China Launches Seventh Batch of Third-Round Central Eco-Inspections, Including First Probe Into Sinkhole Pollution
China has launched the seventh batch of its third round of central ecological and environmental protection inspections, Xinhua reported on October 12. Two inspection teams will conduct month-long routine inspections of the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development and the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, while three teams will carry out roughly two-week special inspections into pollution of caves and sinkholes (tiankeng) across seven provinces and regions: Hebei, Shanxi, Guangxi, Sichuan, Yunnan, Guizhou and Shaanxi.
During their stationing, the teams will set up dedicated hotlines and mailboxes to receive public reports on environmental violations by the inspected entities. The central inspection system, a major institutional arrangement for ecological protection in China, has completed two full rounds since its 2015 pilot; this round extends routine inspections to central government departments themselves. It is also the first time cave and sinkhole pollution has been singled out as a special inspection theme — karst formations are key channels for groundwater systems, making contamination unusually hard to remediate. Inspection reports and follow-up rectification are to be made public.
(Source: Xinhua)
Source: Xinhua
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 天坑地貌资料图，公有领域（Wikimedia Commons）
