Source: People's Daily Overseas Edition
On March 11, at the zero-carbon factory in Fengcheng City, Jiangxi Province, Faurecia Clarion Electronics (Fengcheng) Co., Ltd., staff rushed to produce automotive electronic products in the production workshop. Photo by Zhou Liang (People's Pictures)
On March 19, at the Haisi Joint Station of Shengli Oilfield in Dongying City, Shandong Province, employees maintained the hydraulic safety valve and mechanical breathing valve on the top of the oil storage tank to avoid air pollution caused by methane and other gases. Shengli Oilfield has implemented special rectification measures for ecological and environmental protection in the Yellow River Basin with high standards, carried out the establishment of "waste-free oilfields" and green factories, and realized the green and clean production of the whole process of oil exploitation, pipeline transportation and storage. Photo by Wang Guozhang (People's Pictures)
On March 21, in Qingdao Hongde Primary School in Shandong Province, the instructor of the sewage treatment plant instructed the students to do experiments to cultivate the children's environmental awareness of water conservation. Photo by Zhang Ying (Xinhua News Agency)
On March 15, researchers did liquid dye synthesis experiments at the Zhejiang Modern Textile Technology Innovation Center (Jianhu Laboratory) in Keqiao District, Shaoxing City. In recent years, the local introduction of green and environmentally friendly new equipment and advanced technology has promoted the transformation and upgrading of the textile printing and dyeing industry to low pollution, high technology and high added value. Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Weng Xinyang
From 2022 onwards, the treatment of new pollutants has been written into the work report of the mainland government for three consecutive years.
With the deepening of the construction of a beautiful China, the ecological and environmental protection work in the mainland is developing from the treatment of sensory indicators such as "haze" and "black odor" to the stage of treatment of new pollutants with long-term and hidden hazards.
The "hard bones" that must be gnawed
What is a new contaminant?
At present, the new pollutants of widespread concern at home and abroad mainly include persistent organic pollutants, endocrine disruptors, antibiotics, etc., which are controlled by international conventions. The production and use of toxic and harmful chemicals is a major source of new pollutants.
New pollutants are called "new" because they are relative to conventional pollutants such as sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, and PM2.5, and because there are many types of new pollutants, and the number of new pollutants that can be identified will continue to increase. There are currently more than 20 new categories of pollutants of global concern, each of which contains dozens or hundreds of chemicals.
Jiang Guibin, academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and dean of the School of Resources and Environment at the University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, believes that "unintentional exposure, persistent retention, and imperceptible harm to human health and environmental systems constitute the common characteristics of new pollutants." As awareness continues to grow, and environmental monitoring technologies continue to evolve, the types and quantities of new pollutants will continue to change.
Literature data show that high levels of new pollutants such as environmental endocrine disruptors, antibiotics and microplastics have been detected in the atmosphere, water and soil in some parts of the mainland. It is generally believed that new pollutants are gradually becoming a new difficulty restricting the continuous and in-depth improvement of air, water and soil environmental quality, and it is also "a 'hard bone' that must be gnawed on ecological and environmental protection after haze and black and odorous water bodies".
Tackling new pollutants is not an easy task.
At present, the mainland is the world's largest producer and user of chemical products, and is also the most important supplier of chemical raw materials, with more than 50,000 kinds of chemical substances in production and use. These chemicals are consumed and used in many industries, and some chemicals are closely related to important fields such as agricultural production, daily necessities, and aerospace products.
Hu Jianxin, a professor at Peking University's School of Environmental Science and Engineering, wrote an article that the annual production of short-chain chlorinated paraffins in mainland China can reach millions of tons, and "chlorpyrifos" (note: a pesticide) involves agricultural production and food security, and it is difficult to develop alternatives for them, and there may be conflicts in terms of availability, performance, cost, environment and safety, and it is difficult to achieve perfection, which brings great challenges to the treatment of new pollutants in the future.
