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其他
Electricity Demand-Side Management & Solid Waste Control
Regulation on Electricity Demand-Side Management was revised to bring a cleaner and smarter consumption system. The first national standards for solid waste identification will help to better prevent and control pollution.
New Regulation on Electricity Demand-Side Management
On September 26,2017, the Chinese government published a new Regulation on Electricity Demand-Side Management (the “New Regulation”), which is a revision of the old regulation formulated in 2010. This is an important part of the supply-side structural reform currently taking place in China. The New Regulation mainly applies to power grid companies, power management service providers, power sales companies and power consumers, and it sets out five goals to achieve:
(1) Power Conservation
On the one hand, the government will launch pilot projects to encourage power consumers to apply power-saving technology in their production and operation. On the other hand, the government also promotes the development of power management service industries, as they can help consumers to maintain an efficient consumption and save energy.
(2) Environmental-friendly Consumption
Coal and fuel still take up a large proportion in end-user consumption, which is a main cause of air pollution in China today. Comparing to traditional energy, electricity is much cleaner and more efficient. To increase the proportion of electricity consumption in the end-user consumption will greatly help to protect the environment.
(3) Promoting Renewable Energy Consumption
Demand response will be taken into account of the power operation and distribution system, in order to balance the demand-and-supply dynamic. The government will continue to support the renewable energy companies with financial incentives, especially for those who positively respond to the demand.
(4) Smart Power Consumption
The government intends to introduce new technologies, such as big data and artificial intelligence, into the communication platform between the power consumers and the government. The platform will help to monitor, analyze and coordinate the power distribution, and minimize the gap between the peak load and valley load.
(5) Maintaining the Order of Power Consumption
With the electricity market reform moving forward, there are more and more direct power transactions. However, in the case of power shortage or emergency, the government will maintain the order of power consumption through administrative measures, such as to prioritize and guarantee the power consumption in residential area, agriculture, public utilities, and public welfares.
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Identification Standards forSolid Wastes - General Rules
The Ministry of Environmental Protection recently announced the“Identification Standards for Solid Wastes - General Rules” (the “Standards”)to go into effect on October 1, 2017. This is the first national standards for preventing and controlling the solid waste pollution in China.
Before the issuance of the Standards, a trial rule for identifying solid wastes (the “Trial Rule”) which was formulated in 2006, is the guideline for the regulatory authorities to monitor and control the solid wastes. Compared to the Trial Rule, which has become outdated and no longer able to solve problems,the Standards will be more effective as it covers over 90% of solid wastes in China and contains specific identifying methods and procedures.
The Standards will be used as a support for implementing the environment protection related laws, and will affect the industrial production in a certain way. It will be clearer whether certain by-products of industrial production fall into the scope of solid wastes and whether they can be used for producing other products. It will also help to improve the efficiency of resource utilization and reduce pollutants. For example, coal ash and clinker can be recycled and used as construction materials.
The Standards will also play a more important role in enforcing port management laws, and bring certain environmental benefits as a result. Earlier this year, the Chinese government has required certain industries to set their timelines and schedules for gradually reducing or even prohibiting the solid waste importation. Twenty-four types of solid wastes are expressly prohibited from being imported into China by the end of 2017. Therefore, it is important and beneficial for traditional energy companies and waste processing companies to familiarize themselves with the Standards and take precautions accordingly.