context: On 11 June, the State Council approved the 15th 5-year plan for a Beautiful China. Since then, greater details on the plan has been released, providing clarity on its implementation framework, including its overarching priorities, key policy tasks, governance mechanisms and major projects aimed at advancing the PRC's ecological and environmental agenda.
According to a Ministry of Ecology and Environment official, the plan is organised around a series of overarching priorities, implementation tasks and supporting projects aimed at advancing the PRC's ecological and environmental agenda.
Four implementation priorities establish the broad policy framework for the Beautiful China agenda
- concept of Beautiful China
- defines Beautiful China as integrating ecological quality, high-quality development and institutional capacity
- environmental quality
- improve air, water, soil, groundwater, solid waste and new pollutant governance alongside ecological protection and restoration
- green and low-carbon transition
- advance carbon peaking and green transformation through tighter controls on high-emission projects, expanded non-fossil energy and development of new energy and other low-carbon technologies
- governance
- strengthen ecological civilisation through improved environmental standards, monitoring, evaluation, governance mechanisms and scientific and technological innovation
To support these priorities, the plan identifies seven key implementation tasks
- improve air, water and soil quality
- improve air quality and strengthen protection of water, marine, soil, groundwater and rural environments
- fully implement solid waste and new pollutant governance actions
- strengthen solid waste management, heavy metal pollution prevention and new pollutant governance
- coordinate the optimisation of ecosystems
- advance ecosystem protection and restoration, strengthen biodiversity protection and improve ecological oversight
- actively respond to climate change
- advance carbon peaking, climate adaptation and development of the national carbon market
- accelerate the formation of green production and lifestyles
- improve green development in key industries, resource efficiency and low-carbon lifestyles
- strengthen safety for Beautiful China construction
- strengthen nuclear and radiation safety, ecological security and environmental emergency management
- improve the guarantee system for Beautiful China construction
- strengthen legal frameworks, monitoring, scientific innovation, incentives and international cooperation
Implementation is supported through 20 major projects, which build on the 15th 5-year plan and focus on key ecological and environmental priorities
- environmental quality
- air pollution control
- water and marine ecosystem protection/restoration
- soil pollution prevention and remediation
- waste and pollution
- industrial solid waste management
- hazardous waste treatment
- heavy metal remediation
- new pollutant governance
- ecosystem optimisation
- ecosystem restoration
- protection of key ecological areas
- biodiversity conservation
- climate action
- energy saving and carbon reduction in key sectors
- non-CO₂ greenhouse gas mitigation
- digital greenhouse gas emissions management
- risk prevention
- ecological risk monitoring
- early warning systems
- nuclear and radiation safety supervision
- governance capacity
- ecological monitoring networks
- environmental inspections
- smart environmental law enforcement
- digital governance to support Beautiful China construction