- •Public Policy Analysis
- •IMpa Grands exercices de cours
- •1. Introduction 99
- •The Analysis of China’s Policy of Importing Solid Waste Zhanyu Li
- •1. Introduction 99
- •1. Introduction 99
- •8. Conclusion 129
- •Introduction
- •1.1 The choice of policies and countries
- •1.2 Short history of China’s policy of waste importation
- •1.3 Short history of Germany’s policy of waste importation
- •The Political Definition of the Problem
- •2.1 China’s political definition of the problem
- •Intervention hypothesis
- •2.2 Germany’s political definition of the problem
- •Intervention Hypothesis
- •2.3 Comparative studies
- •3.1 Five constituent elements of the pap of China’s policy of waste importation
- •3.2 Five constituent elements of the pap of Germany’s policy of waste importation
- •3.3 Comparative studies
- •China’s paAs
- •The paa of licensing the domestic consignees
- •4.2 Germany’s paAs
- •4.3 Comparative studies
- •5.1 China’s aPs
- •5.2 Germany’s aPs
- •5.3 Comparative studies
- •The outputs
- •6.1 China’s output of licensing enterprises using solid waste
- •6.2 Germany’s output of written consent of shipment of waste
- •6.3 Comparative studies
- •Evaluative Statements
- •7.1 Evaluating China’s output of licensing solid waste
- •7.2 Evaluating Germany’s output of consent
- •7.3. Comparative Studies
- •Conclusion
- •References
- •The Analysis of China’s Policy
- •Of Importing Solid Waste
- •Zhanyu Li
- •Abstract
- •Research Background
- •1.1 The definition of solid waste
- •1.2. The double-edged solid waste
- •1.3. The global waste trade
- •1.4. International conventions and agreements
- •Research Rationale
- •Literature Review and Conceptual Framework
- •3.1 The literatures on solid waste
- •3.2. The literatures on China’s import of solid waste
- •3.3. Conceptual framework
- •Research questions
- •Data Collection and Methodology
- •The overall description of solid waste imported by China
- •The driving force behind China's import of solid waste
- •7.1 The imported solid waste can mitigate the domestic lack of resources.
- •7.2. The cheap labour resources in China
- •7.3. The needs arising from certain industries
- •7.4. The underdeveloped domestic collecting system
- •7.5. Low shipping costs
- •The challenges facing Chinese public authorities
- •8.1. The transferring, renting and faking of import license.
- •8.2. The waste trafficking
- •8.3. The lack of public awareness of significance of imported solid waste
- •8.4. The inadequacy of technologies, personnel and other public resources
- •8.5. The secondary environmental pollution caused by inappropriate use of
- •Imported solid waste
- •The evolution of Chinese policies of importing solid waste
- •The current regimes of regulating import of solid waste
- •10.1. The competent authorities
- •10.2. The legal framework
- •Political agenda setting
- •Policy Programming
- •12.1. Political-administrative programs
- •12.2. Political-administrative arrangements
- •12.3. The actors' games at the stage of policy programming – the example of China's Association of Plastics Processing Industry
- •Policy implementation
- •13.1. Action plans
- •13.2. The operational analysis of aPs of enclosed management zone
- •Implementation acts (outputs)
- •14.1. Operational analysis of implementation acts
- •14.2. The Game of Policy Actors at the Stage of Policy Implementation- The example of the implementation of policy of imported solid waste at Luqiao District of Taizhou City.
- •Evaluating policy effects
- •15.1. The dimensions of evaluating the policy of import of solid waste
- •15.2. Data collections
- •15.3. Other independent variants
- •Appendix I
- •References
- •Introduction
- •Causal Model
- •2.3 Comparative discussions
- •Causal hypothesis
- •Political-administrative Program (pap)
- •Mainland China
- •3.1.1 Concrete objectives
- •3.1.2 Evaluative elements
- •3.1.3 Operational elements
- •3.1.4 Paa and resources
- •3.1.5 Procedural elements
- •Hong Kong
- •3.2.1 Concrete objectives
- •3.2.2 Evaluative elements
- •3.2.3 Operational elements
- •3.2.4 Paa and resources
- •3.2.5 Procedural elements
- •3.3 Comparisons between Mainland China and Hong Kong
- •Political-administrative Arrangement (paa)
- •4.1 Mainland China
- •4.2 Hong Kong
- •4.3 Comparisons between Mainland China and Hong Kong
- •Action plan (ap)
- •5.1 Mainland China
- •5.3 Comparisons between Mainland China and Hong Kong
- •Outputs
- •Mainland China (Beijing)
- •6.1.1 Output one: Restrictions on the last digit of vehicle plate numbers
- •6.1.2 Output two: Lottery systems for new car plates
- •Hong Kong
- •6.2.1 Output one: Improvement of the interchange between private and public transport modes.
