Soil Pollution Prevention and Control Law of the People's Republic of China

Soil Pollution Prevention and Control Law of the People's Republic of China Order of the President (No. 8) The Soil Pollution Prevention and Control Law of the People's Republic of China, as adopted at the Fifth Session of the Standing Committee of the Thirteenth National People's Congress of the People's Republic of China on August 31, 2018, is hereby issued with effect from January 1, 2019. President of the People's Republic of China Xi Jinping August 31, 2018 Soil Pollution Prevention and Control Law of the People's Republic of China (Adopted at the 5th session of the Standing Committee of the Thirteenth National People's Congress of the People's Republic of China on August 31, 2018) Contents Chapter I General Provisions Chapter II Plans, Standards, General Surveys and Monitoring Chapter III Prevention and Protection Chapter IV Risk Management and Control and Remediation Section 1 General Rules Section 2 Land for Agricultural Use Section 3 Land for Construction Use Chapter V Guarantee and Supervision Chapter VI Legal Liability Chapter VII Supplemental Provision Chapter I General Provisions Article 1 This Law is enacted for the purposes of protecting and improving the ecology and environment, preventing and controlling soil pollution, safeguarding public health, prompting perpetual utilization of soil resources, advancing the building of ecological civilization, and promoting sustainable economic and social development. Article 2 This Law shall apply to the prevention and control of soil pollution and relevant activities within the territory of the People's Republic of China and in the sea areas under the jurisdiction thereof. For the purposes of this Law, "soil pollution" means a phenomenon that a substance is caused to enter soil on the surface of earth by human, leading to the change in the chemical, physical, biological, and other characters of soil, affecting the functions and effective utilization of soil, jeopardizing public health or damaging the ecology and environment. Article 3 In the prevention and control of soil pollution, the principles of a focus on prevention, priority given to protection, classification administration, risk management and control, liability for pollution, and public participation shall be adhered to. Article 4 Any entity or individual shall be obligated to protect soil and prevent soil pollution. Land usufructaries that engage in the activities to develop and utilize land and enterprises, public institutions, and other producers and operators shall take effective measures to prevent or diminish soil pollution and be liable for soil pollution caused. Article 5 The local people's governments at all levels shall be responsible for the prevention and control of soil pollution and safe utilization of soil within their respective administrative regions. The state shall implement a soil pollution prevention and control objective responsibility system and appraisal and assessment system and use the status of the accomplishment of soil pollution prevention and control objectives as the content to appraise and assess the local people's governments at all levels and the persons in charge thereof and the departments of the people's governments at and above the county level charged with the duties of supervision and administration of prevention and control of soil pollution and the persons in charge thereof. Article 6 The people's governments at all levels shall strengthen the leadership of prevention and control of soil pollution and organize, coordinate and supervise relevant departments to discharge their duties of supervision and administration of prevention and control of soil pollution according to the law. Article 7 The ecological and environmental department of the State Council shall conduct uniform supervision and administration of the prevention and control of soil pollution across the country; and the agriculture and rural affairs, natural resources, housing and urban-rural development, forestry and grassland, and other departments of the State Council shall conduct supervision and administration of the prevention and control of soil pollution within their respective competence. The ecological and environmental departments of local people's governments shall conduct unified supervision and administration of the prevention and control of soil pollution within their respective administrative regions; and the agriculture and rural affairs, natural resources, housing and urban-rural development, forestry and grassland, and other departments of local people's governments shall conduct supervision and administration of the prevention and control of soil pollution within their respective competence. Article 8 The state shall develop a soil environment information sharing mechanism. The ecological and environmental department of the State Council shall, in conjunction with the agriculture and rural affairs, natural resources, housing and urban-rural development, water resources, health, forestry and grassland, and other departments of the State Council, establish a basic soil environment database and build a national soil environment information platform to realize dynamical data update and data sharing. Article 9 The state shall support the research and development of, conversion of the achievements in, and promotion and application of science and technology for prevention and control of pollution, such as management and control of soil pollution risk, remediation, and monitoring, encourage the development of the soil pollution prevention and control industry, strengthen the cultivation of professional and technological talents in the prevent and control of soil pollution, and prompt the progress in the science and technology for prevention and control of soil pollution. The state shall support international exchange and cooperation in prevention and control of soil pollution. Article 10 The people's governments at all levels, the relevant departments thereof, primary-level autonomous non-governmental organizations, and the press shall strengthen soil pollution prevention and control publicity, education and science popularization, raise the public awareness of prevention and control of soil pollution, and guide the public in participating in prevention and control of soil pollution according to the law. Chapter II Plans, Standards, General Surveys and Monitoring Article 11 The people's governments at and above the county level shall include the prevention and control of soil pollution in national economic and social development plans and environmental protection plans. The ecological and environmental departments of local people's