Administrative Measures for Protecting against and Mitigating Thunder and Lightning Disasters (2025)

Administrative Measures for Protecting against and Mitigating Thunder and Lightning Disasters
(Issued by the Order No. 44 of the China Meteorological Administration on March 31, 2025 and coming into force on June 1, 2025)

Chapter I General Provisions
Article 1 These Measures are developed in accordance with the relevant provisions of the Meteorology Law of the People's Republic of China, the Administrative License Law of the People's Republic of China, the Work Safety Law of the People's Republic of China, the Regulation on the Defense against Meteorological Disasters, and other applicable laws and regulations for the purposes of strengthening the defense against thunder and lightning disasters, regulating the management of thunder and lightning disasters, enhancing the ability and level of defense against thunder and lightning disasters, protecting national interest and the safety of people's lives and property, safeguarding public security, and promoting economic construction and social development.
Article 2 Organizations and individuals that engage in the activities of protecting against and mitigating thunder and lightning disasters within the territory of the People's Republic of China and other sea areas under the jurisdiction of the People's Republic of China shall abide by these Measures.
For the purposes of these Measures, “protection against thunder and lightning disasters” (“protecting against and mitigating thunder and lightning disasters”) means the activities of protecting against and mitigating thunder and lightning disasters, including the research on, monitoring of, early warning of, risk appraisal of, protection against, and popularization and publicity of scientific knowledge on thunder and lightning and thunder and lightning disasters, as well as the investigation and identification of thunder and lightning disasters.
Article 3 The work of protecting against and mitigating thunder and lightning disasters shall follow the principles of safety first, focusing on prevention, and combining prevention with control.
Article 4 The meteorological administration of the State Council shall be responsible for organizing, administering, and guiding the national work of protecting against and mitigating thunder and lightning disasters.
The local meteorological administration at each level shall, under the leadership of the meteorological administration at the higher level and the people's government at the same level, be responsible for organizing and administering the work of protecting against and mitigating thunder and lightning disasters within its administrative region, and in light of the actual circumstances of its locality, develop and issue the catalog of key entities for protection against thunder and lightning disasters.
Other relevant departments of the State Council and other relevant departments of local people's governments at all levels shall, according to their duties, effectively carry out their respective work of protecting against and mitigating thunder and lightning disasters.
Article 5 The state encourages and supports scientific and technological research and development for protecting against and mitigating thunder and lightning disasters, shall popularize and apply scientific and technological research achievements in lightning protection, strengthen the standardization of lightning protection, improve the technical level of lightning protection, popularize and publicize scientific knowledge on protecting against and mitigating thunder and lightning disasters, and enhance the people's awareness of protecting against and mitigating thunder and lightning disasters.
Article 6 To engage in the activities of protecting against and mitigating thunder and lightning disasters within the territory of the People's Republic of China or any other sea area under the jurisdiction of the People's Republic of China, a foreign organization or individual shall obtain the joint approval of the meteorological administration of the State Council and relevant departments, and accept the supervision and administration of the local meteorological administration at the provincial level.
Chapter II Monitoring and Early Warning
Article 7 The meteorological administration of the State Council shall organize relevant departments to make plans on the national thunder and lightning monitoring network in accordance with the principles of reasonable layout, information sharing, and effective utilization, so as to avoid redundant construction.
The local meteorological administration at each level shall organize the construction of thunder and lightning monitoring network within its administrative region, so as to protect against thunder and lightning disasters.
Article 8 The meteorological administration at each level shall strengthen the construction of the early warning system for thunder and lightning di......