On April 10, 2025, the Ministry of Ecology and Environment issued its Opinions on Strengthening the Environmental Impact Assessment of Construction Projects Involving New Pollutants in Key Industries. The policy supports the Action Plan for the Control of New Pollutants (2022) by targeting six high-risk industries—petrochemicals, coatings, textiles, rubber, pesticides, and pharmaceuticals.

Opinions calls for stricter environmental assessments for projects involving 14 key controlled new pollutants and other hazardous substances. It mandates categorized management based on available standards and monitoring methods, and it promotes cleaner production and safer raw materials. Projects failing to meet requirements will be denied approval or expansion.

Opinions requires categorized management of the new pollutants: (1) for new pollutants with established emission standards, projects must ensure compliance with emission requirements; (2) for new pollutants with environmental quality standards and corresponding monitoring methods, projects should conduct environmental quality monitoring, assessment, and the like; and (3) for new pollutants without environmental quality standards but with monitoring methods, projects should conduct routine monitoring and surveillance.

Project constructors should develop and use low toxicity, low harm, and non-toxic raw materials as much as possible to reduce the content of toxic and harmful substances in their products. They are also encouraged to adopt clean production processes, pollution prevention and control technologies, and substitute for harmful chemicals.

Ecological and environmental departments shall refuse to approve new projects and expansion of projects that produce or use new pollutants. Departments need to ensure the compliance emission of new pollutants with existing emission standards and include the requirements in the pollutant discharge permits. They shall include the categories of projects that are not approved in the List of Ecological and Environmental Access.

Opinions lists categories of projects that are not subject to environmental impact assessment approval, but it does not provide a specific list of assessment standards and/or monitoring methods for the new pollutants.