The treatment of new pollutants mainly involves the chemical industry and its downstream industrial chain. In recent years, the overall industrial technology and management level of the mainland has been greatly improved, but some enterprises are still at the low end of the industrial chain, and the technical level and management ability are uneven. In cities with rapid industrial development and urbanization, improper waste disposal can lead to organochlorine residues, and industrial activities such as mining and smelting will lead to heavy metal emissions and residues. The frequent use of pesticides and fertilizers in some agricultural areas can cause the emission and residue of organophosphorus compounds.
The weak detection foundation is also a difficult problem that needs to be solved urgently. Jiang Guibin found that the key point of new pollutant treatment is "new", and the difficulty is also "new". Because of the "new", there are problems such as monitoring methods cannot keep up, the pollution base is not clear, the environmental process is not clear, the environmental hazards are not mastered, and the conventional prevention and control methods are not effective.
The unclear mechanism of toxicity of new pollutants and the lack of efficient purification technologies also hinder the treatment process of new pollutants. Jiang Guibin suggested that the establishment of the "new pollutant treatment science and technology special" should be accelerated, the interdisciplinary integration and high-tech application should be promoted, the theoretical and technical system of new pollutant prevention and control and risk early warning should be developed, and the technical support for the treatment of new pollutants should be strengthened.
The mainland is also faced with the conspicuous problem of the coexistence of new pollutants and traditional pollutants.
There is a clear deployment
The CPC Central Committee and the State Council attach great importance to the control of new pollutants.
The "Opinions of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China and the State Council on Deepening the Battle of Pollution Prevention and Control" released in November 2021 made clear arrangements for the treatment of new pollutants and required the formulation and implementation of action plans for the treatment of new pollutants. Half a year later, in May 2022, the General Office of the State Council issued the Action Plan for the Treatment of New Pollutants (hereinafter referred to as the "Action Plan"). This plan puts forward requirements for the treatment of new pollutants from the aspects of overall requirements, action measures and safeguard measures.
What are the goals of new pollutant treatment?
The Action Plan requires that by 2025, the mainland will complete the environmental risk screening of chemical substances of high concern and high yield (use), complete the environmental risk assessment of a number of chemical substances, dynamically release the list of new pollutants under key control, and implement environmental risk control measures such as prohibiting, restricting, and limiting the discharge of new pollutants under key control. The legal system and management mechanism for environmental risk management of toxic and harmful chemicals have been gradually established and improved, and the ability to control new pollutants has been significantly enhanced.
How to act on the treatment of new pollutants?
The Action Plan makes 18 specific arrangements in six aspects, including improving laws and regulations, carrying out investigation and monitoring, strict source control, strengthening process control, deepening end-of-line governance, and strengthening capacity building. For example, in terms of improving the legal system and establishing and improving the new pollutant treatment system, the "Action Plan" proposes to improve the legal system, establish and improve the technical standard system, and establish and improve the new pollutant treatment and management mechanism. It is required to establish a cross-departmental coordination mechanism for the treatment of new pollutants led by the ecological environment department and participated by the departments of development and reform, science and technology, industry and informatization, finance, housing and urban-rural construction, agriculture and rural affairs, commerce, health, customs, market supervision, and drug administration, so as to coordinate and promote the treatment of new pollutants.
In terms of carrying out investigation and monitoring and assessing the environmental risk status of new pollutants, the Action Plan proposes to establish an environmental information investigation system for chemical substances, establish an environmental investigation and monitoring system for new pollutants, establish an environmental risk assessment system for chemical substances, and dynamically release a list of key controlled new pollutants. It is clearly required that for the chemical substances included in the list of priority controlled chemicals and other key new pollutants such as antibiotics and microplastics, formulate "one product and one policy" control measures, carry out technical feasibility and economic and social impact assessment of control measures, identify the main environmental emission sources of priority control chemicals, formulate and revise relevant industry emission standards in a timely manner, and dynamically update the list of toxic and harmful air pollutants, toxic and harmful water pollutants, and soil toxic and harmful substances under key control.
