Home / Environment / News Tools: Save | Print | E-mail | Most Read | Comment
China Upgrades Environmental Sanitation Rules
Adjust font size:

China is soliciting public opinion on its environmental sanitation regulations which envisage tougher disinfection, ventilation and hygiene standards.

 

"Smoking will be banned in taxis, buses, air-conditioned trains, planes and waiting rooms. Areas of high pedestrian density should be no-smoking areas and should be equipped with special ventilation facilities," says a draft revision of China's environmental sanitation regulations, published on Thursday by the State Council, or cabinet.

 

Business operators must place visible prohibition signs in no-smoking areas. Individuals or organizations who install automatic tobacco vending machines will be fined up to 5,000 yuan (US$650), according to the draft revision by the Ministry of Health.

 

The original regulation, two decades old, has been outpaced by rapid social and economic development. The revised regulation expands its scope to cover all public places with a special focus on hotels, public toilets, swimming pools, beauty parlors and waiting rooms.

 

"Local health officials who cover up public health incidents such as epidemics will be demoted or expelled, and business operators who delay in reporting public health incidents in their precincts will be fined up to 30,000 yuan (US$3,900)," the regulation said.

 

It also requires operators to install air purification facilities to prevent the spread of disease, and those defying hygiene rules and facilitating the spread of infectious diseases will have their business licenses revoked and be fined up to 100,000 yuan (US$13,000), and could be charged with crimes.

 

The revised regulation bans the opening of public places that are being renovated. Reopening must wait until the air quality has reached normal standards.

 

"Disposable products, such as chopsticks, should not be used more than once. In restaurants and places of entertainment, drinking water, lighting and noise must conform to national standards," it said.

 

(Xinhua News Agency June 22, 2007)

Tools: Save | Print | E-mail | Most Read
Comment
Pet Name
Anonymous

China Archives
Related >>
- Beijing Environmental Sanitation Rules Reviewed
- China Working on Rules for Sanitation of Swimming Pools
- Gov't Urged to Improve Rural Sanitation
Most Viewed >>
Air Quality 
Cities Major Pollutant Air Quality Level
Beijing particulate matter II
Shanghai particulate matter III1
Guangzhou sulfur dioxide II
Chongqing particulate matter III2
Xi'an particulate matter III1
Most Read
- White paper on energy
- Endangered monkeys grow in number
- Yangtze River's Three Gorges 2 mln years in the making
- The authorities sets sights on polluted soil
- China, US benefit from clean energy
NGO Events Calendar Tips
- Hand in hand to protect endangered animals and plants
- Changchun, Mini-marathon Aimed at Protecting Siberian Tiger
- Water Walk by Nature University
- Green Earth Documentary Salon
- Prof. Maria E. Fernandez to Give a Lecture on Climate Change
More
Archives
UN meets on climate change
The UN Climate Change Conference brought together representatives of over 180 countries and observers from various organizations.
Panda Facts
A record 28 panda cubs born via artificial insemination have survived in 2006.
South China Karst
Rich and unique karst landforms located in south China display exceptional natural beauty.
Saving the Tibetan Antelopes
The rare animals survive in the harsh natural environment of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau.
More
Laws & Regulations
- Forestry Law of the People's Republic of China
- Meteorology Law of the People's Republic of China
- Fire Control Law of the People's Republic of China
- Law on Protecting Against and Mitigating Earthquake Disasters
- Law of the People's Republic of China on Conserving Energy
More
Links:
State Environmental Protection Administration
Ministry of Water Resources
Ministry of Land and Resources
China Environmental Industry Network
Chengdu Giant Panda Research Base