Policy Research Report on ENVIRONMENT and DEVELOPMENT on Environment and Development MANAGEMENT AND
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AND DEVELOPMENT ON ENVIRONMENT COOPERATION CHINA COUNCIL INTERNATIONAL FOR CHINA COUNCIL FOR INTERNATIONAL 2014 Development and Environment Report Research on Policy Management and Institutional COOPERATION ON ENVIRONMENT Innovation in Green Development AND DEVELOPMENT CHINA COUNCIL FOR INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION Policy Research Report ON ENVIRONMENT AND DEVELOPMENT on Environment and Development MANAGEMENT AND The China Council for International Cooperation on Environment and INSTITUTIONAL INNOVATION Development (CCICED) was established in 1992 with the approval of the Chinese government as a high-level advisory body consisting of senior Chi- IN GREEN DEVELOPMENT nese and international experts. Its mandate is to share international suc- 2014 cessful experience on environment and development, to conduct research and to provide forward-looking, strategic and early-warning policy recom- mendations to the Chinese government to support and facilitate China’s implementation of sustainable development strategy and to enhance the building of a resource-saving and environmentally friendly society. CCICED has operated on the basis of five-year phases. Phase 1 (1992– 1996) concentrated on exchange and dissemination of international ex- perience and successful policies, and raising the environmental awareness of policy-makers. Phase 2 (1997–2001) focused on environmental pollu- tion, the relationship between environment and economic development, and strengthening environmental legal and regulation systems. Phase 3 (2002–2006) addressed the integration of environmental protection into the holistic planning of China’s development. Phase 4 (2007–2011) pro- moted the establishment of a new relationship between China’s economic development and environmental protection and explored a new path for optimizing environmental protection in economic development. 2014 Phase 5 (2012–2016) will seek to promote China’s sustainable development and ecological civilization; shift policy research priorities from the relation- ship between environment and economy to environment and social devel- opment, with more emphasis given to regional and global environment as well as the interaction and influence between China and the world; share research findings with the international community; and play a greater role ISBN 978-1-894784-74-0 in building a beautiful China and global sustainable development. Price: ¥85.00 CNY $15.00 CAD CCICED Secretariat No. 5 Houyingfang Hutong Xicheng District, Beijing, China 100035 Tel: +86-10-82268647, 82268659 Fax: + 86-10-82200535 Email: [email protected] Website: www.cciced.net China Council for International Cooperation on Environment and Development Policy Research Report on Environment and Development Management and Institutional Innovation in Green Development 2014 CCICED Policy Research Report on Environment and Development Advisory Board LI Ganjie, SHEN Guofang, Arthur HANSON (Canada), LI Haisheng, XU Qinghua, REN Yong Editorial Board FANG Li, LI Yonghong, LI Haiying, ZHANG Huiyong, WANG Qian, HAN Yang, DONG Lin, LIU Qi, Lucie McNEILL (Canada), DAI Yichun (Canada) CHINA COUNCIL FOR INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION ON ENVIRONMENT AND DEVELOPMENT Policy Research Report on Environment and Development MANAGEMENT AND INSTITUTIONAL INNOVATION IN GREEN DEVELOPMENT 2014 © 2016 The China Council for International Cooperation on Environment and Development Published by the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) for the China Council for International Cooperation on Environment and Development (CCICED) CCICED Policy Research Report on Management and Institutional Innovation in Green Development 2014 All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced without prior permission from the publisher. Policy research report on environment and development : management and institutional innovation in green development 2014 / edited by the China Council for International Cooperation on Environment and Development ISBN 978-1-894784-74-0 China Council for International Cooperation on Environment and Development (CCICED) CCICED Secretariat No. 5 Houyingfang Hutong Xicheng District, Beijing, China 100035 Tel: +86-10-82268647, 82268659 Fax: + 86-10-82200535 Email: [email protected] Website: www.cciced.net International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) Head Office 111 Lombard Avenue, Suite 325, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada R3B 0T4 Tel: +1 (204) 958-7700 Fax: +1 (204) 958-7710 Website: www.iisd.org Printed in China. NOTE ON THIS VOLUME 2014 marks a significant year for China’s environment and development. Convened in November, the th4 plenary session of