Order of the President of the People's Republic of China

No. 65

The Yangtze River Protection Law of the People's Republic of China, adopted at the 24th meeting of the Standing Committee of the Thirteenth National People's Congress of the People's Republic of China on December 26, 2020, is hereby promulgated and shall come into force on March 1, 2021.

                                     Xi Jinping

President of the People's Republic of China

December 26, 2020

The Yangtze River Protection Law of the People's Republic of China 

(Adopted at the 24th Meeting of the Standing Committee of the Thirteenth National People's Congress on December 26, 2020)

Contents

Chapter I: General Provisions

Chapter II: Planning and Control

Chapter III: Resource Protection

Chapter IV: Water Pollution Prevention and Control

Chapter V: Ecological and Environmental Restoration

Chapter VI: Green Development

Chapter VII: Guarantee and Supervision

Chapter VIII: Legal Liability

Chapter IX: Supplementary Provisions

Chapter I 

General Provisions

Article 1 This Law is formulated in order to strengthen ecological and environmental protection and restoration in the Yangtze River basin, facilitate the rational and effective use of resources, safeguard ecological security, ensure harmony between humans and nature, and achieve the sustainable development of the Chinese nation.

Article 2 This Law applies to ecological and environmental protection and restoration, production and lives as well as development and construction activities in the Yangtze River basin.

The Yangtze River basin referred to in this Law covers Qinghai Province, Sichuan Province, the Tibet Autonomous Region, Yunnan Province, Chongqing, Hubei Province, Hunan Province, Jiangxi Province, Anhui Province, Jiangsu Province, and Shanghai in the catchment area formed by the main stream, tributaries and lakes of the Yangtze River and related county-level administrative areas of Gansu Province, Shaanxi Province, Henan Province, Guizhou Province, the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, Guangdong Province, Zhejiang Province, and Fujian Province.

Article 3 In pursuing economic and social development in the Yangtze River basin, high priority shall be given to ecological conservation and green development, and everyone involved shall work together on protection but not on excessive development. Yangtze River protection shall adhere to the principles of overall coordination, well-conceived planning, making innovation the driver, and systemic governance.

Article 4 The State establishes a coordination mechanism for the Yangtze River basin to provide unified guidance and overall coordination for Yangtze River protection, review major Yangtze River protection policies and plans, coordinate major issues across regions and departments, and supervise and inspect important work on Yangtze River protection.

Article 5 Relevant departments under the State Council and the provincial-level people's governments in the Yangtze River basin shall implement the decisions of the National Yangtze River Basin Coordination Mechanism, and work on Yangtze River protection in accordance with the division of responsibilities.

All local people's governments in the Yangtze River basin shall protect and restore the ecology and environment in their respective administrative areas, promote the rational and efficient use of resources, improve the industrial structure and layout, and maintain ecological security in the Yangtze River basin.

All river and lake chiefs in the Yangtze River basin are responsible for Yangtze River protection work.

Article 6 Localities related to the Yangtze River basin shall, based on their needs, establish coordination mechanisms for the formulation of local regulations and government rules, local plans, and supervision and law enforcement, to coordinate ecological and environmental protection and restoration in the Yangtze River basin.

Article 7 Departments of ecology and environment, natural resources, water resources, agriculture and rural affairs, and standardization under the State Council shall, in accordance with the division of responsibilities, establish sound standards for water environment quality, pollutant discharge, environmental restoration, water resources conservation and intensive use, ecological flow, biodiversity protection, aquaculture, and disaster prevention and mitigation.

Article 8 The department of natural resources under the State Council, together with other relevant departments under the State Council, shall regularly organize surveys of natural resources such as land, minerals, water flows, forests, grasslands, wetlands in the Yangtze River basin, establish a resource database, evaluate resource and environmental carrying capacity, and keep the public abreast of the natural resources status of the Yangtze River basin.

The wildlife protection department under the State Council shall organize a general survey of wildlife and their habitats every ten years, or organize special surveys as needed, establish wildlife resource files, and keep the public abreast of the wildlife resources status in the Yangtze River basin.

The departments of agricultural and rural affairs of the local people's governments at or above the county level in the Yangtze River basin, together with relevant departments of the people's governments at the same level, conduct biodiversity surveys on important habitats such as spawning grounds, feeding grounds, overwintering grounds, and migration channels for aquatic organisms.

Article 9 The National Yangtze River Basin Coordination Mechanism shall coordinate relevant departments under the State Council to improve the monitoring networks and monitoring information sharing mechanisms for the ecology and environment, resources, hydrology, meteorology, shipping, and natural disasters in the Yangtze River basin on the basis of existing stations and monitoring projects.

Relevant departments under the State Council, the local people's governments at or above the county level in the Yangtze River basin and their relevant departments shall see to it that the ecological and environmental risk report and early warning mechanisms are improved in accordance with the division of responsibilities.

