China won’t change co
International environmental treaty provides so
By Chen Qingqing
China will firmly carry out the ban on imports of such items as waste plastic and paper, and the claim that this policy breaches WTO obligations is groundless, industry representatives told the Global Times on Monday.
When it comes to global waste trade, the claim about China seeming to violate WTO obligations is groundless and hypocritical, Hua Chunying, spokeswoman of Ministry of Foreign Affairs, told a press briefing on Monday.
“Why it is legitimate that the US can curb exports of high-technology and value-added products to China while is it illegal for China to restrict imports of garbage?” she said
The US claimed on Friday that China’s import restrictions on recycled commodities have caused a fundamental disruption in global supply chains for scrap materials, according to Reuters.
A US official also pointed a finger at China, which seemed to be breaching its WTO obligations by treating domestic and foreign waste differently while also employing an overly trade-restrictive policy, Reuters noted.
Any country has the right to “say no” to hazardous wastes, following international treaties and adjustment of its own policies, said Zheng Tianlu, an expert with the China Plastics Processing Industry Association.
“China was the world’s recycling bin for decades. While China generated huge volumes of plastic every year, the country has faced mounting pressure in recycling waste composed of plastic,” he said, noting that China has to reduce dependence on imports of plastic scrap.
The State Council, China’s cabinet, unveiled the ban on imports of “foreign garbage” in July 2017, with the aim of further developing the recycling industry and enhancing environmental protection. It said that as of the end of 2017, imports of trash such as plastic waste from daily use sources, unsorted waste paper and textiles would be all banned.
The Chinese government will also gradually reduce the categories of imported solid waste and further crack down on illegal trading of foreign garbage.
The US is the largest exporter of major recycled commodities including plastic scrap, recovered paper, ferrous scrap and copper scrap, according to data compiled by the Institute of Scrap Recycling Industries Inc.
For instance, the country exported 2.04 million tons of plastic scrap in 2015, followed by Japan and Germany, which shipped 1.61 million tons and 1.38 million tons to overseas markets, respectively.
In spite of questions raised on China’s ban on trash imports “the Chinese government will not change course,” said Huo Jianguo, senior research fellow at the Center for China and Globalization.
“The recent claim by the US about global waste trade aims to make trouble for China amid China-US trade war tensions,” Huo said.
Under WTO rules and obligations, members can adopt trade-related measures aimed at protecting the environment, he noted. “It’s fully reasonable that China is heading toward this direction in terms of environmental protection.”
China saw rapid growth in its