Space-ground supervision system keeps eye on pollutant emissions

The Ministry of Ecology and Environment has established an integrated space-ground supervision system to help enhance law enforcement efficiency, according to Zhao Qunying, head of the ministry's law enforcement bureau.

The COVID-19 epidemic posed great challenges for the bureau to carry out on-site law enforcement inspections. But it also created opportunities to tap the potential of technological means in facilitating environmental law enforcement work, the official said at a news conference on Thursday.

The ministry has developed a series of technologies and methods to identify violations in air pollutant emissions based on satellite remote sensing, air quality monitoring facilities, power consumption data and tips-off from the public.

Making full use of their access to power consumption data law enforcement officers can easily know if polluters have reduced production as they claim or not in the event of heavy air pollution, he said.

Currently in China, companies in smokestack industries are required to reduce their productions as an emergency response to heavy air pollution. Classified into three grades, these major air polluters will be subject to different production restrictions in case of heavy haze.

Some companies may claim they have reduced production by 50 percent as required. There is, however, almost no change in their power consumption data. This indicates that they have lied, Zhao said.

With the help of new technologies and methods, he said, the bureau is now able to unearth violations in a very precise manner. The effectiveness of its on-site law enforcement work has been greatly enhanced.

Since May 2022, the bureau transferred clues about environmental violations in over 20,000 companies to local environmental authorities. Violations were found in 70 to 80 percent of them following officers' field visits, he noted.