The much concerned “Jiangsu Province Atmospheric Pollution Prevention Act (draft)” has been submitted for preliminary assessment on July 22. With a number of major regulations and harsh penalties adopted in the draft, the Act will become the most stringent air pollution control regulation in Jiangsu’s history.
According to the draft, the examinations and evaluations of related departments and their officials will be closely connected with the improvement of air quality. In the past ten years, Jiangsu’s urbanization has achieved great progress and as a result, the energy consumption in major industries including thermal power, cement and steel is among the highest in the country. Jiangsu’s vehicle volume grew by 406 percent. Besides, the construction site areas increased five-fold. To tackle this situation, the draft stressed that the air pollution control measures shall be integrated with industrial restructuring, energy restructuring, coal control and urban planning.
The cost of acts in violation of the regulations shall also be increased. Enterprises without the discharge permit must stop the pollution discharge and have to pay a fine of more than 100,000 yuan (US$16,100) but less than 500,000 yuan (US$80,500). For serious cases, the administrative department can revoke the enterprise’s discharge permit.
