Experts’ Interpretation： Working with the international community to control the environmental problems of new pollutants

　　First, new pollutants are a common challenge facing the world.

　　The environmental risk of new pollutants is an environmental problem faced by all countries in the world. The new pollutants mainly come from synthetic chemicals. DDT revealed by Silent Spring is one of the chemicals with typical new pollutant characteristics, and its harm spans half a century and involves every corner of the world. In order to protect the ecological environment and human health, developed countries such as Europe, America and Japan have been legislating to control the environmental risks of toxic and harmful chemicals since the 1970s. In 1992, Agenda 21 of Rio Conference on Environment and Development in Brazil defined the plan to reduce the global environmental risks related to chemicals, and then the world gradually took action and controlled some new pollutants with long-distance migration that may cause environmental and health hazards to the world. Among the 17 sustainable development goals for 2030 reached by the United Nations in 2015, Goals 3, 6 and 12 all involve the treatment of new pollutants, such as drastically reducing the number of deaths and illnesses caused by toxic and harmful chemicals and air, water and soil pollution by 2030.

　　The treatment of some new pollutants needs global action. Besides being persistent, bioaccumulative, carcinogenic and teratogenic, some new pollutants also have the potential of long-distance migration, which can migrate across international boundaries with air, water or migratory species and be deposited in areas far away from their discharge points, causing worldwide environmental pollution problems. The treatment of such new pollutants requires global joint action. Therefore, the international community adopted the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants in 2001. At present, there are 30 categories of persistent organic pollutants controlled by Stockholm Convention. Through global action, more than ten kinds of production and use have been eliminated all over the world.

　　Second, controlling new pollutants will be a long-term task.

　　New pollutants cover a wide range and are closely related to economic development and production and life. China is a big producer and exporter of chemicals. According to UNEP’s Global Chemicals Outlook, China’s chemical sales accounted for 37.2% of the world’s total in 2017, and it is expected to reach 50% of the world’s total in 2030. China is the main producer of chemicals newly listed in Stockholm Convention and under evaluation, such as short-chain chlorinated paraffin, decabromodiphenyl ether, DechloranePlus, chlorpyrifos and ultraviolet absorber (UV-328). These chemicals are consumed and used in many industries, and some chemicals are closely related to necessities such as agricultural production, daily necessities, semiconductors, aerospace products, etc. For example, the annual production scale of short-chain chlorinated paraffins can reach millions of tons, and chlorpyrifos is related to agricultural production and food security. However, it is difficult to develop their substitutes, and there may be conflicts in availability, performance, cost, environment and safety, so it is difficult to achieve perfection, which brings great challenges to the control of new pollutants in the future.

　　One of the greater challenges to control new pollutants is to identify, evaluate and control the chemicals being produced and used. Both the Toxic Substances Control Act of the United States and the Regulation of Registration, Evaluation, Licensing and Restriction of Chemicals of the European Union have been faced with huge data and research and evaluation needs since their implementation, and have not fully achieved the control objectives of the original design regulations on new pollutants. At the level of international conventions, the Stockholm Convention only added 18 categories of persistent organic pollutants in 17 years. China is one of the countries with the richest types of chemicals. The existing chemical list includes more than 40,000 kinds, and nearly 100 new chemicals are listed every year. Limited research information shows that according to the screening criteria of Stockholm Convention, there are more than 100 chemicals in the above list that meet the screening criteria of persistence and bioaccumulation at the same time, and these hundreds of chemicals are potential new pollutants that need to be controlled. Although the contribution of China’s research results has been increasing in the process of adding new controlled substances to the Stockholm Convention, China still needs to carry out a large number of data surveys, environmental monitoring, environmental risk assessment and control in the future, and increase the pace of controlling the environmental risks of new pollutants.

　　To sum up, new pollutants involve substitution and emission reduction, large industrial scale and long industrial chain, and are closely related to industrial and agricultural production and life. Protecting the ecological environment and human health and balancing the needs of economic development is an important basis for formulating and implementing new pollutant control programs. The identification and assessment of new pollutants that potentially need to be controlled depends on data investigation, a large number of scientific research results, environmental risk assessment and socio-economic impact assessment of control. The task of controlling new pollutants requires all-round coordinated promotion, which is extremely arduous.

　　Third, work with the international community to prevent environmental risks of new pollutants.

　　As early as 2001, China and the international community jointly promoted the formulation of the Stockholm Convention, and started cooperation with the international community to jointly control new pollutants. In the past twenty years, China has eliminated the production, use and discharge of a large number of new pollutants, protecting the global ecological environment and human health. During the same period, the national economy grew rapidly, and the share of chemicals produced increased from about 5% in the world to 37.2% in 2017, making it one of the countries with the largest chemical production and the most varieties, and people’s lives have been improved. At the same time, China is also facing new challenges and pressures. With the progress of scientific cognition and the demand for higher quality of life, some chemicals that we used to think were harmless are gradually considered unsuitable for further production and use. By implementing the Action Plan, China will work with the international community to prevent the environmental risks of new pollutants.

　　First, learn from the existing international convention mechanism and implement the control of new pollutants in accordance with international law. While perfecting China’s laws and regulations, establishing and perfecting the new pollutant control system, we should use the mechanism of international conventions to identify, evaluate and control the environmental risks of chemicals together with the international community, which will not only realize the control of new pollutants in China, but also promote the action of new pollutant control on a global scale, promote the green development of the global chemical industry and realize global environmental governance.

　　The second is to increase the scientific and technological investment of the state and enterprises in the treatment of new pollutants, scientific decision-making, and precise control. Fully understanding the decision-making information such as scientific research is the foundation of controlling new pollutants, continuously increasing the scientific and technological investment of the state and enterprises in controlling new pollutants, mastering the source, fate, harm and control technology of potential new pollutants, making scientific decisions, and realizing accurate and effective control.

　　The third is to make use of international scientific research and management experience, evaluate and screen out key new pollutants as soon as possible, and establish a mechanism to implement control. Actively carry out international cooperation, and make full use of global forces, especially scientific research and management experience, to promote and accelerate the screening of new pollutants and environmental risk management and control in China, in view of some potential new pollutants that may not meet the global migration attributes, in the case of insufficient research information in China. At the same time, learn from the financial mechanism of international conventions, and establish international, national, local and enterprise financial mechanisms to control new pollutants.

　　Fourth, we will continue to help other developing countries strengthen their ability to control new pollutants, spread China’s knowledge and China’s experience, and prevent the transfer of new pollutants. As a developing country, China’s experience in the discovery, research and management of new pollutants may be suitable for other developing countries. China can continue to provide technical training and capacity building for developing countries, help other developing countries to prevent the transfer of new pollutants as products or wastes, and contribute China’s strength to building a life community on Earth.

　　The new pollution control action reflects the historical responsibility of the CPC Central Committee to participate in, contribute to and lead global environmental governance, and will continue to contribute China’s plan, China’s wisdom and China’s strength to global environmental governance. The new pollution control action is also the need to build a beautiful China and maintain sustainable green chemistry and economic growth in China. Building a new pollution control system in China and protecting the earth’s homeland will help to realize the global pursuit of high-quality life, achieve the goal of sustainable development in 2030, realize the harmonious coexistence between man and nature, and build a community of life on earth.

　　Author: Hu Jianxin (Professor, Peking University Institute of Environmental Science and Engineering)