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Legislators take a green path
27/8/2007 10:22

China's top legislators yesterday began deliberating a draft law that covers recycling, energy saving and emission reduction.

The draft law was submitted to the 29th session of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress for a first reading.

It stipulates that governments at all levels should control energy use and emissions, strengthen management of resource-intensive companies and divert capital into environmentally friendly industries.

The draft also introduces reward and punishment systems for companies, encouraging them to develop a recycling mindset and making them responsible for the recycling of their products.

Officials guilty of dereliction of duty will receive administrative punishment or even be subject to criminal prosecution, the draft says.

Companies which violate the import ban on equipment, materials or products that cause high energy consumption and pollution will be fined from 100,000 yuan (US$13,333) to one million yuan, according to the draft. It says companies which use fuel generators or fuel boilers that fail to meet national standards will be fined from 10,000 yuan to 500,000 yuan.

"China has been facing serious environmental and resources problems during its economic development since the 1980s, which were mainly caused by the low resources efficiency," Feng Zhijun, vice chairman of the NPC Environmental Protection and Resources Conservation Committee, said at the legislative session.

Law makers were also deliberating a draft amendment to the Water Pollution Prevention and Control Act, intended to mete out harsher punishments to enterprises and officials who fail to implement controls.

The draft stipulates that offenders will be fined 100,000 yuan to one million yuan if factories discharge into water more than a set level of pollutants.

Those who discharge pollutants to drinking water sources will be fined 100,000 yuan to 500,000 yuan, according to the draft amendment.



Xinhua