CHAPTER I GENERAL PROVISIONS
Article 1 This Law is enacted for the purposes of preventing and controlling water pollution, protecting and improving the environment, safeguarding
human health, ensuring effective utilization of water resources and promoting progress of the socialist modernization drive.
Article 2 This Law applies to prevention and control of pollution of rivers, lakes, canals, irrigation channels, reservoirs and other surface
water bodies and of ground water bodies within the territory of the People’s Republic of China.
This Law is not applicable to prevention and control of marine pollution, which is provided for by a separate law.
Article 3 Relevant departments under the State Council and local people’s governments at various levels must incorporate protection of the
water environment into their plans and adopt ways and measures to prevent and control water pollution.
Article 4 The environmental protection departments of the people’s governments at various levels shall be the organs exercising unified supervision
and management of prevention and control of water pollution.
Navigation administration offices of the communications departments at various levels shall be the organs exercising supervision and
management of pollution caused by ships.
Water conservancy administration departments, public health administration departments, geological and mining departments, municipal
administration departments, and water sources protection agencies for major rivers of the people’s governments at various levels
shall, through performing their respective functions and in conjunction with environmental protection departments, exercise supervision
over and management of prevention and control of water pollution.
Article 5 All units and individuals shall have the duty to protect the water environment and the right to supervise and inform against any
pollution or damage to the water environment.
Any unit or individual that has suffered damage directly from a water pollution hazard shall have the right to demand elimination
of the hazard and compensation for the damage by the polluter.
CHAPTER II ESTABLISHMENT OF STANDARDS FOR WATER ENVIRONMENT QUALITY AND FOR DISCHARGE OF WATER POLLUTANTS
Article 6 The environmental protection department under the State Council shall establish the national standards for water environment quality.
The people’s governments of provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities directly under the Central Government may establish their
own local standards for the items that are not specified in the national standards for water environment quality and report the same
to the environmental protection department under the State Council for the record.
Article 7 The environmental protection department under the State Council shall, in line with the national standards for water environment
quality and the country’s economic and technological conditions, establish the national standards for discharge of water pollutants.
The people’s governments of provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities directly under the Central Government may establish their
own local standards for the items that are not specified in the national standards for discharge of water pollutants. With regard
to the items that are already specified in the national standards for discharge of water pollutants, they may establish more stringent
local standards than the national standards. All local standards must be reported to the environmental protection department under
the State Council for the record.
Those who discharge pollutants into any water body for which local standards have been established shall observe such local standards.
Article 8 The environmental protection department under the State Council and the people’s governments of provinces, autonomous regions and
municipalities directly under the Central Government shall, in line with the requirements of prevention and control of water pollution
and the country’s economic and technological conditions, amend in due time their standards for water environment quality and for
discharge of water pollutants.
CHAPTER III SUPERVISION AND MANAGEMENT OF PREVENTION AND CONTROL OF WATER POLLUTION
Article 9 Relevant departments under the State Council and local people’s governments at various levels shall, when developing, utilizing,
regulating and allocating water resources, make integrated plans for maintaining proper river flows, proper water levels of lakes,
reservoirs and proper ground water tables, in order to retain the natural purification capacity of water bodies.
Article 10 To prevent and control water pollution, it is necessary to make unified plans on the basis of river basins or regions. Plans for
preventing and controlling water pollution of basins of major rivers, designated as such by the State, shall be formulated by the
environmental protection department under the State Council, together with the competent department of planning, water conservancy
administration department and other departments concerned as well as the people’s governments of relevant provinces, autonomous regions
and municipalities directly under the Central Government, and shall be submitted to the State Council for approval.
Plans for preventing and controlling water pollution of basins of other rivers that run across provinces or counties shall be formulated,
in line with the plans for preventing and controlling water pollution of basins of major rivers, designated as such by the State,
and in light of actual local conditions, by the environmental protection departments of the people’s governments at or above the
provincial level, together with the water conservancy administration departments and other departments concerned as well as the relevant
local people’s governments, and shall be submitted to the State Council or the people’s governments at the provincial level for approval.
Plans for preventing and controlling water pollution of basins of other rivers that run across counties but not provinces shall be
submitted by the people’s government of the province concerned to the State Council for the record.
Plans for preventing and controlling water pollution, once approved, shall serve as the essential basis for prevention and control
of water pollution, and any modification of such plans shall be subject to approval of the original departments that approved the
plans.
