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Order No. 16 issued by the **Commission for Development and Reform of the People’s Republic of China** and the **State Environmental Protection Administration**: In order to fully implement clean production practices and standardize the procedures for clean production audits, and in accordance with the Clean Production Promotion Law of the People’s Republic of China as well as the responsibilities assigned to relevant departments of the State Council, the **Commission for Development and Reform** and the **State Environmental Protection Administration** have formulated and approved the Interim Measures for Clean Production Audits. These measures are now issued and shall come into effect on October 1, 2004. **Director of the National Development and Reform Commission: Ma Kai Director of the State Environmental Protection Administration: Xie Zhenhua August 16, 2004 Interim Provisions on Clean Production Audits Chapter I General Provisions Article 1 These provisions are formulated in accordance with the Clean Production Promotion Law of the People’s Republic of China, in order to promote clean production and standardize the practices related to clean production audits. Article 2: The clean production audit referred to in these measures means the process of conducting investigations and diagnoses of production and service processes in accordance with certain procedures, identifying the reasons for high energy consumption, high material consumption, and severe pollution, proposing plans to reduce the use and generation of toxic and harmful materials, as well as to lower energy and material consumption as well as waste generation, and thereby selecting a clean production plan that is technically feasible, economically viable, and environmentally sound. Article 3 These measures apply to all entities engaged in production and service activities within the People’s Republic of China, as well as the departments responsible for related management activities. Article 4 The National Development and Reform Commission, in conjunction with the State Environmental Protection Administration, is responsible for overseeing clean production audit activities across the country. The administrative departments in charge of development and reform (economy and trade) in each province, autonomous region, municipality directly under the Central Government, city designated for separate planning, as well as the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps, work together with the administrative departments in charge of environmental protection to carry out clean production audits based on the actual conditions of their respective regions. Article 5: Cleaner production audits should be carried out with the enterprise as the main entity, following the principles of combining voluntary enterprise-led audits with **mandatory audits, as well as combining internal enterprise audits with external assistance. These audits should be conducted in a manner appropriate to local conditions, in an orderly fashion, with an emphasis on practical results. Chapter 2 Scope of Cleaner Production Audits Article 6 Cleaner production audits are divided into voluntary audits and mandatory audits. Article 7 **Enterprises are encouraged to voluntarily conduct clean production audits. Enterprises whose pollutant emissions meet ** or the local emission standards may voluntarily carry out clean production audits to set goals for further resource conservation and reduction of pollutant emissions. Article 8 Compulsory cleaner production audits shall be conducted in any of the following circumstances: (1) Enterprises with severe pollution problems whose pollutant emissions exceed ** and local emission standards, or whose total pollutant emissions exceed the total emission control targets set by the local people’s ** ； (II) Enterprises that use toxic and harmful raw materials in production or emit such substances during production. Harmful and toxic raw materials or substances mainly refer to those that are highly toxic, highly corrosive, highly irritating, radioactive (excluding nuclear power facilities and military nuclear facilities), carcinogenic, teratogenic, etc., as listed in the \"List of Dangerous Goods\" (GB 12268), the \"Catalogue of Hazardous Chemicals\", the \"List of Hazardous Wastes\", and the \"Catalogue of Highly Toxic Chemicals\". Article 9: The list of enterprises subject to mandatory cleaner production audits as specified in Item 1 of Article 8 shall be prepared initially by the local environmental protection administrative department within its scope of authority. This list is then submitted at various levels to the environmental protection administrative departments of provinces, autonomous regions, municipalities directly under the Central Government, cities designated as separate planning units, and the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps for approval, after which it is finalized. A new list is issued each year, and enterprises are notified in writing, with a copy also sent to the corresponding development and reform (economy and trade) administrative department ； At the same time, the list will be published in the local major media. The list of enterprises subject to mandatory cleaner production audits, as specified in Article 8, Paragraph 2, is determined in phases by the environmental protection authorities of each province, autonomous region, municipality directly under the Central Government, city designated as a separate planning unit, and