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Tough chemical industry rules
Source: Xinhua |
September 16, 2011, Friday
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
CHINA will limit the construction of chemical plants and launch a nationwide inspection on chemical producers, a senior environment official said yesterday.
The Ministry of Environmental Protection, which is responsible for assessing the environmental impact of industrial projects, will not accept applications for new projects related to the production and storage of dangerous chemicals outside industrial parks, said Zhang Lijun, vice minister of environmental protection, at a meeting held in Beijing.
Under Chinese Law, without an environmental impact assessment report, a factory cannot be built.
Zhang did not say when the ministry will accept applications again but admitted that the country faced worsening chemical pollution.
The number of chemical plants has increased too quickly, their pollution control measures have lagged behind and they have not always carried out proper supervision, he said.
The country will raise the environmental standards for plants and increase penalties on factory owners who break the law, he said.
The ministry will hand out tougher punishments where plants are built without environmental approval and where factories begin operations without pollution control measures being examined.
In wake of several serious chemical pollution incidents, the ministry will inspect all certificated producers of dangerous chemicals, to check their pollution control measures.
These will be concluded by the end of this year, Zhang said.
A serious pollution incident occurred in Qujing City of southwest China's Yunnan Province in late August.
A local chemical factory was found to have illegally dumped more than 5,000 tons of chromium-contaminated waste near a reservoir and on hills between April and June.
Chemical plants, which were found to have problems with pollution control, would be ordered to improve and be shut down if they failed to do so, Zhang said.
Harsher penalties will be imposed on those illegally dumping polluted chemicals, he added.
The Ministry of Environmental Protection, which is responsible for assessing the environmental impact of industrial projects, will not accept applications for new projects related to the production and storage of dangerous chemicals outside industrial parks, said Zhang Lijun, vice minister of environmental protection, at a meeting held in Beijing.
Under Chinese Law, without an environmental impact assessment report, a factory cannot be built.
Zhang did not say when the ministry will accept applications again but admitted that the country faced worsening chemical pollution.
The number of chemical plants has increased too quickly, their pollution control measures have lagged behind and they have not always carried out proper supervision, he said.
The country will raise the environmental standards for plants and increase penalties on factory owners who break the law, he said.
The ministry will hand out tougher punishments where plants are built without environmental approval and where factories begin operations without pollution control measures being examined.
In wake of several serious chemical pollution incidents, the ministry will inspect all certificated producers of dangerous chemicals, to check their pollution control measures.
These will be concluded by the end of this year, Zhang said.
A serious pollution incident occurred in Qujing City of southwest China's Yunnan Province in late August.
A local chemical factory was found to have illegally dumped more than 5,000 tons of chromium-contaminated waste near a reservoir and on hills between April and June.
Chemical plants, which were found to have problems with pollution control, would be ordered to improve and be shut down if they failed to do so, Zhang said.
Harsher penalties will be imposed on those illegally dumping polluted chemicals, he added.
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