteristics, and according to the discharge outlets or unorganized emission sources.
The ledger records shall be preserved for not less than three years. |
Article 36 Pollutant discharge entities shall record environmental management ledger in accordance with the format, content and frequency requirements specified in the pollutant discharge permits. The ledger records shall be preserved for not less than five years. | |
| Clarification of emission information to be disclosed | (None) | Article 38 Pollutant discharge entities shall truthfully disclose pollutant discharge information on the national pollutant discharge permit management information platform in accordance with the provisions of the pollutant discharge permit.
Pollutant discharge information should include pollutant discharge types, discharge concentration and discharge volume, as well as the construction and operation of pollution prevention and control facilities, pollutant discharge permit execution reports, self-monitoring data, etc.; if water pollutants are discharged into the municipal drainage pipe network, it should also including information such as the location of sewage access to the municipal drainage pipe network, discharge method and other information. |
Note:
- The crossed-out parts are the parts that have been deleted due to the revision.
- The underlined parts are the revised parts.
- The parts in red are the newly added parts.
The original text of the revised version and current version of the Measures on Pollutant Discharge Permits are available at the following URL.
- Revised version: Measures on Pollutant Discharge Permits(排污许可管理办法)
https://www.mee.gov.cn/xxgk2018/xxgk/xxgk02/202404/t20240408_1070139.html - Current version: Measures on Pollutant Discharge Permits(Trial) (排污许可管理办法（试行）)
https://www.mee.gov.cn/gkml/hbb/bl/201801/t20180117_429828.htm
