A top Chinese legislator says Beijing will tighten environmental laws and force polluters to pay compensation for the damage they cause.
In a policy presentation Sunday to the legislature's annual session, Zhang Dejiang - a member of the powerful Politburo Standing Committee - said that businesses are responsible for environmental damage and must be held to account. He said legal revisions are being prepared, but he offered no specific details.
China's Environment Ministry has historically not been able to enforce anti-pollution laws already on the books. Almost all Chinese cities monitored for pollution last year failed to meet government standards.
In a policy presentation Sunday to the legislature's annual session, Zhang Dejiang - a member of the powerful Politburo Standing Committee - said that businesses are responsible for environmental damage and must be held to account. He said legal revisions are being prepared, but he offered no specific details.
China's Environment Ministry has historically not been able to enforce anti-pollution laws already on the books. Almost all Chinese cities monitored for pollution last year failed to meet government standards.