“Environmental Protection Law” (Amendment) was issued on April 24, 2014, and will come into force on January 1, 2015

After a lapse of 25 years, “Environmental Protection Law” (Amendment) (“New Law”) was finally enacted, as the basic and comprehensive law on the environmental protection, New Law has made huge changes. Overall changes include applying more requirements on the environment supervisor—-the government; strengthen the requirements and punishment on the environment protectors—-entities and individuals. As for the production-oriented enterprises, the following aspects shall be noted:

New environmental economic incentives. Article 21, 22 and 23 of New Law stipulate that the government to take fiscal, taxation, pricing, and other aspects of government procurement policies and measures to encourage enterprises to use environmental protection technology and equipment, resource utilization, reduce pollutant emissions, in accordance with the relevant provisions of the conversion, relocation, closing so do the clearly defined.

Environmental protection responsibility system shall be established. Chapter 4 of New Law stipulates that the entities shall establish the environmental emergency response plan, the regulations on the responsibilities of manager and related individuals; the key pollutant discharging units shall install monitor equipments, maintain the operation of equipments, record the original monitor data and etc. in accordance with the national provisions and regulations on monitor.

To strengthen the punishment, add punishment circumstances, and set no cap for fine. For example, Article 59 of New Law stipulates that the new penalty system calls on local environmental protection bureaus to issue corrective orders and fines to violators and, beginning the day after the corrective order is issued, collect a fine for each day the violation continues, based on the original penalty amount.