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Contents
- Description of Initiative
- Environmental Law Cooperation with China
- Collaborating Organizations
- New Developments in Chinese Environmental Law
- Events
- Legal Resources
- Related Links
- E-mail Updates
- Disclaimer
Description of Initiative
China has been working with great determination in recent years to develop, implement, and enforce a solid environmental law framework. Chinese officials face critical challenges in effectively implementing the laws, clarifying the roles of their national and provincial governments, and strengthening the operation of their legal system.
EPA Office of General Counsel launched the EPA – China Environmental Law Initiative in September, 2007, to encourage a continuing dialogue between the U.S. and China on environmental law. The goals of the initiative include:
- Sharing EPA's legal experience and expertise to help improve China’s environmental health.
- Sharing information useful to U.S. entities with business or other stakes in how China addresses environmental issues.
- Fostering an ongoing dialogue on environmental law issues with China.
Many of these cooperative activities take place in collaboration with other EPA offices, including EPA Office of International Affairs, Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance, Office of Water, Office of Air and Radiation, and EPA Regional Offices.
We look forward to sharing information on these initiatives here.
Additional Information on international cooperation efforts on Chinese environmental law (including information on OGC's meetings with Chinese environmental officials) is available.
Collaborating Organizations
Collaborating Organizations
- American Chamber of Commerce of Shanghai -- Environment Committee
- China Environment Forum (Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars)
- George Washington University Law School
- University of Maryland Environmental Law Program
EPA is collaborating with organizations that have expertise in Chinese environmental law and in environmental issues faced by U.S. entities in China. A list of collaborators appears in the box on the right. These organizations may:
- contribute material for inclusion on the web site
- share with EPA their insights as to what material would be useful to include.
New Developments in Chinese Environmental Law
General
- MEP Publishes Notice Soliciting Participation in Research Projects for 12th Five Year Plan (2011- 2015)
Notice (in Chinese); English summary (see March 4, 2009 blog entry)
- MEP Party Group held a meeting to convey and carry out the spirit of the Meeting of Central Government on Economy (MEP News Release, 12/11/08)
- A New Road for Environmental Protection in China (Summary of a speech titled "Actively Probing a New Road to Environmental Protection with Chinese Characteristics" by China's Minister for Environmental Protection, Zhou Shengxian. (China Greenspace blog, 1/19/09)
- China's Environmental Retreat, In Tough Economic Times, Promises Fall by Wayside, by Ariana Eunjung Cha,
Washington Post Foreign Service (Washington Post, 11/19/08, p. A12)
- China's environmental NGOs' influence increases as total doubles in 3 years (Xinhua News Agency,10/31/08)
Pollution Control
- Ministry of Environmental Protection issues a Notice (and accompanying Q & A) which sets forth a regulatory opinion on the imposition of administrative punishment in environmental cases. Notice (in Chinese); Q & A (in Chinese); English summary (March 27th blog entry)
- Environmental Regulations and Standards in Effect as of March 1, 2009 (MEP News Release, 3/6/09)
- Circular of Ministry of Environmental Protection on Intensified Work on Guaranteeing Safe Source Water (MEP News Release, 3/23/09)
- Environmental Regulations and Standards in Effect as of February 1, 2009 (MEP News Release, 2/18/09)
- Environmental Regulations and Standards in Effect as of Nov. 1, 2008 (MEP News Release, 12/9/08)
Public Participation
- China environment watchdog calls off disputed Beijing waste-burning power plant (Xinhua News Agency, 3/11/09)
Climate Change / Energy
- U.S. House of Representatives, Select Committee on Energy Independence and Global Warming. Hearing: "Preparing for Copenhagen: How Developing Countries Are Fighting Climate Change.” Testimony of Ms. Barbara Finamore, China Program Director, Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) 3/4/09
- East Asia and the Pacific: Dialogue on U.S.- China Partnership on Clean Energy (U.S. State Department Press Release, February 22, 2009) Hillary Rodham Clinton, Secretary of State, With Special Envoy for Climate Change Todd Stern And President of GE Energy China Jack Wen, Taiyang Gong Power Plant, Beijing, China
- Natural Resources Defense Council releases report on "Strengthening U.S. - China Climate Change and Energy Engagement" (February 2009)
- Overcoming Obstacles to U.S.-China Cooperation on Climate Change (Brookings Institution, January 2009)
- A Roadmap for U.S.-China Cooperation on Energy and Climate Change (Pew Center on Global Climate Change, January 2009) (Also available in a Chinese version)
- 'Strong arm' tactics to get India to agree to strict emissions cuts criticised: China and India signal opposition to binding limits on emissions as UN secretary general says developing world 'must do more' (The Guardian, 2/5/09)
- White paper: China's policies and actions on climate change (China.Org.CN, 10/29/08)
- Sino-American Working Group on Climate Change Launched by Tsinghua University and the University of California Santa Barbara. They will hold the first formal meeting of the working group in November 2008 in China.