Local people’s governments at or above the county level shall, in accordance with the approved plans for preventing and controlling
water pollution of river basins, organize people to work out plans for preventing and controlling water pollution for their own administrative
regions and incorporate such plans in the long-term, medium-term and annual plans of their administrative regions for national economic
and social development.
Article 11 Relevant departments under the State Council and local people’s governments at various levels shall make rational plans for the geographical
distribution of industries, subject those enterprises that cause water pollution to rectification and technological updating, adopt
comprehensive prevention and control measures, increase the rate of water recycling, utilize resources rationally and reduce discharge
of waste water and pollutants.
Article 12 The people’s governments at or above the county level may delineate protection zones for water bodies in scenic or historic sites,
major fishery water bodies and other water bodies of special economic or cultural value, and take measures to ensure that the water
quality in those protection zones complies with the standards for the designated uses.
Article 13 New construction projects and expansion or reconstruction projects and other installations on water that directly or indirectly discharge
pollutants to water bodies shall be subject to relevant State regulations governing environmental protection for such projects.
In the environmental impact statement of a construction project an assessment shall be made regarding the water pollution hazards
the project is likely to produce and its impact on the ecosystem, and measures for their prevention and control shall be prescribed.
The statement shall be submitted, according to the specified procedure, to the relevant environmental protection department for examination
and approval. The building of sewage outlets within any water conservancy projects such as canals, irrigation channels and reservoirs
shall be subject to consent of the relevant department in charge of water conservancy projects.
The facilities for prevention and control of water pollution must be designed, constructed and put to use or into operation simultaneously
with the main part of a construction project. Such facilities must be inspected by the environmental protection department. If they
do not conform to the specified requirements, the said project shall not be permitted to be put into operation or to use.
An environmental impact statement shall contain comments and suggestions of the units and residents in the place where the construction
project is located.
Article 14 Enterprises and institutions that discharge pollutants directly or indirectly into a water body shall, pursuant to the regulations
of the environmental protection department under the State Council, report to and register with the local environmental protection
department their existing facilities for discharging and treating pollutants, and the categories, quantities and concentrations of
pollutants discharged under their normal operating conditions, and also provide to the same department technical information concerning
prevention and control of water pollution.
The enterprises and institutions mentioned in the preceding paragraph shall report without delay any substantial change in the categories,
quantities or concentrations of the pollutants discharged. Their facilities for treating water pollutants must be kept in normal
operation; when such facilities are to be dismantled or left idle, the matter must be reported in advance to the environmental protection
department of the local people’s government at or above the county level for approval.
Article 15 Enterprises and institutions that discharge pollutants into a water body shall pay a pollutant discharge fee in accordance with State
regulations; if the discharge exceeds the limits set by the national or local standards, they shall pay a fee for excess discharge
according to State regulations.
The fees paid for pollutant discharge and for excess discharge must be used for prevention and control of water pollution and may
not be used for any other purposes.
Enterprises and institutions that discharge pollutants in excess of the standards must work out plans to make the discharge conform
to the standards, and shall submit, for the record, such plans to the environmental protection department of the local people’s government
at or above the county level in the place where they are located.
Article 16 With regard to water bodies where the standards for water environment quality established by the State still cannot be attained although
the discharge of water pollutants has conformed to the discharge standards, the people’s governments at or above the provincial level
may institute a system for control of the total discharge of major pollutants, and a system for making an estimate before deciding
on the quantity of major pollutants to be discharged by an enterprise that is charged with the task of reducing its discharge. Specific
measures shall be formulated by the State Council.
Article 17 The environmental protection department under the State Council may, together with the water conservancy administration department
under the State Council and the provincial people’s government concerned and in light of the utilization functions determined by
the State for water bodies of major river basins as well as the economic and technological conditions of the related regions, establish
water environment quality standards applicable to water bodies of such major river basins within the provincial boundaries, and such
standards shall be put into practice after being reported to and approved by the State Council.
Article 18 Water resources protection agencies for major river basins determined as such by the State shall be responsible for monitoring the
water environment quality conditions of such river basins within the boundaries of the provinces where they are located and shall,
without delay, report the monitoring findings to the environmental protection department under the State Council and the water conservancy
administration department under the State Council; where there are leading bodies for protection of water resources of the river
basins that are set up with the approval of the State Council, such findings shall, without delay, be reported to those leading bodies.
