Typical environmental protection cases handled by the Ministry of Environmental Protection recently

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June–July 2016: The Ministry of Environmental Protection resolved typical cases of public complaints. Case 1: The foul odor from the Xiaping Solid Waste Landfill in Shenzhen, Guangdong Province, was causing disturbance to residents. In March–April 2016, the Ministry of Environmental Protection’s “12369” environmental complaint hotline received numerous complaints from the public regarding the foul odor emanating from the Xiaping Solid Waste Landfill in Shenzhen, Guangdong Province. The Ministry of Environmental Protection attached great importance to this matter and immediately sent a letter to Shenzhen’s **, requesting that the case be dealt with promptly. The Xiaping Solid Waste Landfill is located in Luohu District, Shenzhen, and is the largest domestic waste landfill in the city. It handles domestic waste from districts such as Futian and Luohu, with a daily processing capacity of 4,000 tons. Due to the rapid urban development, a large number of new buildings have been constructed around the Xiaping solid waste landfill, leading to increasingly severe environmental issues. Furthermore, since 2016, the volume of waste processed at the other three landfills in Shenzhen has decreased due to reasons such as closure, expansion, and safety concerns; as a result, the daily waste processing volume at Xiaping landfill has increased by 1,300 tons, thereby increasing the pressure to control odors. Furthermore, as temperatures rose, unfavorable weather conditions such as persistent southeast winds and frequent rainfall exacerbated the impact of the odor. Based on the inspection results, the Shenzhen ** and Human Settlements Environment Committee urged the landfill to take various measures such as reducing the amount of waste to be processed, increasing the thickness of the covering membrane, and implementing comprehensive deodorization efforts to ensure that odor pollution is effectively controlled. At the same time, the environmental protection authorities will intensify odor monitoring and unannounced inspections, release monitoring data to the public through official websites and mobile apps, and maintain communication with nearby residents via dedicated liaison officers and WeChat groups to strengthen oversight. Next, Shenzhen **will accelerate the construction of waste treatment facilities in other cities, enhance the capacity for urban waste treatment, optimize waste allocation plans, and reduce the pressure on the Xiaping solid waste landfill. At the same time, pressure should be exerted on the Xiaping solid waste landfill to accelerate the construction of its second leachate treatment plant, in order to fundamentally resolve the problem of odor causing disturbance to residents. Given the long timeframe required for corporate governance improvements, the Ministry of Environmental Protection will continue to monitor the progress of these cases and urge local authorities and enterprises to fulfill their environmental protection responsibilities. Case Study 2: Odor pollution by Northern Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. in Hulunbuir City, Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region. In March and April 2016, the Ministry of Environmental Protection’s “12369” environmental complaint hotline received numerous complaints from the public regarding the pungent and unpleasant odors emitted by Northern Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. in Hulunbuir City, Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, which were affecting the surrounding environment. The Ministry of Environmental Protection attached great importance to this matter and promptly sent a letter to Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region **, requesting that the case be dealt with without delay. According to a report from the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, Beifang Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. is located in the northern industrial park of Yakeshi City in the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, and it mainly produces pharmaceutical products such as penicillin and vitamin C. Inspections revealed that the wastewater generated in the company’s four-effect evaporation and concentration plant was stored for too long, resulting in acidification; this caused an unpleasant odor when the wastewater was sent on to subsequent treatment stages ； The exhaust gas alkali spraying system in the solvent recovery workshop does not have a pH monitoring system, which prevents the alkali spraying solution from effectively removing odors in a stable manner ； Some workshops or production sections are not equipped with negative pressure collection systems, which can lead to the release of waste gases. Based on the inspection results, the Environmental Protection Department of Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region sent a letter to Yakeshi City**, requesting that relevant departments be tasked with urging the enterprise to carry out thorough rectifications. The Environmental Protection Bureau of Yakeshi City ordered the company to immediately cease its illegal activities of emitting excessive amounts of unpleasant odors, to install a pH value monitoring system, to upgrade its negative pressure collection equipment, and to add odor removal devices in order to prevent such odors from disturbing the local residents; meanwhile, legal penalties were imposed on the company. In addition, the Hulunbuir Environmental Protection Bureau and the Yakeshi Environmental Protection Bureau have assigned staff to the company to carry out on-site supervision. Case 3: Yikang Industry and Trade Co., Ltd. in Nanyang City, Henan Province, engaged in illegal production and caused pollution through waste gas and wastewater discharge. On April 1, 2016, the Ministry of Environmental Protection’s environmental complaint hotline at “12369” received reports from the public indicating that Yikang Company in Nanyang City was discharging waste gas and wastewater directly, thereby polluting the surrounding environment. In accordance with regulations, the Ministry of Environmental Protection forwarded the complaint to the environmental protection authorities in Henan Province for handling. Upon investigation, the company referred to in public reports as “Yikang Company” is actually named Yikang Industry and Trade Co., Ltd. It is located in the “Xiangjiuhou” industrial cluster in Xichuan County, Nanyang City, Henan Province. The company’s production capacity is 350 tons of saponin per year, and its production process involves crushing → fermentation → hydrolysis → drying → extraction → to obtain the final product in the form of saponin. The inspection revealed that the company’s project to produce 350 tons of saponin per year began operations without approval from the environmental protection authorities. The project uses a fermentation process, and the uncontrolled emission of waste gases has an impact on the local air quality; in addition, there are leaks in the system handling production wastewater. Based on the inspection results, the Nanyang Environmental Protection Bureau issued a supervision notice to the Xichuan County Environmental Protection Bureau, ordering it to investigate and deal with the environmental violations committed by Xichuan Yikang Industry and Trade Co., Ltd. in accordance with the law. The Xichuan County Environmental Protection Bureau seized and confiscated the company’s main production equipment in accordance with the law and initiated legal proceedings against it; at the same time, it contacted the electricity supply authorities to cut off power to the company. The Xichuan County Environmental Protection Bureau informed the whistleblower of the results of the investigation, and the whistleblower expressed satisfaction. Case 4: Illegal waste discharge at the Shangma Landfill in Xiangtan County, Hunan Province. In April 2016, the Ministry of Environmental Protection learned from news reports that the Hunan Provincial Environmental Protection Department was investigating illegal waste discharge through hidden pipelines at the Shangma Landfill in Xiangtan County. The Ministry of Environmental Protection attached great importance to this matter and sent an on-site working group to oversee the investigation. The Shangma Landfill is located between Shuizhu Village and Shangma Village in Yisuhé Town, Xiangtan County. It is considered a public facility of Xiangtan County, and its management is handled by the Xiangtan County Urban Management and Comprehensive Law Enforcement Bureau. The investigation revealed the following environmental violations at the landfill: the wastewater treatment facilities were not operating properly, and the concentrations of ammonia nitrogen and total nitrogen in the discharged wastewater exceeded the allowed limits ； Three secret pipelines were installed, and some of the landfill leachate was discharged directly into the environment without any treatment. Based on the on-site investigation, the Hunan Provincial Environmental Protection Department ordered the landfill to immediately remove the hidden pipes and restore the normal operation of the wastewater treatment facilities. It also initiated an investigation into the matter and referred it to the police authorities for further handling. At present, the landfill has paid the required fines, removed three underground pipes, ensured proper collection and disposal of leachate, and restored the normal operation of the wastewater treatment facilities. The Public Security Bureau of Xiangtan County has imposed administrative detention on the relevant responsible persons in accordance with the law, and the People’s Court of Xiangtan County has also initiated procedures to hold those responsible accountable through administrative sanctions.