- •6.2.2 Output two: Use of Alternative Fuel Vehicles to replace Diesel Vehicles
- •6.3 Comparisons between Mainland China and Hong Kong
- •6.3.1. Strategies
- •6.3.2. Six dimensions of the analysis of the outputs
- •Evaluative statement
- •7.1 The evaluative statement in Beijing
- •7.2 The evaluative statement in Hong Kong
- •7.3 Comparative discussion
- •Conclusion
- •References
8.4. The inadequacy of technologies, personnel and other public resources
Since ten years ago from 2003, the types of imported solid waste have doubled from 12 to 63. The same is true for the number of enterprises using solid waste from 1300 to 2603.77 The number of licensing has also increased by five times. This has imposed a big challenge to the organizational structure, personnel, infrastructure of the public authorities responsible for solid waste importation. Besides, the technologies of identifying and classifying solid waste is the factor hindering the management of imported solid waste, so it is time for public authorities to promote the studies related to solid waste, such as the studies on demand-supply relationship, pollution-prevention and reuse of solid waste.78
8.5. The secondary environmental pollution caused by inappropriate use of
Imported solid waste
According to NGO sources (Basel Action Network, 2002; Greenpeace, 2008), in developing countries, dismantling operations are often carried out with no or very little personal protection equipment or pollution control measures. In open burning of materials to recover metals, fly ash particulates laden with heavy metals and other toxic substances are usually emitted, resulting in increased human exposure, and contamination of food, soil and surface water. Materials of no use are then just dumped in an uncontrolled way, which may lead to further release of pollutants and damage to the environment.
The evolution of Chinese policies of importing solid waste
Since 1986, Chinese media has drawn the public attention to the imported solid waste with the coverage about the importation of second-handed garments. To deal with this illegal importation, The National Council issued The Notice of Examining and Eradicating Importation of Second-handed Garments (the Announcement No. 61 of 1986). This was the first time that the Chinese authorities as well as the public had to deal with the problems of importation of solid waste. However, no concrete measures had been taken during that time. Since 1990s, the international community have started the combat against the increasing trans-boundary shipment of solid waste, especially the hazardous waste. In 1991, the Ministry of Environmental Protection and GACC jointly issued The Notice of Controlling the Transfer of Hazardous Waste to China. In 1994, the Ministry of Environmental Protection issued The Interim Rules on Importing Solid Waste from European Countries. In this rules, the import of certain solid waste should be approved before importation. The above-mentioned measures and rules mark the beginning of China's efforts to regulate the importation of solid waste. The systems of classifying solid waste, licensing, and risk-analysis had been initially built. However, there was still a great scope for further improvement. Firstly, there were no overall and systematic methods, nor criteria of defining and identifying solid waste. Moreover, there was no clear division of responsibilities among the relevant government departments. Apart from that, there was no complementary environmental standard to the measures and rules.
In 1996, the shocking accident of environmental pollution caused by solid waste at Pingu,79 Beijing urged Chinese government to tighten their measures on importation of solid waste. In April, 1996, the five ministries jointly issued The Interim Rules on Environmental Protection Related to Importing Solid Waste. Under this rules, importers were prohibited to import the kinds of solid waste which were not listed in the catalogue of solid waste restricted for import. When importing the kinds of solid waste which were listed in the catalogue of solid waste restricted for import, they should be approved by the relevant departments in advance.This measure marks the development stage of China’s policies in importing solid waste. In this period, the government departments responsible for import of solid waste increased to 5 departments, including the departments of environmental protection, foreign trade, customs, commerce, and quality supervision and quarantine. Besides, the first batch of 12 environmental protection standards related to imported solid waste was issued, that is, the Controlling Standards of Environmental Protection Related to Imported Solid Waste (GB16487.1-12-1996).
In 2005, The Revised Law of the People's Republic of China on the Prevention and Control of Environmental Pollution Caused by Solid Waste came into force. In this revised law, it is stipulated that the five departments, that is, the departments of environmental protection, foreign trade, macroeconomic regulating, customs and quality supervision and quarantine are responsible for administration of import of solid waste as well as devising and issuing the relevant measures. At the same time, the 13 environmental standards of the Controlling Standards of Environmental Protection Related to Imported Solid Waste (GB 16487-2005) were formally issued in the December of 2005.
In 2011, the five departments jointly issued The Measures on the Administration of Import of Solid Waste,80 which laid the foundation for regulating the import of solid waste. In this measures, China’s regulating regimes of importing solid waste has been basically completed, including the regimes of classified administration, licensing enterprises, importers, exporters, the customs inspection, monitoring, and draw-backs.
From this retrospective point, the conclusion can be drawn that the China's policies of importing solid waste have been evolving with the economic and social development, the transformation of the government role and increasing public awareness of environmental protection as well as the media monitoring. The policies focus will change almost every five or six years. This time span has been enlarging recently. This can reflect that China’s import regime of solid waste has been improving.
Table IV: The evolution of China’s policies of importing solid waste
Time |
Key documents |
Competent authorities |
The environmental standards |
1986 |
The Notice of Examining and Eradicating Importation of Second-handed Garments |
Not defined |
No standard |
1991 |
The Notice of Controlling the Transfer of Hazardous Waste to China. |
The department of environmental protection and customs |
No standard |
1996 |
The Interim Rules on Environmental Protection Related to Importing Solid Waste |
The department of environmental protection, foreign trade, commerce, quality inspection and customs |
12 standards |
2005 |
The Revised Law of the People's Republic of China on the Prevention and Control of Environmental Pollution Caused by Solid Waste |
the departments of environmental protection, foreign trade, macroeconomic regulating, customs and quality supervision and quarantine |
13 standards |
2011 |
The Measures on the Administration of Import of Solid Waste |
the departments of environmental protection, commerce, macroeconomic regulating, customs and quality supervision and quarantine |
13 standards |