governments at and above the level of city divided into districts shall, in conjunction with development and reform, agriculture and rural affairs, natural resources, housing and urban-rural development, forestry and grassland, and other departments, based on the requirements of environmental protection plans, use of land, general surveys of soil pollution, and monitoring results, among others, prepare soil pollution prevention and control plans and, with the approval of the people's governments at the same level, issue and implement them. Article 12 The ecological and environmental department of the State Council shall, based on soil pollution status, public health risks, ecosystem risks, and scientific and technological level, according to the use of land, develop national standards for management and control of soil pollution risk and strengthen the building of a system of standards for the prevention and control of soil pollution. Provincial people's governments may develop local standards for management and control of soil pollution risk, in respect of items on which the national standards for management and control of soil pollution risk are silent, and standards for management and control of soil pollution risk more stringent that the national standards for management and control of soil pollution risk, in respect of items existing in national standards for management and control of soil pollution risk. Local standards for management and control of soil pollution risk shall be filed with the ecological and environmental department of the State Council. Standards for management and control of soil pollution risk shall be compulsory. The state shall support the research of background concentrations in soil and environmental quality benchmarks. Article 13 Over the course of the development of standards for management and control of soil pollution risk, experts shall be organized to conduct review and discussion, and relevant departments, industry associations, enterprises, public institutions, the public and other parties shall be requested to make comments. The implementation of the standards for management and control of soil pollution risk shall be regularly assessed, and the standards shall be revised based on the assessment results. The ecological and environmental departments of the people's governments at and above the provincial level shall issue standards for management and control of soil pollution risk in their websites for gratuitous access and download by the public. Article 14 The State Council shall lead general surveys of nationwide soil pollution in a unified manner. The ecological and environmental department of the State Council shall, in conjunction with the agriculture and rural affairs, natural resources, housing and urban-rural development, forestry and grassland, and other departments of the State Council, organize a general survey of the nationwide soil pollution status at least once ten years. The relevant departments of the State Council or the local people's governments of cities divided into districts may, based on the actual circumstances in their respective industries or administrative regions, organize and conduct thorough surveys of the soil pollution status. Article 15 The state shall implement a soil environment monitoring system. The ecological and environmental department of the State Council shall develop rules for monitoring the soil environment, organize a monitoring network in conjunction with the agriculture and rural affairs, natural resources, housing and urban-rural development, water resources, health, forestry and grassland, and other departments of the State Council, and plan the establishment of national soil pollution status monitoring stations (sites) in a unified manner. Article 16 The agriculture and rural affairs, and forestry and grassland departments of local people's governments shall, in conjunction with the ecological and environmental, and natural resources departments, focus on monitoring the following tracts of land for agricultural use: (1) Producing agricultural products containing pollution in excess of limits. (2) Being or used to be wastewater-irrigated areas. (3) Being or used to be used for scale-based livestock farming or to stack or bury solid waste. (4) Used as land for industrial or mining use, or in which a significant or particularly significant pollution accident took place. (5) Surrounding a facility for the production, storage, utilization or disposition of any toxic or hazardous substance. (6) Having other circumstances as provided by the agriculture and rural affairs, forestry and grassland, ecological and environmental, and natural resources departments of the State Council. Article 17 The ecological and environmental departments of local people's governments shall, in conjunction with natural resources departments, focus on monitoring the following tracts of land for construction use: (1) Used to be used for production, use, storage, recycling or disposal of toxic and hazardous substances. (2) Used to be used for stacking or burial of solid waste. (3) In which a significant or particularly significant pollution accident took place. (4) Having other circumstances as provided by the ecological and environmental, and natural resources departments of the State Council. Chapter III Prevention and Protection Article 18 Various plans relating to land utilization and construction projects which may give rise to soil pollution shall be subject to environmental impact assessment according to the law. An environmental impact assessment document shall include the adverse impact possibly brought on soil, corresponding preventive measures which shall be taken, and other content. Article 19 An entity or individual that produces, uses, stores, transports, recycles, disposes of, or discharges toxic or hazardous substances shall take effective measures to prevent the leakage, loss, or spills of the substances and avoid soil pollution. Article 20 The ecological and environmental department of the State Council shall, in conjunction with health and other departments of the State Council, based on the impact on and damage to public health and the ecology and environment, screen and assess the toxic and hazardous substances in soil, issue a catalog of toxic and hazardous substances under priority control for soil, and update it in due course. Article 21 The ecological and environmental departments of local people's governments at or above the level of city divided into districts shall, as required by the ecological and environmental department of the State Council, according to the discharge of toxic and hazardous substances and other information, develop directories of entities