The Action Plan proposes to carry out pilot projects for the treatment of new pollutants. It is required to focus on petrochemical, coatings, textile printing and dyeing, rubber, pesticides, pharmaceuticals and other industries in the Yangtze River, Yellow River basin and key drinking water sources, key estuaries, key bays, key marine aquaculture areas, Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei, Yangtze River Delta, Pearl River Delta and other regions, focusing on petrochemical, coating, textile printing and dyeing, rubber, pesticides, medicine and other industries, and select a number of key enterprises and industrial parks to carry out pilot projects for the treatment of new pollutants, and form a number of green substitution of toxic and harmful chemicals, emission reduction of new pollutants and demonstration technologies for the treatment of new pollutants in sewage sludge and waste liquid residue. Encourage qualified localities to formulate incentive policies to promote enterprises to take the lead in reducing the generation and emission of new pollutants.
Overall, the Action Plan has designed a "three-step" governance path. The first step is "screening", which screens out the pollutants with greater potential environmental risks and includes them in the scope of priority environmental risk assessment; the second step is "evaluation", which takes the new pollutants with greater risks to the environment and health as the key control objects for the screened chemical substances; and the third step is "control", which implements comprehensive control measures for the whole process of the key control objects determined by the first two steps.
The Action Plan identifies several key time nodes for the treatment of new pollutants.
For example, in 2022, the first batch of new pollutants under key control will be released. During the "14th Five-Year Plan" period, special treatment was carried out for a number of key controlled new pollutants. By the end of 2025, the re-evaluation of a batch of highly toxic and high-risk pesticide varieties will be completed. Local people's governments at all levels should strengthen the organization and leadership of the treatment of new pollutants, and the people's governments at the provincial level are the main body of organizing the implementation of this action plan, and organize the formulation of a work plan for the treatment of new pollutants in their respective regions by the end of 2022, refine and decompose the goals and tasks, clarify the division of labor between departments, and do a good job in the implementation of the work. The relevant departments of the State Council should strengthen the division of labor and cooperation, jointly do a good job in the treatment of new pollutants, and assess the implementation of this action plan in 2025.
In the year of the release of the Action Plan, the work report of the mainland government proposed to strengthen the treatment of solid waste and new pollutants, and promote the classification, reduction and recycling of garbage. The following year, the work report of the mainland government proposed to strengthen the treatment of solid waste and new pollutants. In this year's government work report, the relevant statement is to strengthen the control of solid waste, new pollutants and plastic pollution.
At the beginning of this year, Xinhua News Agency released the "Opinions of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China and the State Council on Comprehensively Promoting the Construction of a Beautiful China", which called for strengthening the treatment of solid waste and new pollutants. Accelerate the construction of "zero-waste cities", continue to promote the treatment of new pollutants, and promote the realization of "zero-waste" and environmental health in urban and rural areas. Strengthen the comprehensive management of solid waste, limit the excessive packaging of commodities, and control plastic pollution in the whole chain. Deepen the work of completely banning the entry of "foreign garbage", and strictly prevent the smuggling and disguised import of solid waste in all forms. Strengthen the supervision and utilization and disposal capacity of hazardous waste, and strengthen the pollution control of tailings ponds with a focus on the Yangtze River Economic Belt and the Yellow River Basin. Formulate regulations on environmental risk management of toxic and harmful chemicals. By 2027, the proportion of "zero-waste cities" will reach 60%, and the intensity of solid waste generation will be significantly reduced, and by 2035, the construction of "zero-waste cities" will be fully covered, and the eastern provinces will take the lead in building "zero-waste cities" in the whole region, and the environmental risks of new pollutants will be effectively controlled.
Also this year, many provinces in the mainland mentioned the treatment of "new pollutants" in the government work report. Promoting the construction of "zero-waste cities" and strengthening the treatment of new pollutants are the common goals of many places.
Strengthen collaborative governance
The characteristics of new pollutants determine the need for coordinated treatment.
The environmental risk of new pollutants is an environmental problem faced by all countries in the world.
