158 companies punished across China for serious pollution violations

Chinese ecology and environment authorities announced punishments on Monday against 158 companies across the country that seriously exceeded pollution standards in the first quarter of this year.

Of the listed companies, half were sewage treatment plants. The others include 26 heat-supply companies, 7 non-ferrous metal metallurgy companies, and 14 coal and chemical companies, the Xinhua News Agency reported on Tuesday, citing the Ministry of Ecology and Environment (MEE).

Most of the listed companies have been fined. The highest fine, 18.8 million yuan ($2.8 million), went to a heatsupply company in Northwest China’s Gansu Province.

That company updated its equipment to meet environmental protection standards starting April 2018, and is expected to complete the rectification before this winter, according to the MEE announcement.

Some 26 companies specially under the supervision of MEE are on the list, with only eight of them meeting pollution standards, news site thepaper.cn reported.

Two sewage treatment plants on the list in North China’s Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region have been fined 5.7 million yuan and 5.2 million yuan. The two companies completed reforms and met standards in early June 2018.

Authorities also announced four cases of false rectification.

Two of the cases were in Huludao, Northeast China’s Liaoning Province, and the others were in Suzhou, East China’s Anhui Province, and Qiandongnan autonomous prefecture, Southwest China’s Guizhou Province.

The MEE reiterated the importance of ecological and environmental protection and its firm attitude that the ministry will seriously punish companies and individuals involved in fake reform.