The Environmental Protection Administration reports environmental violations by Xinjiang Yilite Company

Thread Content

The State Environmental Protection Administration reports on environmental violations by Xinjiang Yilite Company February 29, 2008, 16:15 Xinhua Net Xinhua Net, Beijing, February 29 (Reporter Gu Ruizhen) – A responsible official from the Chinese State Environmental Protection Administration informed the media on the 29th that Xinjiang Yilite Industrial Co., Ltd. has committed various environmental violations, including delaying the timeline for pollution control measures and starting operations illegally during the period when corrections were supposed to be carried out. The Environmental Protection Administration will step up its supervision and oversight of these matters, and will work with relevant departments to explore ways to ensure strict controls at the stages of corporate listing and refinancing. 　　Xinjiang Yilite Industrial Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as Yilite Company) is a listed company; it has breweries No. 1, No. 2, and No. 3 located in Ili Prefecture, Xinjiang. In August 2006, the State Environmental Protection Administration, during inspections of the water environment in the Ili River basin in Xinjiang, found that none of these three wineries had wastewater treatment facilities; their production wastewater was discharged directly into the Gongnesi River. These illegal activities were included by the Ministry of Supervision and the State Environmental Protection Administration in the second batch of cases to be supervised in 2006. On September 12 of the same year, the Environmental Protection Bureau and the Supervision Bureau of the Fourth Agricultural Construction Division of the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps imposed penalties on the company, ordering it to cease operations immediately, fining it 150,000 yuan, and demanding that it pay back 560,000 yuan in fees related to excessive pollution discharge. The company was also required to complete the necessary corrective actions by June 30, 2007. In the second half of 2007, on-site inspections by the Environmental Protection Administration revealed that Yilite Company had failed to make the necessary corrections within the deadline required by the environmental authorities. It committed various environmental violations, including starting operations and discharging pollutants without authorization, using inadequate pollution control methods, and delaying the implementation of pollution control measures. 　　The official said that Xinjiang Jianlei Environmental Protection Technology Co., Ltd., which was responsible for the design and construction of the pollution control project for Eilit Company, was established in July 2006, and took on this pollution control project in August. There are certain issues with the governance processes it employs, such as slag-water separation, sludge dewatering, safety protection, facility insulation, cost accounting, and identification of pollution sources. This process of separating and treating clear and turbid liquids separately has no successful precedents in China’s baijiu production industry, and its feasibility remains to be tested. During the project construction period, economic disputes arose between the two companies; Jianlei Company threatened to delay the project timeline, resulting in repeated delays in the pollution control work. Despite repeated orders from environmental authorities, Yilite Company not only failed to take effective measures to ensure that the pollution control projects were completed on time, but also continued to carry out illegal production activities that resulted in environmental pollution. 　　The official stated that the Environmental Protection Administration will order the Environmental Protection Bureau of the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps to conduct a post-evaluation of Yilite Company’s wastewater treatment processes, and will work with the supervision authorities to hold the company’s responsible parties accountable in accordance with the law ； The Northwest Environmental Inspection Center of the Ministry of Environmental Protection and the Environmental Protection Bureau of the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps have been tasked with continuing to monitor this case, overseeing the suspension of operations at the Ilit Company’s winery for rectification, ensuring that the necessary environmental approval procedures are followed, and guaranteeing that wastewater is discharged in compliance with standards. At the same time, discussions will also be held with relevant departments to explore ways for environmental protection agencies to be involved in the management of qualifications for environmental engineering design, as well as to ensure strict controls over companies’ listings and refinancing.