Legislative Thinking on Prevention and Control of "White Pollution" (Part Two)

In contrast, the experiences of Western countries are worth our studying. In the "Circular Economy Law", Germany clearly stipulates: Whoever manufactures, sells, or consumes packaged goods, has the obligation to recycle and dispose of wastes. In the "Regulations on the Management of Packaging Wastes," it will recover, use, and dispose of used packaging materials. The obligations are linked to the right to produce, sell, and consume the goods, and the obligation to recycle, use, and dispose of them is implemented in all links of the entire cycle of the commodity and its packaging materials, and it has strong operability and effectiveness; as in Denmark 1987. A waste disposal regulation was promulgated. The regulations specifically stipulated various methods for waste disposal. The “polluter who pays for pollution” was adopted, and the enterprises dealing with waste were also exempted from income tax; the United States’ 10 states including New York and California also Has introduced the packaging supplies recovery deposit system. 3. The weakness of the legislative content. This means that the legal liability in the current legal documents is relatively light: it only imposes administrative penalties and the amount of fines is low. For example, Article 35 of the “Hangzhou City Environmental Sanitary Management Regulations” stipulates that a fine of 500-5000 yuan may be imposed on the sale and use of non-degradable disposable plastic tableware. In foreign countries, such as the laws of Maharashtra state in West India, which prohibits the use of plastic shopping bags, offenders will face imprisonment with a maximum sentence of 5 years and a maximum fine of 100,000 rupees (approximately 2,564 US dollars). The weakness of the legislative content is also reflected in the legal obligations stipulated by laws and regulations. Due to the lack of corresponding legal responsibilities, these obligations cannot be strictly enforced. For example, Article 18 of the "Law of the People's Republic of China on the Prevention and Control of Environmental Pollution Caused by Solid Waste" stipulates: "Units and individuals using agricultural films shall adopt measures such as recycling and use to prevent or reduce the pollution of agricultural films to the environment", but the legal liability is There is no prescribed penalty. In addition, the current legal provisions are not clear on the subject of law enforcement: Is it the Environmental Protection Agency or the Environment and Sanitation Bureau? Or other departments such as the Bureau of Industry and Commerce? Because the legal provisions are not clear, the situation of “everybody manages, nobody cares” is often formed. Third, to improve China's legislation to prevent "white pollution" thinking for China's prevention and control of "white pollution," the status quo of legislation, starting from China's national conditions, combined with the use of foreign successful legislative experience, now put forward the following suggestions: 1. Amend the "Law of the People's Republic of China on the Prevention and Control of Solid Waste Pollution" and add the principle of "white pollution prevention and control". For example, the waste plastic packaging must be recycled, and the discarded plastic products must not be mixed into other household waste. The manufacturer's, seller's and consumer's respective responsibility for recycling and utilization of plastic products must be clearly defined, and corresponding penalties must be added to legal liabilities. Measures; In addition, in accordance with the provisions of Article 18, additional penalties are imposed on units and individuals that cause environmental pollution from agricultural films. Of course, in order to make the "Law of the People's Republic of China on the Prevention and Control of Solid Waste Pollution" operational and specific, it is also necessary to formulate and promulgate the Detailed Rules for the Implementation of the Solid Waste Pollution Prevention Law of the People's Republic of China. 2. The State Council shall formulate the "Regulations on the Management of Packaging Wastes," which shall clearly stipulate: the basic principles of whoever pays pollution and who will govern profits so as to realize the recycling, reduction and harmlessness of packaging waste The guidelines for the establishment of specific regulations stipulate the obligations and legal obligations of producers, sellers, and consumers to recycle used plastic packaging. Responsible for the production, management, and consumption of packaging, and formulate specific control measures and guidance policies, control the output of waste plastic packaging materials that are not easily recycled, and encourage the recycling of used packaging materials; Recycling units and individuals are required to pay recycling fees for compensation to recyclers; meanwhile, enterprises that recycle, process, and use waste packaging should be given preferential policies such as taxes and loans. 3. All provinces, autonomous regions, municipalities directly under the Central Government, and cities that have the right to promulgate local or local regulations shall formulate local regulations or local regulations on the prevention and control of “white pollution” in accordance with the relevant laws and regulations of the country according to the actual conditions in the region. Regulations. Its content should focus on strengthening public participation in prevention and control, and intensify law enforcement, advocate and popularize environmental protection concepts and legal awareness of green consumption. Of course, "white pollution" is not an isolated environmental issue. The reason for its formation is very complicated. Only by comprehensively and systematically considering and evaluating various factors, but by the joint efforts and participation of countries, enterprises, consumers, and the public, can we fundamentally prevent and control “white pollution”.