Article 10 The department of ecology and environment under the State Council shall, in conjunction with relevant departments under the State Council and the provincial-level people's governments in the Yangtze River basin, establish a sound joint ecological and environmental emergency response mechanism for the Yangtze River basin as part of the national emergency response system, to strengthen the emergency management of the sudden ecological and environmental incidents in vessels, ports, mines, chemical plants, and tailings ponds in the Yangtze River basin. 

Article 11 The State shall strengthen the monitoring, forecasting, early warning, prevention, emergency response, and recovery and reconstruction systems for floods, droughts, forest and grassland fires, geological disasters, and earthquakes in the Yangtze River basin, and to enhance disaster prevention, mitigation, resilience and relief capabilities.

Article 12 The National Yangtze River Basin Coordination Mechanism shall establish an expert advisory committee to organize professional institutions and personnel to conduct scientific and technological consultation on major development strategies, policies, and plans in the Yangtze River basin.

Relevant departments under the State Council, the provincial-level people's governments in the Yangtze River basin and their relevant departments shall, in accordance with the division of responsibilities, organize third-party assessment, analysis, and validation of the impact on the Yangtze River basin's ecosystems by construction projects, plans for important infrastructure and industrial layout.

Article 13 The National Yangtze River Basin Coordination Mechanism shall coordinate the efforts of relevant departments under the State Council and the provincial-level people's governments in the Yangtze River basin to establish a sound Yangtze River basin information sharing system. Relevant departments under the State Council, the provincial-level people's governments in the Yangtze River basin and their relevant departments shall share information on the ecology and environment, natural resources, management and law enforcement in the Yangtze River basin in accordance with regulations.

Article 14 Relevant departments under the State Council, the local people's governments at or above the county level in the Yangtze River basin and their relevant departments shall strengthen the publicity and education on ecological and environmental protection and green development in the Yangtze River basin.

The news media shall carry out various forms of publicity and education on ecological and environmental protection and green development in the Yangtze River basin, and conduct public opinion supervision on illegal activities in accordance with the law.

Article 15 Relevant departments under the State Council, the local people's governments at or above the county level in the Yangtze River basin and their relevant departments shall take measures to protect historical and cultural cities, towns and villages, strengthen the protection of cultural heritage, and inherit and promote the unique, outstanding culture in the Yangtze River basin.

Article 16 The State encourages and supports organizations and individuals to help protect and restore the ecology and environment, rationally use resources, and promote green development in the Yangtze River basin.

For organizations and individuals that have made outstanding contributions to Yangtze River protection, the people's governments at or above the county level and their relevant departments shall commend and reward them in accordance with relevant national regulations.

Chapter II 

Planning and Control

Article 17 The State establishes a planning system for the Yangtze River basin that is guided by the national development plan, based on spatial plans, and supported by special and regional plans, and gives full play to the leading and guiding role of planning to promote ecological and environmental protection and green development in the Yangtze River basin.

Article 18 The State Council and the local people's governments at or above the county level in the Yangtze River basin shall incorporate Yangtze River protection into economic and social development plans.

The development and reform department under the State Council shall, in conjunction with relevant departments under the State Council, formulate a development plan for the Yangtze River basin to coordinate the ecological and environmental protection and green development of the upper and lower reaches, left and right banks, and the main stream and tributaries of the Yangtze River basin with a scientific approach, and implement it with the approval of the State Council.

Plans for the water resources and ecological and environmental protection in the Yangtze River basin shall be prepared in accordance with relevant laws and administrative regulations.

Article 19 The department of natural resources under the State Council shall, in conjunction with relevant departments under the State Council, organize the preparation of land and space plans for the Yangtze River basin to make scientific and orderly overall arrangements for ecological, agricultural, urban and other functional spaces in the Yangtze River basin, delimit ecological protection redlines, permanent basic farmland, and urban development boundaries, improve the land and space structure and layout, and tale overall control of the land and space utilization tasks in the Yangtze River basin; and it shall implement these plans with the approval of the State Council. Special plans involving the use of land and space in the Yangtze River basin shall be coordinated with the land and space plan in the Yangtze River basin.

The local people's governments at or above the county level in the Yangtze River basin shall organize the preparation of the land and space plans of their respective administrative areas, and implement them after they are approved in accordance with the prescribed procedures.

Article 20 The State exercises control over the use of land and space in the Yangtze River basin. The natural resources departments of the local people's governments at or above the county level in the Yangtze River basin shall, in accordance with the land and space plans, implement zoning and classified use control over the land and space in the Yangtze River basin under their respective jurisdiction.

Land and space development and utilization activities in the Yangtze River basin shall comply with the requirements for land and space use control, and planning permission shall be obtained in accordance with the law. The natural resources departments of the people's governments at or above the county level shall not issue planning permits to projects that do not meet the requirements for land and space use control.

Article 21 The water resources department under the State Council shall coordinate the rational allocation, unified scheduling, and efficient utilization of water resources in the Yangtze River basin, and organize the implementation of a management system for total water withdrawal control and consumption intensity control.

