Administrative Measures for Protecting against and Mitigating Thunder and Lightning Disasters (2013 Amendment)

Administrative Measures for Protecting against and Mitigating Thunder and Lightning Disasters (2013 Amendment) Administrative Measures for Protecting against and Mitigating Thunder and Lightning Disasters (Deliberated and adopted at the Director's Executive Meeting of China Meteorological Administration on July 11, 2011, and promulgated by the Order No. 20 of the China Meteorological Administration and shall come into force on September 1, 2011. amended in accordance with the Decision of the China Meteorological Administration on Amending the Administrative Measures for Protecting against and Mitigating Thunder and Lightning Disasters by the Order No. 24 of the China Meteorological Administration on May 31, 2013) Chapter I General Provisions Article 1 To strengthen the defense against thunder and lightning disasters, regulate the management of thunder and lightning disasters, enhance the ability and standard of defense against thunder and lightning disasters, protect national interest and the safety of the people's life and property, maintain public security, and promote economic construction and social development, these Measures are formulated 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 Regulation on the Defense against Meteorological Disasters and other laws and regulations. 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 or within other sea areas under the jurisdiction of the People's Republic of China shall abide by these Measures. The term “defense against thunder and lightning disasters” as mentioned in these Measures (hereinafter referred to as “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 and protection against thunder and lightning or thunder and lightning disasters, as well as the investigation and authentication 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. Other relevant departments of the State Council and other relevant departments of the local people's government at each level shall, according to their duties, effectively carry out their respective work of protecting against and mitigating thunder and lightning disasters, and accept the supervision and administration of the meteorological administration at the same level. Article 5 The state shall encourage and support the scientific and technological research and development for protecting against and mitigating thunder and lightning disasters, popularize and apply the scientific and technological research achievements in lightning protection, strengthen the standardization of lightning protection, improve the technical level in 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 other relevant departments, and be filed with the local meteorological administration at the provincial level to 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 the relevant departments to make plans on the national thunder and lightning monitoring network in light of 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 disasters, and improve its service capacities in the early warning of, protection against and mitigation of thunder and lightning disasters. Article 9 The meteorological stations under the respective meteorological administration at each level shall, in light of the needs for protecting against thunder and lightning disasters, monitor thunder and lightning according to their functions, and provide in a timely manner the thunder and lightning monitoring information to the meteorological administration and the relevant disaster prevention and rescue departments. Qualified meteorological stations under the meteorological administration may forecast thunder and lightning, and release such information to the public in a timely manner. Article 10 The meteorological administration at each level shall organize the relevant departments to strengthen their research on the basic theories such as the occurrence mechanism of thunder and lightning or thunder and lightning disasters, as well as the application theories on the technologies on protecting against thunder and lightning disasters, and strengthen their research and development of the technologies on protecting against and mitigating thunder and lightning disasters and thunder and lightning monitoring and early warning systems. Chapter III Thunder Protection Projects Article 11 The devices for protecting against thunder and lightning, which are installed on various kinds of buildings (structures), places and facilities (hereinafter referred to as the “t......