What has China achieved in pollution control?

Editor︰Molly

Since the founding of the People's Republic of China (PRC) 75 years ago, the country has weathered storms and undergone tremendous changes.

This series, "Extraordinary 75 Years", provides a deep dive in China's achievements and breakthroughs over the past 75 years.

This article, as the second one of the Chapter of Environmental Protection, focuses on China's achievements in pollution control over these years.

Since the founding of New China, the economy has been developing rapidly, and the process of urbanisation, industrialisation, and globalisation, which took hundreds of years to come true in developed countries, has basically been completed in China in just a few decades.

However, this progress has also brought a series of environmental issues.

China's "Environmental Protection Law" was formally introduced in 1989.

And in the 1990s, the "Atmospheric Pollution Prevention and Control Law" and "Water Pollution Prevention and Control Law" were revised, and more regulations, such as the "Solid Waste Pollution Prevention Law", were introduced.

This marked the initial formation of China's legal system for ecological and environmental protection.

Subsequently, the severe flooding of the Yangtze River in 1998 and the widespread sand and dust storms in the northern regions in 2000 further aroused concern from the government and the public on ecological and environmental issues.

Now, China has achieved remarkable accomplishments in pollution management and environmental protection, which can be outlined as follows.

Bluer Skies: Air Pollution Control

It may be familiar to many that several Chinese cities, especially those in the northern region, were once plagued by smog for prolonged periods, a situation often described as being "surrounded by smog on all sides".

The year 2013 marked a turning point when the implementation of the "Air Pollution Prevention and Control Action Plan" officially started, initiating the "Blue Sky Defence Battle".

Since then, national efforts to combat air pollution have been vigorous.

These efforts include initiatives like reducing pollutant emissions, harshly controlling the development of new polluting industries, enacting the strictest environmental protection laws in history, and ensuring transparency in pollution information.

These comprehensive top-level design and set of measures have gradually improved China's air quality.

The pictures show the scenery in Beijing, which were taken in 2013 and 2022 respectively.
The pictures show the scenery in Beijing, which were taken in 2013 and 2022 respectively. (Web Image)

Take the PM2.5 as an example. From 2013 to 2023, the average PM2.5 level across the country have fallen from a high of 72 micrograms per cubic metre to 30 micrograms per cubic metre.

As the fight against air pollution continues, China's State Council issued the "Action Plan for Continuous Improvement of Air Quality" at the end of 2023.

This is the third consecutive top-level design document on air pollution management that China has issued in the form of "Ten Articles".

Cleaner water: Water pollution control

Water is the source of life, and water pollution control is an important part of China's environmental work.

During economic development, due to irrational industrial distribution and a large number of heavy chemical industries located along rivers, lakes and other water bodies, serious water pollution problems have arisen in many parts of China.

In recent years, the country has taken various measures, such as implementing the "Water Pollution Prevention and Control Action Plan" in 2015 to strengthen the supervision of industrial wastewater discharge.

Since 2016, China has established a system of river and lake chief, specifying the responsibilities of the river or lake chiefs at provincial, municipal, county, and village levels.

And from 2018, focused actions have been taken nationwide to protect the environment of centralised drinking water sources.

China has made significant achievements in water pollution control. The picture shows a comparison between before and after the treatment of rivers such as the Pingjiang River in Suzhou, Jiangsu Province.
In recent years, dredging projects have been carried out in many river channels such as Pingjiang River in Suzhou, Jiangsu, clearing a large amount of accumulated silt and garbage. (Image Source: VCG, Web Image)

Today, bright achievements have been made in water pollution control.

In 2023, the proportion of surface water sections with good quality in the country reached 89.4%, nearly the level of developed countries, an increase of 27.8 percentage points compared to 2012.

By the end of 2023, black and smelly water bodies in cities at or above the prefecture-level have been basically eliminated, with more than 70% of such water bodies eliminated in county-level cities.

The quality of water in major rivers and important lakes has also significantly improved.

The main stream of the Yangtze River has reached Class II water quality for four consecutive years, and the main stream of the Yellow River has reached Class II water quality for two consecutive years.

Greener mountains: Afforestation

Forests are crucial resources for land ecosystems, and over the past 75 years, China has implemented a series of major ecological projects such as the "Three-North" Shelterbelt Programme, natural forest protection programme, and conversion of cropland to forest and grassland programme, which have effectively improved the ecological environment and promoted recovery of biodiversity .

In particular, China is one of the countries with the severest desertification in the world. Desertification, referred to as "cancer of the earth", poses a threat to human survival and development.

After the founding of New China, through the efforts of several generations over decades, a large area of China has reversed the trend from "sand invades and people retreat" to "green advances and sand retreats".

China's Maowusu Desert
Maowusu Desert is one of China's major deserts. Green is now the dominant colour in the heart of Maowusu. (Web Image)
China has made significant achievements in afforestation. The picture shows a comparison of the Huangyangtan in Zhangjiakou, Hebei Province, before and after the treatment.
Huangyangtan in Zhangjiakou, Hebei, was a vast desert in 2006 (upper picture). After 14 years of control, more than 10 million trees have been planted, transforming it into a lush forest (lower picture). (Image Source: VCG)

The rate of forest coverage in China has increased from 8.6% at the founding of PRC in 1949 to 24.02% in 2023, approximately three times as large as 75 years ago. 

Currently, China stands as the country with the fastest and most considerable growth in forest resources worldwide. In the past decade, China has contributed about a quarter of the world's new greening areas, ranking first in the world.

Cleaner Cities: Plastic control and waste sorting

In addition to improvements in the quality of natural environment like air, water, and forests, plastic products, which are indispensable in modern life, and various kinds of waste, are also key parts of environmental issues.

China issued a plastic restriction order in 2008, banning the production, sale, and use of plastic shopping bags with a thickness of less than 0.025 millimetres, and implementing a paid use system in retail venues.

From 2011 to 2020 alone, China has accumulated 1.7 billion tonnes of various kinds of waste plastic material recycling, becoming the world's largest single economy in waste plastic recycling.

Jieshou City in Anhui Province, a national demonstration city for the circular economy, is showcasing stories of "turning waste into treasure".
Jieshou City in Anhui Province, a national demonstration city for the circular economy, is showcasing stories of "turning waste into treasure". (Web Image)

In addition to implementing plastic control, many Chinese cities have also been actively promoting waste sorting systems in recent years.

At present, the coverage rate of waste sorting in residential areas in cities at or above the prefecture level has reached 92.6%, and 46 key cities have first established complete systems for waste sorting, collection, transportation, and disposal.

For instance, Shanghai, as a pioneer city in waste sorting, started promoting waste sorting in 2019. Compared to before the implementation of waste sorting in Shanghai, currently, the quantity of recyclable materials has increased 1.9 times while dry waste has decreased by 15.6%.

Waste sorting in Shanghai
The left picture shows a Shanghai worker sorting recyclables at a transit station; the right picture is a garbage room in a community in Hongkou District after being transformed into a smart facility. (Image Source: VCG)

In addition, the clearance rate of urban domestic waste in China has basically reached 100%, and the coverage rate of domestic waste disposal systems in administrative villages has also exceeded 90%.

Of course, there are still some challenges in China's plastic control and waste sorting, such as disparities among different cities, public participation rate, and execution, which require continuous joint efforts for further improvement.

Over the past 75 years, China has achieved a balance between economic and social development and environmental protection. China's environmental protection concepts have gradually become clear, and related policies and regulations have been continuously perfected.

Now, China continues to strive and contribute Chinese wisdom and strength to global environmental governance by strengthening the use of technological innovation and promoting environmental protection.

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