Article 19 Urban sewage shall be centrally treated.
Relevant departments under the State Council and the local people’s governments at various levels must incorporate protection of urban
water sources and prevention and control of urban water pollution in their respective plans for urban construction, construct and
improve networks of urban drainage pipelines, construct facilities for central treatment of urban sewage according to plans, and
improve all-round treatment and control of urban water environment.
Facilities for central treatment of urban sewage shall be, according to State regulations, provided for use with compensation, that
is, a sewage treatment fee shall be collected so as to ensure normal operation of the facilities. Those who discharge sewage to the
central treatment facilities and pay the fees for sewage treatment shall be exempted from the pollutant discharge fee. Sewage treatment
fees collected shall be used for the construction and operation of the facilities for central treatment of urban sewage and may not
be used for other purposes.
Specific measures for collection, control and use of the fees for facilities for central treatment of urban sewage shall be formulated
by the State Council.
Article 20 The people’s governments at or above the provincial level may delineate surface sources protection zones for domestic and drinking
water according to law. Such protection zones shall be divided into first-grade protection zones and protection zones of other grades.
Certain water areas and land-based areas near the intakes of domestic and drinking surface water sources may be delineated as the
first-grade protection zones. Certain water areas and land-based areas beyond the first-grade protection zones may be delineated
as protection zones of other grades. Protection zones of all grades shall be indicated by clear geographic demarcations.
It is forbidden to discharge sewage into water bodies within the firstgrade surface sources protection zones for domestic and drinking
water.
It is forbidden to travel, swim or carry out other activities within the first-grade surface sources protection zones for domestic
and drinking water that may possibly cause pollution to the water body.
It is forbidden to construct or expand within the first-grade surface sources protection zones for domestic and drinking water, any
projects that have noting to do with water supply facilities and protection of water sources.
With regard to sewage outlets already built in the first-grade surface sources protection zones for domestic and drinking water, the
people’s governments at or above the county level shall, pursuant to the limits of power authorized by the State Council, order that
they be dismantled or treated within a time limit.
The protection of ground sources for domestic and drinking water shallbe strengthened.
Specific measures for protection of domestic and drinking water sources shall be formulated by the State Council.
Article 21 In case of emergency, such as severe pollution of a domestic and drinking water source which threatens the safe supply of water,
the environmental protection department shall, with the approval of the people’s government at the same level, take compulsory emergency
measures, including ordering the enterprises or institutions concerned to reduce or stop the discharge of pollutants.
Article 22 Enterprises shall employ clean production techniques that facilitate high utilization efficiency of raw and semi-finished materials
and reduced discharge of pollutants and improve management to decrease water pollutants.
The State shall institute a system for eliminating outdated production techniques and equipment which seriously pollute the water
environment.
The competent department for comprehensive economic and trade affairs under the State Council shall, together with the relevant departments
under the State Council, publish the catalogue for techniques which seriously pollute the water environment and for stopping the
use of which a time limit is fixed, as well as the catalogue of equipment which seriously pollute the water environment and for stopping
the manufacture, sale, import and use of which a time limit is fixed.
Manufacturers, sellers, importers and users must, within the time limit fixed by the competent department for comprehensive economic
and trade affairs under the State Council together with the relevant departments under the State Council, stop manufacturing, selling,
importing or using the equipment listed in the catalogue mentioned in the preceding paragraph. Users of the production techniques
listed in the catalogue mentioned in the preceding paragraph must stop using such production techniques within the time limit fixed
by the competent department for comprehensive economic and trade affairs under the State Council together with relevant departments
under the State Council.
No equipment that has been eliminated according to the provisions of the preceding two paragraphs may be transferred to others for
use.
Article 23 The State shall forbid construction of any small enterprises, devoid of measures for prevention and control of water pollution, that
seriously pollute the water environment, such as chemical pulp mills, printing and dyeing mills, dyestuff mills, tanneries, electroplating
factories, oil refineries and pesticides manufacturers.
Article 24 Any pollutant discharging unit that causes serious pollution to a water body shall be ordered to treat the pollution within a time
limit.
