Shandong revises the criteria for identifying chemical industrial parks!

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To further standardize the process of identifying chemical industrial parks and promote the green, low-carbon, and high-quality development of the province’s chemical industry, on March 30, the Shandong Province Chemical Industry Special Action Office took the lead in revising the \"Measures for Identifying Chemical Industrial Parks in Shandong Province (Draft for Comment)\\" (hereinafter referred to as the \"Draft for Comment\”), and sought public feedback on it. The comment period is from March 30 to April 28. This revision not only integrates the existing criteria for identifying the two types of industrial parks, but also establishes for the first time the \"reduce two and increase one\" policy. It changes the identification method from a scoring system to a veto system, and imposes a series of strict requirements in areas such as site selection and layout, as well as safety and environmental protection, with the aim of improving the quality of construction and management of chemical parks in Shandong Province from the source. For the first time, the principle of “reducing two and increasing one” in chemical parks has been clearly defined. Chemical parks serve as important platforms for the development of the chemical industry, and they are currently accelerating their progress toward being more intelligent, sustainable, and integrated. The existing criteria for identifying chemical industrial parks in Shandong Province have been in use for many years; there are two standards for such identification – comprehensive chemical industrial parks and specialized chemical industrial parks. The policy framework is relatively fragmented, and some of its elements can no longer meet the requirements of the new stage of development. A key highlight of this revision is the integration and standardization of the criteria for identifying the two types of chemical industrial parks; it clarifies the connection between park identification and subsequent management measures, as well as policies related to park expansion or reorganization, thus creating a closed-loop system. At the same time, the draft for comments clearly defined for the first time the meaning of the provincial government’s \"reduce two and increase one\" policy for chemical industrial parks. The so-called “reduce two and add one” refers to the practice whereby a city with district status can apply to establish one additional chemical industrial park after consolidating and reducing two existing ones within its jurisdiction. For major petrochemical and chemical projects that are given priority by the Shandong Provincial Party Committee and Provincial Government and are intended to be included in the **industrial planning framework, their location can be designated as part of the nearest chemical industrial park; such area must pass the relevant inspection procedures before the project begins operation. The Department of Industry and Information Technology of Shandong Province takes the lead in carrying out the assessment process. Departments such as the Provincial Development and Reform Commission, the Provincial Department of Natural Resources, the Provincial Department of Ecology and Environment, the Provincial Department of Transportation, the Provincial Department of Water Resources, and the Provincial Emergency Management Department are responsible, in accordance with their respective responsibilities, for tasks such as overall planning, territorial spatial planning, environmental impact assessment of the plan, determination of safety distances for existing facilities and planned transportation infrastructure, assessment of water resources requirements, and preliminary evaluation of safety risks. \"Red lines\" have been set for aspects such as site selection and layout, as well as safety and environmental protection. Different from the previous assessment methods, the draft for comments modifies the original scoring system to a veto system for key issues, stipulating that chemical industrial parks must meet all mandatory requirements in terms of site selection and layout, safety and environmental protection, and planning formulation – effectively establishing a \"strict threshold\" for park admission. Regarding the site selection criteria, it is required that the existing area of the chemical industrial park should be at least 4 square kilometers, or the planned contiguous area should be at least 6 square kilometers with an existing area of at least 3 square kilometers. The park should have clearly defined boundaries and vector coordinates; its location and layout must comply with relevant requirements regarding territorial spatial planning, work safety, environmental protection, emergency rescue, resource utilization, transportation, as well as comprehensive disaster prevention and mitigation, and it must be situated within the urban development boundaries. At the same time, the draft for comments clearly specifies the areas where the construction of new chemical industrial parks is prohibited, including a 1-kilometer zone along the banks of the main and tributary streams of the Yellow River, as well as a 2-kilometer core monitoring zone on both sides of the Grand Canal (Shandong section) ； Ecological protection red lines, permanent basic farmland, state-owned forest farms (nurseries), nature reserves, drinking water source protection areas, key ecological function areas, and other areas under ecological space management ； Seismic fault zones, areas prone to geological disasters, mining subsidence areas, flood storage and detention areas, regions with a wind-free period of over 60% throughout the year, etc. In terms of safety and environmental protection, chemical industrial parks are required to have effective management capabilities in areas such as safe production, ecological environment protection, and emergency response. They must have sufficient full-time staff as stipulated, their pre-assessment of safety risk levels must be at or above the general safety risk level (Category C), and no major or more severe chemical production accidents or sudden environmental incidents must have occurred within those parks over the past two years. Areas where personnel are gathered for administrative tasks and daily services must be separated from areas where hazardous chemicals are produced and stored, with safety distances meeting relevant standards. There should be no villages or residential areas within the park, nor any sensitive sites such as labor-intensive enterprises, schools, or hospitals; furthermore, no public roads shall pass through it. In addition, the park must be managed in a closed manner, with access control systems and video surveillance systems installed to ensure full oversight of the entry and exit of personnel, vehicles, and materials. Strictly control transportation safety risks by using dedicated roads and lanes, imposing speed limits and time restrictions, and establishing specialized parking lots for vehicles carrying hazardous chemicals as well as emergency checkpoints. The rate of harmless treatment and disposal of hazardous waste must reach 100%; a comprehensive control system for volatile organic compounds, as well as a three-tier emergency response system for sudden water pollution incidents, must be established. Additionally, specialized facilities for the centralized treatment of chemical production wastewater, along with corresponding pipeline systems for transport, whether buried or above ground, are required. The public can submit their comments by April 28. The draft guidelines establish strict rules for the process of identifying such parks, following a workflow that includes park applications, preliminary review at the municipal level, verification at the provincial level (including on-site inspections by third parties and joint reviews by various departments), public disclosure, and final approval by the provincial government. To be designated as a chemical industrial park, it is necessary to conduct, in accordance with the overall plan and industrial development plans, planning environmental impact assessments, comprehensive safety risk assessments, water resource assessments for planning purposes, social stability risk assessments, and online public opinion risk assessments, all within the valid period. The master plan should include sections on safe production, emergency rescue, ecological environment protection, smart development, water resource assessment, efficient use of land, and comprehensive disaster prevention and mitigation ； The industrial development plan should clarify the industrial orientation of the park, as well as the key industrial chains or distinctive industrial clusters, to ensure compliance with **industrial policies and the province’s overall plan for the development of the chemical industry. The park management authorities submit the application materials for approval, in accordance with the hierarchical structure, to the local county (city, district) governments and the municipal governments of cities with districts. After conducting a review, the municipal governments of cities with districts submit an official request to the provincial government. The provincial government approved the request submitted by the Provincial Department of Industry and Information Technology to review the information related to the park; once that review was completed, a third-party agency was organized to conduct an on-site inspection. For those that pass the on-site audit, a joint review is conducted by the Provincial Department of Industry and Information Technology in conjunction with relevant departments of the provincial government. Once approved, the results are made public; if no objections arise after the publicity period, they are submitted to the provincial government for final approval before being officially announced. The draft for comments specifies that these measures shall come into effect as of the date of issuance, and the two previous assessment methods issued in 2017 and 2018 shall be repealed simultaneously. Matters such as the standardized management of chemical industrial parks after they are recognized, as well as expansions and relocations of these parks, will be carried out in accordance with the relevant regulations set forth in ** and provincial documents. If any sectors of society have suggestions or comments, they may submit them to the Park Construction Group of the Provincial Chemical Industry Special Action Office by mail via EMS before April 28, or by sending scanned copies via email. Organizations submitting feedback should affix their official seal and indicate a contact person, while individuals should provide their real name and contact information.