subject to priority regulation for soil pollution in their respective administrative regions, disclose them to the pubic, and update them in due course. An entity subject to priority regulation for soil pollution shall fulfill the following obligations: (1) Strictly controlling the discharge of toxic and hazardous substances and reporting discharge information to the ecological and environmental authority on an annual basis. (2) Establishing a screening system for hidden soil pollution risk and ensuring the continuous and effective prevention of the leakage, loss and spills of toxic and hazardous substances. (3) Developing and implementing self-monitoring plans and submitting monitoring data to the ecological and environmental authority. The obligations as provided in the preceding paragraph shall be contained in the pollution discharge permit. Enterprises subject to priority regulation for soil pollution shall be responsible for the authenticity and accuracy of the monitoring data. The ecological and environmental authorities shall conduct timely surveys when discovering abnormal monitoring data from enterprises subject to priority regulation for soil pollution. The ecological and environmental departments of provincial people's governments at or above the level of city divided into districts shall regularly monitor the soil surrounding enterprises subject to priority regulation for soil pollution. Article 22 An enterprise shall take corresponding soil pollution prevention and control measures when dismantling facilities, equipment, buildings or structures. An entity subject to priority regulation for soil pollution shall, when dismantling facilities, equipment, buildings or constructions, make a soil pollution prevention and control plan including contingency measures and file it with the ecological and environmental, and industry and information technology departments of local people's government and implement it. Article 23 The ecological and environmental, and natural resources departments of the State Council shall strengthen the supervision and administration of prevention and control of soil pollution in mineral resource exploitation regions according to the law and, in accordance with requirements of relevant standards and total quantity control, strictly control the discharge of key pollution which may cause soil pollution. Entities operating and managing tailings ponds shall, as required, strengthen the safety management of tailings ponds and take measures to prevent soil pollution. Entities operating and managing dilapidated ponds, dangerous ponds, substandard ponds, and other tailings ponds requiring priority regulation shall monitor and regularly assess soil pollution status as required. Article 24 The state shall encourage the adoption of new technologies and new materials in building, telecommunications, electric power, transport, water conservancy, and other fields and information, network, lightning protection, ground, and other construction projects to prevent soil pollution. It shall be prohibited to use in soil resistance reducing products containing heavy metal in excess of limits. Article 25 In the construction and operation of centralized wastewater treatment facilities or solid waste disposal facilities, measures shall be taken according to the requirements of the law, regulations and relevant standards, to prevent soil pollution. The ecological and environmental departments of local people's governments shall regularly monitor the impact centralized wastewater treatment facilities and solid waste disposal facilities have on the surrounding soil; and if the requirements of the law, regulations or relevant standards are not satisfied, entities operating centralized wastewater treatment facilities or solid waste disposal facilities shall be required, according to monitoring results, to take corresponding improvement measures. The local people's governments at various levels shall plan and build in an overall manner urban and rural municipal wastewater and solid waste treatment and disposition facilities, guarantee the normal operation thereof, and prevent soil pollution. Article 26 The agriculture and rural affairs, and forestry and grassland departments of the State Council shall make plans, improve related standards and measures, strengthen the guidance and control of the usage of pesticide and fertilizers in land for agricultural use, and strengthen the control of the use of agricultural film. The agriculture and rural affairs department of the State Council shall strengthen the registration of pesticide and fertilizers and organize and conduct the safety assessment of the impact pesticide and fertilizers have on soil. The development of standards for pesticide, veterinary drugs, fertilizers, feed, agricultural film, and other agricultural inputs and the packaging thereof and the standards for the quality of water used for irrigation shall satisfy the requirements for prevention and control of soil pollution. Article 27 The agriculture and rural affairs, and forestry and grassland departments of local people's governments shall conduct the publicity and technical training campaigns for the prevention and control of soil pollution in land for agricultural use, support specialized services for agricultural production, guide agricultural producers in reasonably using pesticide, veterinary drugs, fertilizers, feed, agricultural film, and other agricultural inputs, and control the usage of pesticide, veterinary drugs and chemical fertilizers, among others. The agriculture and rural affairs departments of local people's governments shall encourage agricultural producers in taking combining crop farming with livestock farming, crop rotation and fallow land, and other farming measures in favor of prevention of soil pollution; support the adoption of soil improvement, soil fertility improvement, and other measures in favor of soil maintenance and cultivation; and support the building of livestock excrement treatment and utilization facilities. Article 28 It shall be prohibited to discharge into land for agricultural use wastewater or sludge containing heavy metal or any other toxic and hazardous substance in excess of limits, or dredged sediments, tailings, or slag which may cause soil pollution. The relevant departments of the people's governments at and above the county level shall strengthen the supervision and administration of the gathering, storage, utilization or disposition of livestock excrement, biogas residues, and biogas slurry, among others, to prevent soil pollution. The water used for farmland irrigation shall conform to corresponding water quality standards so as to prevent the pollution of soil,......