For enterprises and institutions directly under the jurisdiction of the Central Government or the people’s government of a province,
autonomous region or municipality directly under the Central Government, a proposal on the time limit shall be made by the environmental
protection department of the people’s government of the province, autonomous region or municipality directly under the Central Government
and submitted to the people’s government at the same level for decision. For enterprises and institutions under the jurisdiction
of the people’s government at or below the county or city level, a proposal on the time limit shall be made by the environmental
protection department of the people’s government of the city or county and submitted to the people’s government at the same level
for decision. The pollutant discharging units shall accomplish treatment of the pollution as scheduled.
Article 25 Environmental protection departments and relevant supervision and management departments of the people’s governments at various levels
shall have the power to carry out on-site inspections of pollutant discharging units under their jurisdiction, and the units under
inspection must report the situation truthfully and provide the necessary information. The inspecting authorities shall have the
obligation to keep the technological and business secrets of the units inspected.
Article 26 Disputes over water pollution involving two or more administrative regions shall be settled through consultation by the local people’s
governments concerned, or through mediation by their people’s government at a higher level.
CHAPTER IV PREVENTION OF SURFACE WATER POLLUTION
Article 27 No sewage outlet may be built in the protection zones for domestic and drinking water sources, for water bodies at scenic or historic
sites, for important fishery water bodies and for other water bodies of special economic and cultural value. If a sewage outlet is
to be built in the vicinity of such protection zones, the water bodies within those zones must be protected against pollution.
Sewage outlets that have already been built prior to promulgation of this Law, but that discharge pollutants in excess of the limits
set by the national or local standards shall be tackled and brought under control. Any outlet that endangers drinking water sources
shall be relocated.
Article 28 If a pollutant discharging unit, as a result of an accident or other exigency, discharges pollutants in excess of normal quantities
and thus causes or may possibly cause a water pollution accident, it shall immediately take emergency measures, inform such units
as are likely to be endangered or damaged by the water pollution and report the matter to the local environmental protection department.
Where a ship has caused a pollution accident, it shall report the matter to the nearest navigation administration office for investigation
and disposal.
Where a pollution accident occurs to fishery, the matter shall be investigated and handled by the fishery supervision and administration
department.
Article 29 It is forbidden to discharge any oil, acid or alkaline solutions or deadly toxic liquid waste into any water body.
Article 30 It is forbidden to wash and clean in any water body any vehicles or containers which have been used for storing oil or toxic pollutant.
Article 31 It is forbidden to discharge or dump into any water body or directly bury deadly toxic soluble slag, tailings, etc. containing such
substances as mercury, cadmium, arsenic, chromium, lead, cyanide and yellow phosphorus.
Sites for depositing deadly toxic soluble slag, tailings, etc. shall be made waterproof and protected against seepage and leaking.
Article 32 It is forbidden to discharge or dump industry waste residues, urban refuse or other wastes into any water body.
Article 33 It is forbidden to pile or deposit solid wastes and other pollutants on beaches and bank slopes below the highest water level of
rivers, lakes, canals, irrigation channels and reservoirs.
Article 34 It is forbidden to discharge or dump radioactive solid wastes or waste water containing any high-or medium-level radioactive substances
into any water body.
Any discharge of waste water containing low-level radioactive substances into any water body must comply with the regulations and
standards of the State for radioactive protection.
Article 35 Where heated waste water is discharged into any water body, measures shall be taken to ensure that the temperature of the water body
conforms to the standards for water environment quality, so as to prevent any heat pollution hazard.
Article 36 Pathogen-contaminated sewage may be discharged only after it is disinfected to meet the relevant standards of the State.
Article 37 Where industrial waste water or urban sewage is discharged into farmland irrigation channels, attention shall be paid to ensuring
that the water quality at the nearest irrigation intake downstream conforms to the standards for the farmland irrigation water quality.
When industrial waste water or urban sewage is used for irrigation, attention shall be paid to guarding against pollution of the soil,
ground water and agricultural products.
Article 38 The application of pesticides shall comply with the regulations and standards of the State for their safe use.
Transportation and storage of pesticides and disposal of expired or ineffective pesticides shall be strictly controlled to prevent
water pollution.
Article 39 The administrative departments for agriculture and other departments concerned of the local people’s governments at or above the
county level shall take measures to provide guidance to agricultural producers as to how to apply fertilizers and pesticides scientifically
and rationally, so as to prevent their excessive use and water pollution.
Article 40 The discharge of oil-bearing waste water or domestic ewage from ships shall comply with the standards for pollutant discharge by
ships. Ocean-going ships, on entering inland rivers or harbors, shall observe the standards for pollutant discharge by inland river
ships.
