SHANGHAI – China has fast-tracked the approval of construction projects worth more than 380 billion yuan ($56.22 billion) after relaxing its environmental rules last month, but will still show “zero tolerance” to law-breaking firms, an official said on Thursday.
The Ministry of Ecology and Environment (MEE) announced in late June that it had simplified China’s environmental impact assessment (EIA) system in order to speed up the approval process for major projects in sectors like infrastructure and transportation.
It promised to “make every effort” to support major construction projects, including those aimed at boosting coal and water supplies.
MEE official Liu Zhiquan told reporters at a regular breifing on Thursday that the move was aimed at “stimulating market vitality”, and 16 major projects had already been approved under the new system.
Last month’s policy announcement said new construction in key sectors like energy and transportation would no longer be judged on how much pollution they emit, and some projects could be exempt from the EIA process entirely.
The move led to concerns China was backsliding on its environmental commitments, but Liu said companies violating environmental rules by submitting fraudulent environmental information would still be severely punished.
“Environmental departments at all levels have always adopted an attitude of ‘zero tolerance’ towards EIA fraud,” he said, adding that 265 firms and 217 individuals had been put on a blacklist since 2021, with some facing criminal penalties.
China’s environmental and decarbonisation plans have come under scrutiny as the government tries to guarantee energy supplies following a wave of power outages last September and revive an economy hit by punishing COVID-19 lockdowns.
It has continued to promote an ambitious renewable energy rollout, with new solar installations more than doubling in the first half of this year, but new coal-fired power plant approvals have also soared.
($1 = 6.7587 yuan)
(Reporting by David Stanway; Editing by Kim Coghill)