China is set to significantly strengthen its environmental statutes after unveiling a draft code on April 27. The new Ecology and Environment Code was submitted to the National People’s Congress (NPC), China’s top legislative body, for its first reading. Once enacted, it will become the country’s second statutory code after the Civil Code that was adopted in 2020, according to the Xinhua News Agency.
The code is designed to fill legal gaps in existing green legislation and bring together the many fragmented laws and regulations that hinder a unified approach to environmental protection and other green targets, such as reducing carbon emissions, experts said.
Director of the NPC legislation department Sheng Chunyao said the code will integrate 10 existing laws and regulations on the environment and natural resources, which will be nullified when the code takes effect. It also includes principles to set future environmental laws.
Experts said the unified statute will have greater legal authority and be easier to enforce. It also shows how proactive China is on promoting environmental protection, and how China is open to international cooperation on global green governance.
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