Environmental Protection Law of the People's Republic of China (2014 Revision)

(Dec. 26, 1989 Adopted at the Eleventh Meeting of the Standing Committee of the Seventh National People's Congress on April 24, 2014 Revised by the 8th meeting of the Standing Committee of the Twelfth National People's Congress April 24, 2014 China Order of the People's Republic of China No. 9 Announcement Effective from January 1, 2015)

table of Contents

Chapter I General Provisions

Chapter II Supervision and Management

Chapter III protect and improve the environment

Chapter IV Prevention and Control of Pollution and Other Public Hazards

Chapter V Information Disclosure and Public Participation

Chapter VI Legal Liability

Chapter VII Supplementary Provisions

Chapter I General Provisions

Article 1 This Law is enacted for the purpose of protecting and improving the environment, preventing pollution and other public hazards, safeguarding public health, promoting the construction of ecological civilization and promoting the sustainable economic and social development.

Article 2 The term "environment" as mentioned in this Law refers to the totality of natural and man-made natural factors that affect the survival and development of mankind, including the atmosphere, water, oceans, land, mineral resources, forests, grasslands, wetlands, wildlife , Natural sites, cultural relics, nature reserves, scenic spots, cities and villages.

Article 3 This law shall apply to the areas of the People's Republic of China and other seas under the jurisdiction of the People's Republic of China.

Article 4 The protection of the environment is the country's basic national policy.

The state adopts economic and technical policies and measures that are conducive to conserving and recycling resources, protecting and improving the environment, and promoting harmony between man and nature, so as to coordinate economic and social development with environmental protection.

Article 5 Environmental protection Adhere to the principle of giving priority to protection, giving priority to prevention, comprehensive management, public participation and responsibility for damage.

Article 6 All units and individuals have the obligation to protect the environment.

Local people's governments at various levels shall be responsible for the environmental quality of their administrative areas.

Enterprises and institutions and other production and business operators shall prevent and reduce environmental pollution and ecological damage, and shall be responsible for the damage caused according to law.

Citizens should enhance their awareness of environmental protection and take a low-carbon and thrifty way of life to voluntarily fulfill their environmental protection obligations.

Article 7 The state supports research, development and application of scientific and technological research on environmental protection, encourages the development of the environmental protection industry, promotes the construction of environmental protection information and improves the scientific and technological level of environmental protection.

Article 8 People's governments at all levels shall increase their financial input in protecting and improving the environment, preventing and controlling pollution and other public hazards so as to enhance the efficiency of the use of financial funds.

Article 9 People's governments at all levels shall step up publicity and popularization of environmental protection and encourage grass-roots mass self-governing organizations, social organizations and volunteers in environmental protection to carry out propaganda on laws, regulations and environmental protection knowledge on environmental protection and create a good atmosphere for environmental protection.

Education administrative departments and schools should incorporate environmental protection knowledge into school education and cultivate students' awareness of environmental protection.

The news media shall publicize the laws and regulations on environmental protection and knowledge on environmental protection and conduct public opinion supervision on environmental violations.

Article 10 The competent department of environmental protection under the State Council shall exercise unified supervision and administration of environmental protection throughout the country and the competent department of environmental protection of the local people's government at or above the county level shall exercise unified supervision and administration over the environmental protection in its own administrative area.

Relevant departments of the people's government at or above the county level and the military environmental protection departments shall supervise and administer environmental protection work such as resource protection and pollution prevention and control in accordance with the provisions of relevant laws.

Article 11 Units and individuals that have made outstanding achievements in protecting and improving the environment shall be rewarded by the people's government.

Article 12 June 5 each year as the Environmental Day.


Chapter II Supervision and Management

Article 13 The people's government at or above the county level shall incorporate environmental protection into the plans for national economy and social development.

The competent department of environmental protection under the State Council, in conjunction with relevant departments, formulates the national plan for environmental protection in accordance with the plan for national economic and social development, and submits the plan to the State Council for approval and promulgation and implementation.

