Legislature to amend environmental law

BEIJING - The Standing Committee of the National People's Congress (NPC) Monday started its first reading of a draft amendment to the Environmental Protection Law.

"The Environmental Protection Law, which went into effect in 1989, was created during the primary stage of China's reform and opening-up and does not yet fit current economic and social requirements," said Wang Guangtao, chairman of the NPC's Environment and Resources Protection Committee.

From 1995 to 2011, the NPC received a total of 78 proposals to revise the law, Wang said at a bimonthly legislative session that will be held from Monday to Friday.

The draft adds a clause that calls for governments and environmental protection departments to release information concerning environmental quality, pollution-related accidents and the collection and use of pollutant discharge fees to the public, as well as allows the public to request related information.

The draft also forbids depositing solid waste on farmland.

The draft calls for controlling the total amount of major pollutants discharged. Regions that exceed pollutant discharge limits or fail to meet environmental standards will face suspensions for new projects that could cause more pollution.