China Air Pollution Problem Analysis

1.   Introduction : air pollution  

Due to rapid urbanization and industrialization, a large number of Chinese cities are affected by heavy air pollution. PM2.5 ^[1]as a broadly received indicator of air pollution shows the huge challenge that the Chinese government faces. Average PM2.5 concentrations of 334 prefecturelevel cities is 47 ㎍/㎥ exceeding the limit of Chinese government(35 ㎍/㎥) and that of WHO(10 ㎍/㎥). Average PM2.5 concentrations of 74 main cities is 50 ㎍/㎥, which sees remarkable decrease of 31% comparing with year of 2013, however it is still far behind the WHO standard of 10 ㎍/㎥. Beijing showed 73 ㎍/㎥ of PM2.5 concentrations in 2016, 18% lower than in 2013, but still 7 times higher than WHO standard. The target of Beijing in 2017 was 60 ㎍/㎥ which is 6 times more severe than WHO standard.  

  Policy direction and legal system  

1. 1) Environmental policy direction  

China's environmental regulations are being pushed into effect under the new Environmental Protection Act which is being enforced as of January 2015, and have been strengthening throughout the country since the National People's Congress in 2017. In particular, prime minister Li Keqiang, who declared “Defence of the blue sky(蓝天保卫战)”, promised to solve coal pollution problems comprehensively, implement online monitoring for 24 hours, control the automobile emissions, enhance the strict environmental laws, and take measures to the lax law enforcement of government officials in order to decrease PM2.5 concentrations significantly.  < Environmental policy direction >  

1. 2) Legal system for environmental protection  

Environmental protection law is the basic environmental protection law. The Environmental impact assessment law, Environmental protection tax law, and Air pollution prevention and control law are based on this basic law. As administrative plans and standards, there are Emission standard of air pollutants for industries, National 10 measures for atmosphere, and Performance assessment measures for air pollution prevention and control action plan.  Environmental protection law is rated as the strictest environmental protection law. Clauses have increased from 47 in 1989 to 70 in 2015, and the level of punishment has also drastically enhanced in order to improve the problem of minor penalties for lawbreaking. During the course of the violation, the fine is settled on the daily basis and the cap of fine is abolished. The environmental protection assessment organization, the inspection agency, and other environmental protection agencies should collectively take responsibility. This law also empowered the Ministry of environmental protection to impose sanctions on those involved in the restriction and suspension of production, compulsory execution such as foreclosures.  3) Relation between the Central and Local : Vertical management  

Regarding environmental affairs, the central government strongly controls the provincial government through the inspection system or else, and the city and county level government directly receives the direct supervision of the provincial government. This is to exclude the influence of the development department in local government or of the Party. In the past, economic performance was stressed in the evaluation of the performance of the party leaders and governors. A strong vertical management system will be introduced by 2018 to address the problems that local governments are prioritizing economic growth and development policies and neglecting environmental protection.

  Main policy measures    

1. 1) National 10 measures for atmosphere(大气十条)  

Chinese government announced the Air pollution prevention and control action plan in 2013 on the basis of the National 10 measures for atmosphere. Key contents of this plan are to set the targets for air pollution reduction. In 2014 the Ministry of environmental protection has signed with 31 provinces on ‘Air pollution prevention goal’. Main targets are as follows : to decrease the PM10 concentrations of main cities in 2017 to 10% less than that of 2012,  to decrease the PM2.5 concentrations of Beijing, Tianjin and Hebei(京津冀, BTH) by 25%,  and to keep the annual average of PM2.5 concentrations in Beijing under 60 ㎍/㎥. In 2013, the central government established a fund specialized in air pollution prevention management. It has invested 365 billion RMB to help reduce the air pollution in major areas like BTH, Yangtze River Delta(长三角), and  Zhujiang Delta(珠三角).  

1. 2) Pollution emission permit system  

Environmental regulations in China is focusing on Volatile Organic Compounds(VOCs) which is producing ozone (O3) and particulate matter (PM2.5). In the future, it is planned that the emission permit system will be fully implemented after clearly clarifying the technical norms and supervisory management requirements related to this VOCs emission permit. According to the time table for full implementation, pollution emission permit system will apply to the petrochemical industry of BTH, Yangtze River Delta and  Zhujiang Delta by the end of 2017, to the manufacturing industry of pharmaceuticals and pesticide by the end of 2018, and to the electronics, packaging and auto manufacturing by the end of 2020.  

1. 3) Environment inspection

The Ministry of Environment protection directly sends inspectors to each province(省) to inspect environmental issues. This inspection is intended to increase the executive power of the central government to the local government. After the first inspection on Hebei province as demonstration case, the whole 31 provinces had been inspected in 2016 and 2017. As of August 2017, the central inspectors charged the industry with a 1.3 billion RMB fines in sum, arrested about 1,500 people, and punished about 17,000 local government officials. The results of the inspection on the officials are reflected not only in punishment but also in personnel evaluation. As a result of strong central government crackdowns, increasing number of companies has been punished. During a year of 2016, penalties for violating the environmental laws exceeded 800 million RMB, factory closure about 10,000 cases, and suspension of business about 5,600 cases.