the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps, in conjunction with the development and reform (economy and trade) authorities. This determination is made based on an analysis of the amount of toxic and hazardous materials used by these enterprises, the volume of such substances emitted, and the potential severity of the environmental impact they may cause. The enterprises are notified in writing, and the list is published in the local major media. Chapter 3: Implementation of Cleaner Production Audits Article 10: Enterprises subject to mandatory cleaner production audits as specified in Item 1 of Article 8 shall publish information on their emissions of major pollutants in the main local media within one month after the list is published. The main information to be published should include: the company name, legal representative, address of the company, names of pollutants emitted, methods of emission, emission concentrations and total amounts, as well as any cases of exceeding limits or total amounts. Environmental protection authorities at the provincial level and below verify the emissions of major pollutants disclosed by enterprises in accordance with their regulatory authority. Article 11: Enterprises included in the list for mandatory clean production audits shall conduct clean production audits within two months after the list is published. Article 8, Paragraph 2 stipulates that for enterprises subject to mandatory cleaner production audits, the interval between two audits shall not exceed five years. Article 12 Enterprises that voluntarily conduct clean production audits may submit a plan for such audits to the competent administrative departments in charge of development and reform (economy and trade) as well as environmental protection, and organize the clean production audits in accordance with the contents and procedures specified in that plan. Article 13 The cleaner production audit procedure generally includes audit preparation, pre-audit, the audit itself, the development, screening, and determination of implementation plans, as well as the preparation of a cleaner production audit report. (1) Preparation for review. Conduct training and awareness campaigns, establish a cleaner production audit team composed of enterprise managers and technical personnel, and develop a work plan ； (II) Preliminary review. Based on a comprehensive investigation of the basic production conditions of the enterprise, key areas for cleaner production audits and the enterprise’s cleaner production goals are determined through qualitative and quantitative analysis ； (III) Review. By analyzing the inputs and outputs of production and service processes, material balance, water balance, resource balance, and pollution factor balance are established to identify the causes of material loss, resource waste, and pollutant generation ； (IV) Development and screening of implementation plans. An analysis is conducted on material loss, resource waste, as well as the generation and emission of pollutants; a clean production implementation plan is proposed, followed by a preliminary screening of this plan ； (5) Determination of the implementation plan. Conduct technical, economic, and environmental feasibility analyses on the initially screened clean production solutions to determine the clean production solution that the enterprise intends to implement ； (VI) Prepare the clean production audit report. A clean production audit report should include basic information about the enterprise, the process and results of the clean production audit, a summary of the clean production plans along with cost-benefit analysis, and a plan for implementing those clean production plans. Chapter 4 Organization and Management of Cleaner Production Audits Article 14 Cleaner production audits are primarily carried out by the enterprises themselves. Enterprises that do not possess the capability to conduct clean production audits independently can entrust consulting agencies such as industry associations, clean production centers, and engineering consulting firms to assist in carrying out these audits. Article 15 Consultancy service institutions that assist enterprises in carrying out clean production audits shall meet the following conditions: (1) Possess independent legal person status ； (II) Technical personnel who are familiar with the production processes, technologies, and pollution prevention and control measures in related industries, understand knowledge of clean production, and are proficient in the procedures for clean production audits ； (III) Institutional measures in place to provide fair, impartial, and efficient services for enterprise clean production audits. Article 16 Enterprises included in the list for mandatory clean production audits shall submit their clean production audit reports to the local environmental protection administrative department and the development and reform (economy and trade) administrative department within one year from the date of publication of the list. Central directly-administered enterprises shall submit their clean production audit reports to the local administrative departments in charge of environmental protection and development and reform (economy and trade), and at the same time send copies to the **General Administration of Environmental Protection** and the **Commission for Development and Reform**. Article 17 Enterprises that voluntarily conduct clean production audits may submit clean production audit reports in accordance with the provisions of Article 16 of these