DDT, mentioned in "Silent Spring", is one of the chemicals with typical new pollutant characteristics, and its harm spans half a century and affects every corner of the world, and it cannot be tackled by a single country. Professor Hu Jianxin pointed out: "The treatment of some new pollutants requires global action. In addition to persistent, bioaccumulative, carcinogenic, teratogenic and other biological toxicity, some new pollutants also have the potential for long-distance transport, which can be transported across international boundaries with air, water or migratory species and deposited in areas far away from their discharge points, causing worldwide environmental pollution problems. ”
In terms of the treatment of new pollutants, the mainland has a cross-departmental coordination mechanism.
The report of the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China clearly put forward the important task of "carrying out the treatment of new pollutants". Shortly after the conclusion of the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, on November 4, 2022, the first meeting of the "Inter-Ministerial Coordination Group for the Control of New Pollutants" was held in Beijing. The coordination group is headed by Huang Runqiu, Minister of Ecology and Environment. In addition to the Ministry of Ecology and Environment, the members of the Inter-Ministerial Coordination Group include the National Development and Reform Commission, the Ministry of Science and Technology, the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, the Ministry of Commerce, the Health Commission, the General Administration of Customs, and the China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission.
On February 2, 2024, the second meeting of the group was held. The meeting proposed that it is necessary to give full play to the role of the promotion mechanism for the treatment of new pollutants, strengthen cross-departmental joint actions, increase the guidance and assistance of local counterpart departments and enterprises, strengthen supervision and law enforcement and follow-up results, and systematically promote breakthroughs in key tasks of new pollutant treatment. In addition, it is mentioned that it is necessary to accelerate the promotion of legislation on the treatment of new pollutants, promote the implementation of major scientific and technological projects, plan and lay out a number of major projects, strengthen policy support such as fiscal and taxation, finance, and prices, and do a good job in the rule of law, science and technology, and policy.
In addition to inter-ministerial coordination, there is also inter-provincial cooperation.
For example, Sichuan and Chongqing have jointly promoted the treatment of new pollutants. On March 14 this year, the first joint meeting of Sichuan and Chongqing provinces and cities on the treatment of new pollutants was held in Chongqing. The meeting reported on the development of new pollutant control work in 2023 and the work plan for 2024 in the two places. The meeting proposed to carry out joint investigation and monitoring of new pollutants in Sichuan and Chongqing, focus on finding out the current situation of new pollutants such as antibiotics and perfluorinated compounds, and jointly promote the risk assessment of chemical substances in Chengdu and Chongqing, so as to provide a basis for the release of a supplementary list of key new pollutants under control in Chengdu and Chongqing.
Pilot work is underway in some provinces.
For example, Jiangsu is a pilot province for environmental monitoring of new pollutants, and the province monitors pollution points in water sources and air in two pilot industrial development zones. Hubei, Hunan, Jiangxi and other provinces have carried out pilot investigations, monitoring and evaluation of new pollutants in key industries. Anhui Province focuses on whole-process monitoring and environmental information investigation, conducts law enforcement inspections on the production, processing and use of new chemical substances, and carries out pilot surveys of basic environmental information on chemical substances. The Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region has carried out a pilot project for the investigation and risk assessment of new pollutants in the Yellow River Basin and "One Lake, Two Seas", and carried out non-targeted screening and quantitative monitoring of new pollutants. Shaanxi Province has launched a pilot project on compensation for ecological and environmental damage related to new pollutants to provide guarantees for promoting cleaner production and green manufacturing.
At present, various localities have carried out pilot projects in key industries, key areas, key river basins, process monitoring and result assurance, forming a multi-level and multi-dimensional pilot network. These pilots are part of the treatment of new pollutants. Some localities have also focused on improving legal safeguards, issuing regulations on the prevention and control of soil pollution, and clearly implementing and strengthening the governance of new pollutants such as persistent organic pollutants.
According to the plan, in 2025, Jiangsu will initially establish an environmental investigation and monitoring system for new pollutants, Shandong will initially establish a new pollutant treatment system, and Liaoning's new pollutant treatment capacity will be significantly enhanced......
Time is tight, and the task is heavy. (Chen Zhenkai, Li Xinran)
(Source: People's Daily Overseas Edition)