China bans solid waste imports as of next year

China will impose a complete ban on the import of solid waste from next year, as it intensifies efforts to recycle more domestic waste and promote green development.

The Ministry of Ecology and Environment will no longer accept applications for the import of any restricted solid wastes as raw material, according to a guideline released by the ministry and three central government bodies, including the General Administration of Customs.

The ministry said on Friday, import approvals that companies receive this year will be invalid if they fail to import approved material before end of the year.

The ministry also stressed that any violations of the ban, including dumping, storing and processing of waste coming from overseas, will be seriously punished in accordance with the Law on the Prevention and Control of Environmental Pollution by Solid Waste.

Apart from imported waste being returned and fines levied, investigations will be launched for criminal liability if the breach is serious. The contractor who transports such waste will bear joint liability, said the guideline.

According to the law, the illegal import of foreign waste is subject to fines ranging from 500,000 yuan ($ 76,000) to 5 million yuan.

The ban is a key measure to “promote green- style production and life, protect the safety of the ecosystem and environment and safeguard people’s health”, the ministry said.

China started importing solid waste as a source of raw materials in the 1980s. Despite its inadequate capacity for waste treatment and growing domestic waste, China has been the world's largest importer of solid waste for years.

The rising public awareness of environmental protection and reducing pollution led to a government- backed action plan in 2017 to phase out waste imports.

Meanwhile, enterprises and governments at all levels are being encouraged to make concerted efforts to beef up domestic waste recycling.

Waste classification in urban communities as well as an extended producer responsibility system are two examples of many recent initiatives, with the latter making it compulsory for producers to shoulder more responsibility in the recycling of their own products.

The system was first piloted in the household appliance industry in 2011, and authorities are extending it to other sectors such as automobiles and lead- acid batteries.

Mao Da, a policy consultant at the China Zero Waste Alliance, an environmental NGO, called on the government to accelerate efforts to extend the mechanism to other sectors.

“The system can address the financing gap for the building of a complete national recycling mechanism,” he said. “It also provides a motive for companies to improve product design to minimize waste,” he said.

The complete ban was announced as the country mulls over wide- ranging green transformation in the coming 14 th FiveYear Plan ( 2021- 25) period and beyond.

China will endeavor to make production and lifestyles green to achieve a fundamental improvement in environmental quality by 2035, according to a proposal unveiled earlier this month. The country will take actions to achieve marked progress in the transformation in the coming five years, said the proposal.