In the wake of the environmental crackdown, non-compliant businesses are being shut down one after another, and a large number of factories have been forced to close their doors. The environmental inspection teams have demonstrated through their actions that this inspection is not merely a token exercise with all talk and no action; the days of anxiety for business owners and operators are far from over.

What do environmental protection inspections generally focus on?

According to statements made by the relevant leaders of the inspection team, the focus of environmental inspections is on examining how provincial Party committees and provincial governments implement national environmental protection policies and decisions, address prominent environmental issues, and fulfil their primary responsibilities for environmental protection; the aim is to advance the province’s ecological civilisation and environmental protection efforts, and to promote green development.

1. Focus on prominent environmental issues that are of high concern to the central government, have drawn strong public criticism, and have had a severe negative social impact, as well as the measures taken to address them;

2. Focus on inspecting regions and river basins where environmental quality is showing a deteriorating trend, as well as the progress of remediation efforts;

3. Focus on investigating instances of inaction or misconduct regarding environmental protection by local Party committees, governments and their relevant departments;

4. Focus on understanding how local authorities are implementing the principle of joint responsibility for environmental protection by Party and government bodies, the principle of ‘one post, dual responsibilities’, and strict accountability.

So, what do local inspections typically cover?

The issues most closely relevant to our daily lives are broadly as follows:

[Factories with any of the following issues will face fines, closure, orders to rectify, or formal interviews; please ensure you carry out a self-inspection]

1. Auxiliary materials that produce dust during the manufacture of components, as well as related equipment such as coal-fired boilers, must be sealed off;

2. Products found to generate noise or strong odours must also be rectified;

3. Manufacturers without a business licence or operating in a non-compliant manner must be brought into line;

4. Fire safety hazards will also be investigated as part of the process;

5. Counterfeit, substandard and imitation-branded products will also be investigated;

6. Illegal discharge of waste water;

7. Emission of pungent gases such as paint fumes;

8. Low-frequency noise or excessive noise levels;

9. Dust pollution;

10. Failure to publicly display environmental impact assessment reports;

11. Lack of environmental protection approval procedures;

12. Operational safety hazards in motor units;

13. Unauthorised construction;

14. Illegal installation of concealed pipes for waste discharge;

15. Coal ash scattered everywhere;

16. Problems with the excavation and burial of paper waste;

17. Absence of a wastewater recycling system;

18. Failure to obtain a water abstraction licence;

19. Operating without a valid business licence;

20. Storage of other waste in ponds lacking anti-seepage measures;

21. Pollution control facilities are rudimentary and outdated;

22. Smoke and dust emission concentrations exceed standards;

23. Accumulated rubbish on the factory premises has not been dealt with in a timely manner;

24. Failure to complete the approval procedures for environmental impact assessment documents;

25. Pollution control facilities have not been accepted by the environmental protection authorities;

26. The discharge permit has expired;

27. Illegal production;

28. COD levels in the filtration pond exceed the limit;

29. No discharge permit.

Translated with DeepL.com (free version)