On March 4th, 2024, the National People's Congress and Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) officially kicked off. This year, many NPC deputies and CPPCC members have brought proposals related to the environmental industry, and more environmental representatives have put forward suggestions closely related to the industry. What industry concerns did they point to during this year's two sessions? Come and see it quickly!
01 National Committee Member of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference Huang Mianshong: General Manager of the Pioneering Environmental Protection Smart Environmental Protection Business Unit
In recent years, the central government has continuously strengthened investment in the treatment of rural domestic sewage and black and odorous water bodies, and significant achievements have been made in improving the rural ecological environment in China. However, due to the wide coverage and weak infrastructure in rural areas, there still exists a large funding gap for environmental protection infrastructure construction, an urgent need to improve the quality and efficiency of some existing environmental protection facilities, a lack of effective guarantee for operation and maintenance funds, and unsustainable operation.
Huang Mianshong suggested that we should start from optimizing the direction of fiscal funds, strengthening the multi-party funding guarantee mechanism, and increasing the participation of social capital to achieve long-term treatment of rural domestic sewage treatment facilities and help improve the rural living environment. In addition, "strengthening the construction of institutional mechanisms and assessing the strength of supervision is also essential." Huang Mianshong said that we should take the opportunity of supervision to implement it and directly link the results of supervision with central support policies. At the same time, incorporating rural domestic sewage treatment work into the target responsibility scope of various levels of government, as an important part of the assessment of relevant leadership cadres.
02 National Committee Member of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference Hu Wangming: Secretary of the Party Committee and Chairman of China Baowu Iron and Steel Group Co., Ltd
Resource recycling is an important link in promoting green and low-carbon development of the economy and society, and has been listed as a strategic emerging industry. Data shows that in 2022, China generated approximately 500 million tons of renewable resources, with a recycling rate of approximately 370 million tons and a comprehensive recycling rate of approximately 75%. Among them, the recycling of scrap steel, scrap copper, scrap lead, and scrap paper accounted for 22%, 35%, 47%, and 54% of the steel, copper, lead, and paper production in that year, respectively.
The proposal points out that scrap steel is a recyclable green renewable resource, and for every 1 ton of scrap steel used, it can reduce 1.6 tons of carbon dioxide emissions. China's steel industry is mainly based on the blast furnace converter process (long process), while the production of electric furnace (short process) steel with scrap steel as the main raw material is only about 10%, while the proportion of electric furnace steel in Europe and America reaches over 70%, and Japan and South Korea are also above 30%.
The proposal emphasizes that establishing and improving a recycling and utilization system for renewable resources such as scrap steel is of great significance for improving the comprehensive recycling rate, promoting the green transformation of traditional industries such as steel and non-ferrous metals, and achieving the national strategic goals of "carbon peak" and "carbon neutrality".
However, the current standard system for recycling renewable resources in China is not sound, the industrial support policy system needs to be improved, and the industry lacks leading enterprises to drive it. The proposal on cultivating leading enterprises in renewable resources and building a national trading service platform suggests that we should cultivate leading enterprises in renewable resource recycling and utilization, rely on these leading enterprises to build a national renewable resource trading service platform, and promote the application of trading service platforms.
03 National People's Congress representative Li Lili: Chief Engineer of Shanxi International Energy Group Water Company
Further efforts should be made to improve the reuse rate of recycled water, especially in provinces along the Yellow River. High consumption industries within the scope of recycled water supply should first and fully utilize recycled water.
During this year's two sessions, Li Lili proposed to quickly introduce specific standards for green and low-carbon benchmark sewage treatment plants, promoting energy conservation and efficiency improvement in the sewage treatment industry.
04 Wei Mingde, member of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference
In the Proposal on Strengthening the Research and Control of New Pollutant Systems to Help Build a Beautiful China, Wei Mingde pointed out that the Action Plan for New Pollutant Control issued by the General Office of the State Council clearly proposes the goal of "by 2025, the regulatory system and management mechanism for environmental risk management of toxic and harmful chemicals will gradually be established and improved, and the ability to control new pollutants will be significantly enhanced.". How to reduce the adverse effects and potential hazards of new pollutants on economic development, people's physical health, and the construction of a beautiful China has become a topic that requires deep thinking at present and in the future.
05 Central Committee of the Democratic Revolution.
The report of the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China clearly pointed out the need to improve the system of public interest litigation. In recent years, people's courts at all levels have cracked down on and punished illegal activities that damage environmental resources through the trial of environmental resource cases, effectively safeguarding the environmental rights and interests of the people, and improving the level of judicial protection for green development. However, environmental resource trials, especially environmental public interest litigation, started relatively late overall, with many new concepts and things, and encountered many new problems. We propose suggestions in establishing a sound communication and docking mechanism for environmental resource trials, promoting the establishment of special fund accounts or public interest litigation funds, researching and promoting the construction of a sound ecological environment appraisal institution system, improving various norms for environmental resource cases, and professionalizing the construction of trial teams.
06 National Committee Member of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, Hong Mingji: Executive Director and CEO of Hexing Group Holdings Limited
Firstly, in the field of "environment", it is recommended to consider kitchen waste oil as a raw material for producing sustainable fuels, and to classify it as a reusable resource from a regulatory perspective, rather than being classified as kitchen waste; And strengthen support for the pilot program of circular economy, break through the bottlenecks of circular economy such as recycling through government purchases, tax reductions, and organizing pilot programs in specific regions, and encourage large chain catering enterprises to make more positive contributions to the treatment of plastic pollution by reducing production at the source and improving recycling and reuse; Increase financial and tax support, implement income tax and value-added tax incentives for catering enterprises that actively invest in research and development and use plastic substitute products, and implement precise policies to encourage advanced technology, thereby strengthening technological support for new materials and solutions.
Secondly, in the field of "society", it is recommended that industry regulatory authorities promote the return of disability insurance funds to the policy goal of "proportionally resettling disabled people for employment", optimize the current "Regulations on the Management of Employment Security Funds", and increase the reduction and exemption of disability insurance funds for enterprises that provide valuable employment opportunities for the most difficult groups of disabled people in primary, secondary, spiritual, intellectual, and other fields. This will provide support for tax reduction and fee reduction for advanced enterprises actively promoting corporate social responsibility.
Finally, in the field of "governance", it is recommended that industry regulatory authorities promote more attention and recognition for catering enterprises in the selection of ESG related government awards such as the China Environmental Award. The ESG practice in the catering industry is relatively small compared to the energy and production sectors. Although the scale is relatively small, brand catering enterprises generally attach importance to the construction of governance systems, model innovation, and social promotion effects on consumers. It is recommended to give certain weighting consideration to catering enterprises that actively practice ESG in the government award selection criteria.