China debates tough new environment law
23/04/2014
The recent crackdown to reduce air and soil pollution has led to the closure of tanneries in Hebei Province – with knock on-effects for the leather pipeline.
This week’s German Perspective on the industry questions whether the tight controls are about to spread to other provinces and suggests leather and hide buyers are being cautious because of the rumours. Last week we reported that the closure of these tanneries could mean the end of cheap tanning on a global scale.
The first change to the legislation in 25 years will give more power to local environmental bureaus, enabling them to close businesses, confiscate equipment, and will also allow company bosses to be detained for up to 15 days if they fail to submit environmental impact assessments, according to state media agency Xinhua.
The Beijing Daily newspaper reported that the government is planning to move five million of its residents to Hebei by 2020 to reduce pressure in the capital, and has ordered more than 50 companies to relocate factories producing steel, machinery and chemicals from Beijing to Hebei.
Last week, the country’s Ministry of Environmental Protection announced that one fifth of the country’s soil is polluted.
Image: Air pollution in Shanghai
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