The PRC Environmental Protection Law (中华人民共和国环境保护法) entered into force on December 26 1989. With a great number of serious environmental and ecological crises sharpening their focus in China, making amendments to the Environmental Protection Law has become an imminent priority. The amendments have been passed on April 24 2014 and shall enter into force on January 1 2015.

The amendments to the Environmental Protection Law have various impacts on enterprises and businesses. Firstly, they strengthen the penalties of environmental violation, for example, enterprises or institutions illegally discharging pollutants shall be fined and ordered to make corrections within a certain time period; the sanctioning administrative authority has the power to impose daily consecutive fines starting from the original penalty amount – a sanction more severe than previously, where a one-time penalty was given for one illegal act – if corrections are not made. Secondly, they impose stricter requirements for environmental management and information disclosure. For instance, key polluting entities are required to install and use monitoring equipment according to state regulations and implement monitoring standards so as to check discharged pollutants and keep original monitoring records. Environmental protection administration departments shall, aside from matters involving state or commercial secrets, publish a statement on all environmental impacts of a construction project upon receipt.

The amendments also propose that, in developing the role of the public in environmental protection, the legal qualification for public interest litigation (which has been controversial) is expected to be extended to social environmental protection organisations that have registered in the civil affairs department of cities divided into districts or above. This enables a wider range of participants to take an active role in advocating and enforcing pro-environmental policies.

Governmental enforcement in environment problems has been increasingly condemned as slack, and the amendments to the Environmental Protection Law call for the improved performance of law enforcement by the government. But the capacity of environmental law enforcement and the effort of the Chinese government are gradually improving.

Apart from the Environmental Protection Law, amendments to the PRC Law on the Prevention and Treatment of Air Pollution (中华人民共和国大气污染防治法) (Air Pollution Law) and the PRC Law on the Prevention and Treatment of Water Pollution (中华人民共和国水污染防治法) (Water Pollution Law) are being planned and the PRC Law on the Prevention and Treatment of Soil Pollution （中华人民共和国土壤污染防治法） is being legislated. Businesses should pay attention to these legislations and stay in line with the increasingly strict environmental standards.

Air, water and soil

As haze has been a frequent and serious problem since early 2013, state governors have attached great importance to the amendment of the Air Pollution Law. According to the State Council's Legislation Plan of 2013 （国务院2013年立法工作计划) published on May 27 2013 by the General Office of the State Council, the Air Pollution Law amendments should have been completed by the end of 2013. It is known that the first draft of its amendments have already been finished and submitted to the State Council.

Water purity and quality continue to deteriorate in China. Safety accidents regarding drinking water happen frequently, and they are seen to be connected with with the low cost of illegal activities and weak enforcement of environmental law. Revising the Water Pollution Law has been listed in the prep program of legislation work for 2013 as well as in the plan of the Twelfth Session of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress, and shall be submitted to the State Council for review. The Ministry of Environmental Protection (MEP) has begun research for amending the Water Pollution Law, which includes post-evaluation, analysing enforcement results and current problems and carrying out the resolutions. All of these efforts are indicative of the official launch of the Water Pollution Law.

On April 17 2014, the MEP and the Ministry of Land and Resources published an Announcement on the Investigation of the Soil Pollution Condition Nationwide （全国土壤污染状况调查公报）. According to the investigation, 16.1% of the point positions of soil in China are above standard rating. The general soil environmental status in China is far from adequate, as soil pollution in many parts is even worse, cultivated soil quality is worrisome and the mining and industrial wasteland soil environment problem can no longer be ignored. The MEP is expected to make every effort in ensuring soil pollution control this year by formulating and implementing the Action Plan for the Environmental Protection of Soil and the Prevention and Treatment of the Pollution Thereof (土壤环境保护和污染治理行动计划）.

In addition to the renewal of environmental legislation, the Chinese government is now stepping up in the establishment of the Environmental Protection Standards on Total Amounts （环境总量标准）, Environmental Protection Standards on Waste Discharge （环境排放标准） and other standards for environmental protection. China will probably set the world's most severe pollutant emission standards in consideration of its population density and economic development.


Guoqiang Chen, Sunshine Law Firm, Shanghai


More from CLP:
Measures for Assessment of the Environmental Credit of Enterprises (Trial Implementation)
Guidelines for the Disclosure of Government Information in Connection with the Environmental Impact Assessments of Construction Projects