Request a Demo
On Jul 23th, 2019, China’s Ministry of Ecology and Environment (MEE) published on its website the List of Toxic and Hazardous Water Pollutants (1st Batch)[1] .
The first batch contains 10 types of water pollutants.
| No. | Water Pollutants | CAS No. |
| 1 | Dichloromethane | 75-09-2 |
| 2 | Tri-chloromethane | 67-66-3 |
| 3 | Tri-chloroethylene | 79-01-6 |
| 4 | Tetra-chloroethylene | 127-18-4 |
| 5 | Formaldehyde | 50-00-0 |
| 6 | Cadmium and its compounds | — |
| 7 | Mercury and its compounds | — |
| 8 | Chromium (VI) compounds | — |
| 9 | Lead and its compounds | — |
| 10 | Arsenic and its compounds | — |
The above mentioned water pollutants were screened out based on the Catalogue of Chemical Substances subject to Priority Control[2]. Enterprises which emit chemicals listed in the Catalogue must obtain a pollutants emission permit and pay corresponding emission fees.
The Catalogue is a reference for designating
toxic and hazardous substances in soil, regulated under the Law on the Prevention and Control of Soil Pollution[3]
toxic and hazardous air pollutants[4] (the 1st batch issued in Jan 2019), regulated under the Law on the Prevention and Control of Atmospheric Pollution[5]
toxic and hazardous water pollutants, regulated under the Law on Prevention and Control of Water Pollution[6]
According to Article 32 of the Law on Prevention and Control of Water Pollution, the MEE shall publish the list of water pollutants and implement risk management. The enterprises emitting chemicals contained in the list shall monitor the sewage outlets and surrounding environment, assess environmental risks, identify hidden perils, disclose water pollutants information and take effective measures for environmental risk prevention.
This is only the first batch of water pollutants released since the implementation of the Law. More water pollutants will be designated prioritizing on chemicals that are persistent, bioaccumulative or have great hazards to the aquatic environment and human health.