- MIT report debunks China energy myth: The problem isn't in the technology, it's the operations (MIT News Office, 10/6/08)
Natural Resources
- Revised Resource Tax System to be Announced (January 14, 2008)
Sustainability / Pollution Prevention
- Broader Environment Checks on Table (China Daily, 10/7/08)
- Proposal to cut country's emissions (China Daily, 9/19/08)
- Environmental Guidelines for Firms Investing abroad (MEP news release, 9/12/08)
International Cooperation
- Work Plan for Sino-U.S. Cooperation in Environmental Law Development, Implementation, and Enforcement (May 20, 2008)
- U.S. and China Establish Ten-Year Framework for Cooperation on Energy and Environment. At the June, 2008 meeting of the U.S.–China Strategic Economic Dialogue, the U.S. and China signed a “Framework for the Ten Year Cooperation on Energy and Environment.” EPA is among the agencies included on the Steering Committee. Cooperation ranges in 3 broad areas: Energy, Pollution Abatement, and Natural Resource Conservation.
Events
- U.S. Environmental Protection Agency - China Ministry of Environmental Protection Annual Planning Meeting on Cooperation on Environmental Law and Enforcement (April 29, 2009, Washington, D.C.)
- As Goes China, So Goes the World: Chinese Development and Environment Challenges (Sponsored by American University, Washington College of Law, March 26, 2009)
- China’s Emergence: Effects on Trade, Investment, and Regulatory Law (Sponsored by Texas International Law Journal, February 27, 2009)
- China’s Changing Courts: Populist Vehicle or Party Puppet (Sponsored by New York University School of Law and the U.S. - Asia Law Institute, February 19, 2009)
- Mind the Gap! Trends in Strengthening Environmental Laws in China. Presented by the China Environment Forum, January 15, 2009. Video now available!
- Discussion of Energy and Environment framework at Strategic Economic Dialogue meeting, Beijing, December 5, 2008
- China’s Water Laws and New Conservation Technologies.
October 31, 2008, 11:30-1:15, Regal International East Asia Hotel.
An AmCham Shanghai Environmental Committee Event
- Giving the Courts Green Teeth - Current Developments in Environmental Enforcement in China.
Sponsored by China Environment Forum, 10/22/08
- Panel on China and the Environment, September 19, 2008. American Bar Association, Section of Environment, Energy, and Resources (SEER) ’ 16th Section Fall Meeting, Phoenix, Arizona.
Panelists: Charles McElwee (Squire & Sanders), Robert Percival (University of Maryland Law School and Fulbright Scholar in Beijing), Roger Martella (former EPA General Counsel, now with Sidley Austin LLP), Steve Wolfson (EPA Office of General Counsel); Moderator: Margaret Kim (Cal EPA).
Legal Resources
Find links to information on Chinese environmental statutes, regulations, directives, and treaties, as well as selected reports and articles relating to Chinese environmental Law.
Disclaimer
The information appearing on this Web site is for general informational purposes only and is not intended to provide legal advice to any individual or entity. If you desire legal advice, you may wish to consult with a legal advisor. You should not rely on information from this website for legal advice.
EPA makes no claims, promises, or guarantees about the accuracy, completeness, or adequacy of the contents of this site, and expressly disclaims liability for errors and omissions in the contents of this site. No warranty of any kind is given with respect to the contents of this Web site or its links to other Internet resources.
Reference in this site to any specific commercial product, process, or service, or the use of any trade, firm or corporation name is for the information and convenience of the public, and does not constitute endorsement, recommendation, or favoring by the EPA