Environmental protection has been a basic national policy since
the 1980s. In 1984, the State Environmental Protection Committee
was established and the first Environmental Protection Law was
formally issued in 1989. After the United Nations Conference on
Environment and Development in 1992, China was one of the first
countries to formulate and carry out a strategy of sustainable
development. In 1993, the Environmental Resources Committee of the
National People's Congress was set up. So far, the NPC and State
Council have promulgated eight laws for environmental protection,
35 laws for management of natural resources and 34 regulations on
environmental protection. Environmental protection authorities have
publicized over 100 national environmental protection regulations
and more than 1,000 local ones.?
At the turn of the 21st century, the state responded to stresses
on natural resources caused by fast economic growth, development
and urbanization with a "green strategy." This includes developing
a circulating economy, increasing resource-use efficiency;
developing clean production, reducing pollution cost in production
processes; developing green consumption, reducing the ecological
impact of consumption; developing new energy resources, reforming
production methods, moving towards an eco-industrial civilization,
and creating a balanced eco-environment.?