The competent department of environmental protection of the local people's government at or above the county level, together with relevant departments, formulates the environmental protection plan for its own administrative area in accordance with the requirements of the state environmental protection plan, and submits the plan to the people's government at the same level for approval and promulgation and implementation.

The contents of the environmental protection plan shall include the objectives, tasks and safeguards of ecological protection and pollution prevention and control, and shall be linked with the main functional area planning, the overall land use planning and urban-rural planning.

Article 14 The relevant departments of the State Council and the people's governments of provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities directly under the Central Government organize the formulation of economic and technical policies that fully consider the impact on the environment and listen to the opinions of relevant parties and experts.

Article 15 The environmental protection department under the State Council shall formulate the national environmental quality standards.

People's governments of provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities directly under the Central Government may formulate local environmental quality standards for items that are not specified in the national environmental quality standards. For those items that have been stipulated in national environmental quality standards, local environmental quality standards that are stricter than the national environmental quality standards standard. Local environmental quality standards shall be submitted to the competent department of environmental protection under the State Council for the record.

The state encourages environmental benchmarking research.

Article 16 The department of environmental protection under the State Council shall, in accordance with the national environmental quality standards and the national economic and technological conditions, formulate the national pollutant discharge standards.

People's governments of provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities directly under the Central Government may formulate local pollutant emission standards for items that are not specified in the national pollutant discharge standards; for items that have been stipulated in the national pollutant discharge standards, they may formulate standards that are more stringent than the national pollutant discharge standards Local pollutant discharge standards. Local pollutant discharge standards shall be submitted to the environmental protection department under the State Council for the record.

Article 17 The state establishes and perfects the environmental monitoring system. The competent department of environmental protection under the State Council shall formulate monitoring norms, organize monitoring networks in conjunction with relevant departments, unify the planning of national environmental quality monitoring stations (points), establish monitoring data sharing mechanisms and strengthen the management of environmental monitoring.

The setting of various environmental quality monitoring stations (points) in relevant industries and professions shall comply with the requirements of laws and regulations and monitoring norms.

Monitoring agencies should use monitoring equipment in line with national standards, to comply with monitoring norms. The monitoring organization and its responsible person are responsible for the authenticity and accuracy of the monitoring data.

Article 18 The people's government at or above the provincial level shall organize relevant departments or commission professional institutions to conduct investigations and appraisals of the state of the environment and set up a monitoring and early warning mechanism for the carrying capacity of environmental resources.

Article 19 When compiling plans for development and utilization and building projects that have an impact on the environment, environmental impact assessment shall be conducted in accordance with the law.

No plans for the development and utilization of environmental impact assessment in accordance with the law shall not be organized for implementation; construction projects that fail to carry out environmental impact assessment in accordance with the law shall not start construction.

 Article 20 The state shall establish a key area for cross-administration areas, a coordinated prevention and control mechanism for environmental pollution and ecological damage in the river basin, implement unified planning, uniform standards, unified monitoring and unified prevention and control measures.

The prevention and control of environmental pollution and ecological damage in inter-administrative regions other than those prescribed in the preceding paragraph shall be coordinated and solved by the people's government at the higher level or may be settled through consultation by the relevant local people's government.

Article 21 The State adopts policies and measures in areas such as finance, taxation, pricing and government procurement, and encourages and supports the development of environmental protection industries such as environmental protection technology and equipment, comprehensive utilization of resources and environmental services.

Article 22 Enterprises and institutions and other production and operation operators, on the basis that pollutant discharges meet the statutory requirements, further reduce pollutant emissions, the people's government shall adopt policies on fiscal, taxation, price and government procurement in accordance with the law and Measures to be encouraged and supported.

Article 23 Enterprises and institutions and other production and operation operators who, in order to improve their environment and convert, relocate or shut down in accordance with the relevant provisions, should be supported by the people's government.

