Reuters
May 18, 2001

Beijing: China has warned local environmental protection officials that they will be punished if they allow or cover up damage to the environment in favour of economic growth, state media said on Tuesday.

… A new regulation that took effect on Monday set out penalties for officials who approved projects that had not passed environmental impact assessments, improperly cut or cancelled fees for industry waste discharge, held back or falsified reports or tried to cover up accidents, the China Daily reported.

“By cracking down on corruption and environmental destruction, we are correcting the wrong principle of pursuing fast economic growth by sacrificing environmental quality — which is a principle held by some local officials,” Liu Yufu, vice minister of supervision, was quoted as saying.

The State Environmental Protection Administration (SEPA) has struggled to get regional officials, under pressure to spur economic growth, to comply with its policies, and the new punishment rules may be no different. … Read the full story [PDF].