China's economic and social development problems

2. focus on solving prominent environmental problems and curbing the spread of pollution

Comrade Xi Jinping stressed: “Environmental protection and governance should focus on solving environmental problems that harm people’s health and highlight environmental problems”,2 starting from the most prominent things that affect people’s lives, focusing on problems, aiming at “pain points”, and winning the battle against pollution.

Implement air pollution prevention and control and win the battle for blue skies. Winning the battle to defend the blue sky is an important part of the decisive victory in building a moderately prosperous society in an all-round way. In response to the prevention and control of air pollution, as early as September 2013, the State Council issued and implemented the Action Plan for the Prevention and Control of Air Pollution. On July 3, 2018, the State Council issued the Three-Year Action Plan for Winning the Blue Sky Defense War, which clarifies that by 2020, the total emissions of sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides will be reduced by more than 15% compared with 2015. The concentration of PM 2.5 in cities at the prefecture level and above decreased by more than 18% compared with 2015, the proportion of days with good air quality in cities at the prefecture level and above reached 80%, and the proportion of days with severe pollution and above decreased by more than 25% compared with 2015, highlighting China’s determination to resolutely win the battle for blue skies.

Achieve the goal of winning the battle for blue skies,

It is necessary to adhere to the principle of paying equal attention to both symptomatic and root causes and special treatment, coordination of normal governance and emergency emission reduction, local pollution control and regional cooperation promoting each other, and take multiple measures at the same time, multi-place linkage, and the whole society acts together. It is necessary to actively carry out cooperation in the control of air pollution in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region and its surrounding areas, the Yangtze River Delta, and the Fenwei Plain, focus on the four key areas of coal, motor vehicles, industry and dust, and concentrate on the implementation of measures to reduce coal burning, control vehicles and reduce oil, control pollution and reduce emissions, and clean dust reduction; accelerate the development of clean energy and new energy, increase the consumption of renewable energy, and solve the problems of abandoning water, wind and light; improve building energy efficiency and promote green buildings; optimize the transportation structure and improve oil quality. Reduce emissions from mobile sources. Implement comprehensive management of water pollution in river basins and sea areas. The protection of the water environment concerns the vital interests of the people. At present, problems such as poor water environment quality, heavy damage to water ecology and many hidden environmental dangers in some areas of China are very prominent, affecting and harming people’s health. In order to effectively increase the prevention and control of water pollution and ensure national water security, in 2015 China issued the “Water Pollution Prevention and Control Action Plan”, that is, the “Water Ten Rules”, adhere to the problem-oriented, heavy blows, heavy punishment of pollution. A total of 26 specific requirements for 6 categories of main indicators were put forward to fully ensure the safety of the water ecological environment, especially from the aspects of ensuring the safety of drinking water sources, strengthening the protection of drinking water sources, preventing and controlling groundwater pollution, deepening the prevention and control of pollution in key river basins, strengthening the protection of good water bodies, and rectifying urban black and odorous water bodies, so as to ensure that all measures are stable, accurate and ruthless, and achieve practical results.

To carry out the prevention and control of water pollution, it is necessary to do a good job in key prevention and control and coordinated prevention and control. The first is to speed up the completion of the shortcomings of urban sewage collection and treatment facilities, and speed up the treatment of black and odorous water bodies. The second is to promote the comprehensive improvement of key river basins and coastal sea areas. Collaborative management of surface water and groundwater, fresh water and seawater, large rivers and small ditches. It is necessary to do a good job in tackling tough problems in the protection and restoration of the Yangtze River, jointly grasp large-scale protection, and refrain from large-scale development. It is necessary to do a good job in protecting water sources and comprehensively improve the level of water quality security in drinking water sources. The third is to give full play to the advantages of the river chief system and lake chief system with Chinese characteristics, strengthen the implementation of responsibilities, and strive to ensure that rivers and lakes are realized from “no one cares” to “people manage” and “follow” Can’t control it" to “manage well”, from “no one governs” to “cures well.".” Strengthen soil pollution control and restoration, and strengthen the control of agricultural non-point source pollution. Soil is the material basis for sustainable economic and social development, soil pollution directly affects the growth of crops, is related to the safety of rice bags, vegetable baskets, water tanks, and the health of the people.

In response to the overall situation of serious soil environmental pollution in China, in May 2016, the State Council issued the Action Plan for the Prevention and Control of Soil Pollution, known as the “Ten Soil Articles”, which identified ten “hard tasks” such as strengthening the protection of unpolluted soil, strengthening the supervision of soil pollution sources, and carrying out soil pollution control and restoration. On January 1, 2019, the Soil Pollution Prevention and Control Law was officially implemented, the subject of protection was further clarified, and the legal accountability for illegal acts of polluted soil was more stringent.

Soil pollution control and restoration should grasp the key points, focusing on the prevention and control of soil pollution on cultivated land and construction land, and strive to ensure the safety of agricultural products and the health of the living environment. Organize and carry out pilot demonstrations of soil pollution control in typical areas for different pollution levels and different pollution types, gradually establish a soil pollution control and restoration technology system, and promote soil pollution control and restoration in a planned and step-by-step manner Complete soil pollution prevention and control management systems, clarify the authority and responsibilities of relevant departments for soil pollution prevention and control, strengthen the division of labor and coordination among departments, and establish and complete soil environmental management systems in which environmental protection departments uniformly supervise and manage, relevant departments divide labor and responsibility, governments at all levels are uniformly organized, and relevant parties jointly participate. Strengthen the control of agricultural non-point source pollution, promote zero growth in the use of chemical fertilizers and pesticides, increase the recovery rate of agricultural film, and accelerate the full resource utilization of crop straw and livestock and poultry breeding waste. Actively participate in global environmental governance and implement emission reduction commitments. As early as 2015, China promised that by 2020, carbon dioxide emissions per unit of GDP will be reduced by 40%~45% compared with 2005, and non-fossil energy will account for about 15% of primary energy consumptionCO2 emissions will peak around 2030 and aim to peak as soon as possible. In fact, China’s carbon dioxide emissions per unit of GDP in 2017 fell by 46% compared with 2005, which has exceeded the upper limit target of reducing carbon intensity by 40%~45% by 2020,1 and the carbon emission peak target is also expected to be completed ahead of schedule. China has also taken the lead in issuing China’s National Plan for Implementing the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, implementing the National Climate Change Plan (2014- 2020), and depositing the instrument of ratification of the Paris Agreement with the United Nations. In 2017, it initiated the establishment of the “Belt and Road” International Alliance for Green Development together with international agencies such as the United Nations Environment Programme. The elimination of ozone-depleting substances in China accounts for more than 50% of the total number of developing countries, becoming the country that has contributed the most to the protection of the global ozone layer.

It is necessary to adhere to environmental friendliness, cooperate to address climate change, take the adoption of the Paris Agreement as an opportunity to promote the early entry into force of the Agreement as soon as possible, and at the same time adhere to the principles of common but differentiated responsibilities, fairness and respective capabilities, and steadily advance follow-up negotiations in accordance with the mandate of the Paris Conference. It is necessary to promote the construction of the green “Belt and Road”, deepen environmental protection cooperation among countries along the route, enrich cooperation mechanisms and exchange platforms, and comprehensively promote the greening process of the “five links.” We should adhere to green and low-carbon, promote the international community to strengthen cooperation and joint efforts, build an ecological system that respects nature and green development, and build a beautiful and clean world.