Article 24 The competent department of environmental protection under the people's government at or above the county level and the entrusted environmental supervision agencies and other departments that have the responsibility of supervision and administration of environmental protection shall have the right to conduct on-site inspection of enterprises and institutions that discharge pollutants and other production and business operators an examination. The person under inspection shall truthfully report the situation and provide the necessary information. The departments, agencies and their staffs that conduct the on-the-spot inspection shall keep the trade secrets for the subjects under inspection.

Article 25 Enterprises, institutions and other production and business operators that discharge pollutants in violation of laws and regulations and cause or may cause serious pollution, the environmental protection department of the people's government at or above the county level and other departments with environmental supervision and management responsibilities, Can sequestration, seizure of pollutants caused by the discharge of facilities, equipment.

Article 26 The state shall implement the responsibility system for environmental protection and the assessment and evaluation system. The people's government at or above the county level shall incorporate the completion of environmental protection goals into the examination contents of the departments and their responsible persons and the people's governments at lower levels and their responsible persons who are responsible for the supervision and administration of environmental protection at the same level as the important basis for their assessment and appraisal . Assessment results should be open to the public.

Article 27 The people's government at or above the county level shall report to the people's congress or the Standing Committee of the People's Congress on the accomplishment of the state of the environment and the objectives of environmental protection on an annual basis and shall promptly report to the Standing Committee of the people's congress Report, according to the law to be supervised.


Chapter III protect and improve the environment

Article 28 Local people's governments at various levels shall take effective measures to improve the quality of the environment according to the objectives and tasks of environmental protection.

The key localities that fail to meet the national environmental quality standards and the relevant local people's governments in the basin shall formulate deadline-based planning and take measures to meet the standards on schedule.

Article 29 The state formulates the red line of ecological protection in key ecological function areas, ecologically sensitive areas and vulnerable areas and other areas and imposes strict protection.

The people's governments at various levels shall conduct a survey on the representative types of natural ecosystems, the rare and endangered natural distribution areas of wild animals and plants, important water conservation areas, geological structures of great scientific and cultural value, famous caves and fossil distribution areas , Glaciers, volcanoes, hot springs and other natural relics, as well as cultural relics and ancient and famous trees, measures should be taken to protect them, and destruction is strictly prohibited.

Article 30 The development and utilization of natural resources shall rationally develop and conserve biological diversity and ensure ecological security, formulate and implement ecological protection and rehabilitation programs in accordance with the law.

Introducing alien species and research, development and utilization of biotechnology, measures should be taken to prevent the destruction of biological diversity.

Article 31 The state establishes and improves the ecological protection and compensation system.

The state has increased its efforts to transfer financial payments to areas where ecological protection is taking place. The local people's government concerned shall implement the funds for ecological protection compensation and ensure that it is used for compensation for ecological protection.

The state-guided benefit areas and the people's governments of the ecological protection areas shall make ecological protection compensation through consultation or according to market rules.

Article 32 The state shall strengthen the protection of the atmosphere, water and soil and establish and perfect the systems of investigation, monitoring, assessment and restoration.

Article 33 The people's governments at all levels shall strengthen the protection of the agricultural environment, promote the use of new technologies for the protection of agricultural environment, strengthen the monitoring and early warning of agricultural pollution sources, coordinate relevant departments to take measures to prevent and control soil pollution and land desertification and salinization , Barrenization, rocky desertification, land subsidence and the prevention and control of vegetation destruction, soil erosion, eutrophication of water bodies, depletion of water sources and extinction of provenances and so on, so as to promote the comprehensive prevention and control of plant pests and diseases.

The people's government at the county level and township level shall raise the public service level of rural environmental protection and promote the comprehensive improvement of rural environment.

Article 34 The State Council and people's governments at all levels along coastal areas shall strengthen the protection of the marine environment. Discharge of pollutants into the oceans, dumping of wastes, construction of coastal projects and marine engineering projects shall comply with laws and regulations and relevant standards to prevent and reduce pollution damage to the marine environment.

Article 35 Urban and rural areas shall, in accordance with the characteristics of the local natural environment, protect the vegetation, water areas and natural landscapes and strengthen the construction and management of urban gardens, green spaces and scenic spots.