Residual oil or waste oil of ships must be recovered, and its discharge into any water body shall be forbidden.
It is forbidden to dump ship refuse into any water body.
Where ships are being loaded with or transporting oils or toxic cargoes, measures must be taken against any spillage or leakage of
the oils and against such cargoes from falling into water, in order to prevent water pollution.
CHAPTER V PREVENTION OF GROUND WATER POLLUTION
Article 41 Enterprises and institutions shall be forbidden to discharge or dump waste water containing toxic pollutants or pathogens or other
wastes into seepage wells or pits, crevices or karat caves.
Article 42 At places where no satisfactory impervious strata exist, enterprises and institutions shall be forbidden to use ditches, pits or
ponds devoid of safeguards against seepage for conveyance or storage of waste water containing toxic pollutants or pathogens, or
of other wastes.
Article 43 In exploiting ground water from multiple aquifers, layered exploitation shall be resorted to if the water quality differs greatly
from one aquifer to another. No combined exploitation of paretic water and artesian water already polluted may be permitted.
Article 44 While constructing underground engineering facilities or carrying out underground prospecting, mining and other underground activities,
protective measures shall be taken to prevent ground water pollution.
Article 45 Artificial recharge for ground water may not deteriorate the quality of ground water.
CHAPTER VI LEGAL LIABILITY
Article 46 Any one who, in violation of the provisions of this Law, commits any of the following acts, shall, in light of the seriousness of
the case, be warned or fined by the environmental protection department or by the navigation administration office of the communications
department:
(1) refusing to report or submitting a false report on items for which registration is required by the environmental protection department
under the State Council for discharge of pollutants;
(2) refusing an on-site inspection by the environmental protection department or the supervision and management department concerned,
or resorting to deception;
(3) storing, piling, abandoning, dumping or discharging any pollutant or waste in violation of the relevant provisions of Chapters
IV and V of this Law; or
(4) failing to pay, as provided for by the State, the fee for pollutant discharge or for excess discharge.
The amount of fine and the procedure for its imposition shall be stipulated in the rules for implementation of this Law.
Article 47 If any unit, in violation of the provisions of the third paragraph of Article 13 of this Law, puts into production or to use a construction
project for which the construction of facilities for prevention and control of water pollution has not been completed or whose facilities
for prevention and control of water pollution fail to meet the requirements laid down by the State, the environmental protection
department that approved the environmental impact statement of the said project shall order the unit to suspend production or use,
and may also impose a fine on it.
Article 48 If any pollutant discharging unit, in violation of the provisions of the second paragraph of Article 14 of this Law, intentionally
does not use the water pollutant treatment facilities in a normal manner, or dismantles or lays idle such facilities without approval
of the environmental protection department and thus discharges pollutants in excess of the standards, the environmental protection
department of the local people’s government at or above the county level shall order the unit to restore the normal use or to re-install
and use the facilities within a time limit, and may also impose a fine on it.
Article 49 If any unit, in violation of the provisions of the fourth paragraph of Article 20 of this Law, constructs or expands, within a first-grade
surface sources protection zone for domestic and drinking water, the people’s government at or above the county level shall, pursuant
to the limits of power authorized by the State Council, order the unit to suspend operation or to close down.
Article 50 If any unit, in violation of the provisions of Article 22 of this Law, manufactures, sells, imports or uses equipment that is prohibited
from being manufactured, sold, imported or used or employs production techniques that are prohibited from being employed, the competent
department for comprehensive economic and trade affairs of the people’s government at or above the county level shall order to set
it right; if the violation is serious, the competent department for comprehensive economic and trade affairs of the people’s government
at or above the county level shall submit a proposal to the people’s government at the same level that it, within the limits of its
power authorized by the State Council, order the unit to suspend operation or to close down.
Article 51 If, in violation of the provisions of Article 23 of this Law, a small enterprise devoid of water pollution prevention and control
measures is constructed and thus it causes severe pollution to the water environment, the people’s government of the city or county
where it is located or the people’s government at a higher level shall order it to close down.
Article 52 An enterprise or institution which has caused severe pollution to a water body but has failed to eliminate such pollution on expiration
of the time limit shall, according to regulations of the State, pay twice or more the fee for excess discharge, and may, in the light
of consequent damage and loss, also be fined or ordered to suspend operation or close down.
The fine shall be decided by the environmental protection department. The order for suspension of operation