The department of ecology and environment under the State Council shall determine the total discharge control index of key pollutants in each provincial-level administrative region of the Yangtze River basin in accordance with the water environment quality improvement goals and water pollution prevention requirements. The water function areas in the Yangtze River basin whose water quality exceeds the standard shall implement stricter requirements for reducing total pollutant discharge. Enterprises and public institutions shall, in accordance with requirements, take measures to control their total discharge of pollutants.

The department of natural resources under the State Council is responsible for the overall control and planning of the total amount of new land for construction purposes in the Yangtze River basin.

Article 22 The provincial-level people's governments in the Yangtze River basin shall, based on the ecology and environment and resource utilization status of their respective administrative areas, prepare ecological and environmental zoning control plans and ecological and environmental access lists, and implement them after reporting to the department of ecology and environment under the State Council for the record. Ecological and environmental zoning control plans and ecological and environmental access lists shall be coordinated with land and space plans.

The industrial structure and layout of the Yangtze River basin shall be adapted to the carrying capacity of the Yangtze River basin's ecosystems, resources, and environment. It is forbidden to lay out industries that have a serious impact on the ecosystems in key ecological function zones in the Yangtze River basin. The transfer of heavily polluting enterprises and projects to the upper and middle reaches of the Yangtze River is prohibited.

Article 23 The State shall strengthen the management of the development and utilization of hydropower resources in the Yangtze River basin. Where new large and medium-sized hydropower projects need to be constructed in the Yangtze River basin in accordance with the national development strategy to meet the needs of the economy and people's livelihood, they shall be scientifically demonstrated and submitted to the State Council or the department authorized by the State Council for approval.

Where small hydropower projects have been built in the Yangtze River basin that do not meet the requirements for ecological protection, the local people's governments at or above the county level shall organize classified rectification or take measures to phase them out.

Article 24 The State strictly protects the sources of the main stream and major tributaries of the Yangtze River, and establishes national parks and other natural reserves to protect the national ecological security barrier.

Article 25 The water resources department under the State Council shall strengthen the protection of rivers and lakes in the Yangtze River basin. The local people's governments at or above the county level in the Yangtze River basin shall delimit the management scope of rivers and lakes, and publicize it to implement strict protection of rivers and lakes and prohibit illegal occupation of rivers and lakes.

Article 26 The State implements special control over the shorelines of rivers and lakes in the Yangtze River basin. The National Yangtze River Basin Coordination Mechanism coordinates the efforts of the departments of natural resources, water resources, ecology and environment, housing and urban-rural development, agriculture and rural affairs, transport, and forestry and grassland under the State Council and the provincial-level people's governments in the Yangtze River basin to delineate the protection scope of river and lake shorelines and formulate the river and lake shoreline protection plan, in order to strictly control development and construction in the shorelines and promote the rational and efficient utilization of the shorelines.

It is forbidden to construct or expand chemical parks and chemical projects within one kilometer of the shorelines of the Yangtze River's main stream and tributaries.

It is forbidden to build, rebuild, or expand tailings ponds within three kilometers of the shoreline of the Yangtze River's main stream and within one kilometer of the shorelines of important tributaries; except for reconstruction for the purpose of improving safety and ecological and environmental protection.

Article 27 The department of transport under the State Council shall, together with its departments of natural resources, water resources, ecology and environment, agriculture and rural affairs, and forestry and grassland, shall scientifically delineate no-navigation areas and restricted navigation areas in the important habitats of aquatic organisms in the Yangtze River basin.

Ships are prohibited from navigating within the designated no-navigation areas. Where navigation needs to be carried out in no-navigation areas in important habitats of aquatic organisms in accordance with the national development strategy to meet the needs of the economy and people's livelihood, it shall be agreed by the department of transport under the State Council in consultation with the department of agriculture and rural affairs under the State Council, and necessary measures shall be taken to reduce interference with important aquatic organisms.

Waterway improvement projects are strictly restricted in the ecological protection redlines, natural reserves, and important habitats for aquatic organisms in the Yangtze River basin. Where improvement is really necessary, it shall be scientifically demonstrated and relevant procedures shall be completed in accordance with the law.

Article 28 The State establishes a sand mining planning and permit system for the Yangtze River basin. To mine sand in the rivers of the Yangtze River basin, permission is required from relevant river basin management agencies of the water resources department under the State Council or the water resources departments of the local people's governments at or above the county level.

Relevant river basin management agencies of the water resources department under the State Council and the local people's governments at or above the county level in the Yangtze River basin shall delineate no-sand-mining areas and periods, and strictly control sand mining areas, the total amount of sand mined, and the number of sand mining vessels in sand mining areas. It is prohibited to mine sand in no-sand-mining areas and periods in the Yangtze River basin.

The water resources department under the State Council shall, in conjunction with relevant departments under the State Council, organize relevant local people's governments in the Yangtze River basin and their relevant departments to carry out joint law enforcement work on illegal sand mining in rivers in the Yangtze River basin.