measures. Article 18 The administrative departments in charge of development and reform (economy and trade) at all levels, as well as the administrative departments responsible for environmental protection, shall actively guide and supervise enterprises to organize and implement clean production plans in accordance with the implementation plans outlined in the clean production audit reports. Article 19: Administrative departments in charge of development and reform (economic trade) at all levels, administrative departments responsible for environmental protection, as well as consulting service agencies shall safeguard the technical and commercial secrets of enterprises undergoing clean production audits. Article 20 The National Development and Reform Commission, in conjunction with the State Environmental Protection Administration, shall establish a national expert database on clean production, issue catalogs of clean production technology guidelines for key industries as well as guidelines for clean production audits in those industries, organize training on clean production, and provide information and technical support to enterprises carrying out clean production audits. The administrative departments in charge of development and reform (economy and trade) at all local levels, in conjunction with the environmental protection administrative departments, may organize training on clean production audits based on the local conditions, and establish a local database of experts in clean production. Chapter 5 Rewards and Punishments Article 21 Enterprises that voluntarily conduct clean production audits and achieve significant results after implementing clean production plans shall be commended by the administrative departments in charge of development and reform (economy and trade) and environmental protection at or above the provincial level, and their achievements shall be published in the local major media. Article 22: When formulating and implementing **key investment plans and local investment plans, the administrative departments in charge of development and reform (economy and trade) at all levels shall designate clean production projects such as energy conservation, water conservation, comprehensive utilization, improvement of resource utilization efficiency, and pollution prevention, which are included in enterprises’ clean production implementation plans, as key areas and provide increased investment support for them. Article 23: Emission fees can be used to support enterprises in implementing clean production. For clean production projects that meet the requirements of the Regulations on the Collection and Use of Pollution Discharge Fees, financial authorities and environmental protection departments at all levels give priority to allocating funds for the use of such fees. Article 24: The Small and Medium-sized Enterprise Development Fund shall allocate an appropriate amount as needed to support small and medium-sized enterprises in implementing clean production. Article 25: The costs incurred by enterprises in carrying out clean production audits may be included in the enterprise’s operating costs or relevant expense accounts. Article 26: Enterprises may establish an internal system for recognizing and rewarding clean production efforts, in light of their actual circumstances, and provide appropriate rewards to those who have achieved significant results in clean production audits. Article 27: Enterprises that violate the provisions of Article 10 shall be punished in accordance with Article 41 of the Law of the People’s Republic of China on Promoting Clean Production; for enterprises specified in Item 2 of Article 8, those that violate the provisions of Article 16 shall be punished in accordance with Article 40 of the Law of the People’s Republic of China on Promoting Clean Production. Article 28: If the consulting service agency commissioned by an enterprise fails to conduct a clean production audit in accordance with the prescribed requirements and procedures, or engages in fraud by submitting false audit reports, the development and reform (economic trade) departments of the provinces, autonomous regions, municipalities directly under the Central Government, cities designated as separate planning units, and the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps, in conjunction with the environmental protection administrative authorities, shall order it to make corrections and publish its name. Those who cause serious consequences will be held legally accountable. Article 29: Staff members of the administrative departments in charge of development and reform (economy and trade) as well as those responsible for environmental protection who neglect their duties and disclose a company’s technical and commercial secrets, thereby causing economic losses to the company, shall be punished in accordance with **the relevant laws and regulations. Chapter 6 Supplementary Provisions Article 30 These measures shall be interpreted by the **Development and Reform Commission and the **State Environmental Protection Administration. Article 31 Provinces, autonomous regions, municipalities directly under the Central Government, cities designated as separate planning units, and the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps may formulate detailed implementation rules in accordance with these measures. Article 32: The clean production audit of military industrial enterprises may be carried out with reference to these measures. Article 33 These measures shall come into force as of October 1, 2004.