the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China examined and adopted the Decision of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China on Major Issues Concerning Comprehensively Promoting Law-based Governance. The Decision emphasizes the need to put in place a strict legal system to protect the envi- ronment, and establish expeditiously the legal framework to support ecological civilization. This will ensure that development activities are regulated and green development promoted. It will also support a number of important policies, including circular development, low-carbon development, strengthen the producer’s legal liability for environmental protection, and significantly raise the penalties for violating the law. A number of other measures were put forward to promote ecological civilization, including establishing natural resource property rights, enshrining in law national land use planning, and finally putting ecological compen- sation, and the control of soil, water and air pollution on a sound legal foundation. There is a strong conviction that with the emphasis on governance and rule of law, there can be effective safeguards for environment and sustainable development in China. Against this backdrop, the China Council for International Cooperation on Environment and Development (CCICED) held its 2014 Annual General Meeting (AGM) on the theme of “Management and Institutional Innovation in Green Development”. Six research projects including “Evaluation and Prospects for a Green Transition Process in China”, “Ecological Civilization and Innovation of Environmental Management System”, “Good City Models under the Concept of Ecological Civilization”, “Institutional Innovation of Eco-Environmental Redlining”, “Performance Evaluation on the Action Plan of Air Pollution Prevention and Control and Regional Coordination Mechanism”, and “Green Accounting and Environmental Performance Evaluation” reported their research findings to the AGM. In addition, council members and experts were able to exchange views during two parallel forums on the themes of “Institutional Innovation in Ecological Civilization” and “Green Transformation and Prospects”. Policy recommendations were finalized based on AGM deliberations where the opinions of council members and experts were openly aired. Mr. Zhang Gaoli, Member of the Standing Committee of Political Bureau of CPC Central Committee, Vice Premier of the State Council, and Chairperson of CCICED, delivered a keynote speech at the opening ceremony. He com- mended the CCICED for its achievements and the important role it has played, promoting China’s environment and development for over 20 years since its foundation. He stated that the Chinese government will remain steadfast in its support of the CCICED, adding he adding he hopes the CCICED will continue to make important policy V contributions and to serve as a platform to discuss the green development of China and the world. CCICED council members believe China has a window of opportunity to realize a development transformation. As China is entering the “new normal”, decision makers need to safeguard against potential crisis, maintain high standards of environmental protection and raise key targets, thus paving the way for accelerated green trans- formation. China must seize this opportunity in order to resolve existing tensions between social and economic development as well as environmental protection and resource conservation. China is in a position to establish a system described as “ecological civilization”, by reforming its environmental protection system, and making major innovations in the area of environment and development. This policy research report of environment and development incorporates the CCICED’s 2014 policy research findings, the CCICED 2014 policy recommendations to the Chinese government, and a study of major policy progress on China’s environment and development (2013-2014). We trust it will prove useful to decision-makers at all levels, experts, scholars and anyone interested in environment and sustainable development. VI TABLE OF CONTENTS Note on this Volume /v Chapter 1 Policy Recommendations to the Government of China /1 1.1 Recommendation 1. /3 1.2 Recommendation 2. /4 1.3 Recommendation 3. /7 1.4 Recommendation 4. /9 1.5 Recommendation 5. /11 1.6 Recommendation 6. /12 Chapter 2 CCICED 2014 ISSUES PAPER /14 2.1 Introduction /14 2.2 A Window of Opportunity in China /16 2.3 International Trends on Environment and Development /18 2.4 Framework for Strengthening Ecological Civilization Policies and Practices /20 2.5 Key issues /23 2.6 Conclusions /32 Chapter 3 Evaluation and Prospects for a Green Transition Process in China /36 Summary of Key Findings /37 Summary of Main Policy Recommendations /38 Background and Implementation of the Task Force /39 3.1 Green Transition is an Urgent Priority for China /40 3.2 Tackling the Root