Article 36 The state encourages and guides citizens, legal persons and other organizations to use products and products that are good for the protection of the environment and reduce the generation of wastes.

State organs and other organizations that use financial funds should give priority to procurement and use of products, equipment and facilities that are conducive to the protection of the environment, such as energy conservation, water conservation and material saving.

Article 37 Local people's governments at various levels shall take measures to organize the classification, disposal and recycling of domestic waste.

Article 38 Citizens shall abide by the laws and regulations on environmental protection and cooperate with the implementation of environmental protection measures to classify domestic waste in accordance with the provisions so as to reduce the damage to the environment caused by daily life.

Article 39 The state establishes and perfects environmental, health monitoring, investigation and risk assessment systems. It encourages and organizes research on the impact of environmental quality on public health and takes measures to prevent and control environmental pollution-related diseases.


Chapter IV Prevention and Control of Pollution and Other Public Hazards

Article 40 The state promotes cleaner production and recycling of resources.

Relevant departments of the State Council and local people's governments at various levels shall take measures to promote the production and use of clean energy.

Enterprises should give priority to the use of clean energy and adopt technologies, equipment, technologies for comprehensive utilization of waste and harmless treatment technologies for pollutants to reduce the generation of pollutants by adopting high resource utilization rates and less pollutant emissions.

Article 41 Facilities for pollution prevention and control in construction projects shall be designed, constructed and put into operation simultaneously with the main project. The pollution prevention and control facilities shall meet the requirements of the approved environmental impact assessment documents and shall not be dismantled or left unused.

Article 42 Enterprises and institutions that discharge pollutants and other production and business operators shall take measures to prevent and control waste gas, waste water, waste residue, medical waste, dust, malodorous gases, radioactive substances and noise generated during the production and construction or other activities , Vibration, light radiation, electromagnetic radiation and other environmental pollution and hazards.

Enterprises and public institutions that discharge pollutants shall establish a responsibility system for environmental protection and clarify the responsibilities of the person-in-charge and relevant personnel of the unit.

The key pollutant discharge units shall install and use monitoring equipment in accordance with relevant state regulations and monitoring norms, ensure the normal operation of monitoring equipment and preserve the original monitoring records.

It is forbidden to discharge pollutants illegally by means of underground pipes, seepage wells, seepage pits, perfusion or tampering, falsifying monitoring data, or preventing pollution facilities from operating normally.

Article 43 Enterprises and institutions that discharge pollutants and other producers and operators shall pay sewage charges in accordance with the relevant provisions of the state. All sewage charges shall be specially used for the prevention and control of environmental pollution and no unit or individual may retain, squeeze or divert other charges for other purposes.

In accordance with the law levying environmental protection tax, sewage charges will not be levied.

Article 44 The state shall implement the system for controlling the total discharge of key pollutants. The key pollutant emission control indicators issued by the State Council, the provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities directly under the central government decomposition of the implementation. While implementing the national and local pollutant discharge standards, enterprises and institutions shall abide by the control targets for the total discharge of major pollutants that are decomposed and implemented into their own units.

For those areas that exceed the control targets of the total discharge amount of key national pollutants or the environmental quality targets that have not been completed by the state, the environmental protection department of the people's government at or above the provincial level shall suspend the examination and approval of the environmental impact assessment of the construction projects that add up to the total amount of key pollutant discharges file.

Article 45 The state shall implement the permit system for sewage disposal in accordance with the law.

Enterprises and institutions that carry out discharge permit management and other production and business operators shall discharge pollutants in accordance with the requirements of the pollutant discharge permit and may not discharge pollutants without obtaining a pollutant discharge permit.

Article 46 The state shall implement a system of elimination of the processes, equipment and products that seriously pollute the environment. No unit or individual may manufacture, sell or transfer any process, equipment or product that is seriously polluting the environment.

Prohibit the introduction of technology, equipment, materials and products that do not meet the requirements of China's environmental protection.