China greenlights 129,500 EIA approvals in 2024

The Ministry of Ecology and Environment approved environmental impact assessments for 129,500 projects, marking a 4.4 percent increase from the previous year, as it strives to heighten efforts to help enhance economic stability and drive high-quality development, an official with the ministry said.

The planned investment for these projects totals roughly 21.9 trillion yuan ($3 trillion), said Wang Zhihua, head of the ministry's Department of Environmental Impact Assessment and Emission Management, at a news conference on Monday.

The increase in the number of projects it greenlighted happened thanks to a series of measures taken by the ministry to enhance the efficiency of its examination and approval processes.

For example, he mentioned that the ministry prioritized 500 major projects, assigning dedicated personnel to assist with their respective environmental impact assessment procedures.

The ministry proactively initiated the establishment of a cross-ministry coordination mechanism involving the National Development and Reform Commission, the Ministry of Natural Resources, the Ministry of Water Resources and the National Forestry and Grassland Administration to streamline the assessment process through joint efforts for these projects, Wang stated.

In a move to further beef up efficiency, the ministry has also established an internal supervision mechanism to oversee each step of the assessment process in the ministry, he continued.

Thanks to the internal mechanism, he said the average approval time for major infrastructure projects and key industrial projects has been reduced by nearly 40 percent compared to the statutory time limits.