Environmental Planning in China (1949–Present)

Environmental planning and environmental protection started at the same time and have been developing simultaneously in China. In August 1973, the Chinese government held its first national environmental protection conference and issued the Environmental Protection and Improvement Regulations (Interim), proposing to plan environmental protection in a holistic and reasonable manner, improve resource efficiency, reduce negative environmental impact of human activities, and encourage everyone to participate in environmental protection efforts. Planning environmental protection in a holistic manner is at the core of the policy, which establishes the fundamental and leading position of planning in various environmental management systems. Since the first national environmental protection plan, nine five-year national environmental protection plans have been prepared and implemented thought the specific names changed over time. The status of the plans was raised from internal plans to departmental plans and then to national plans approved and issued by the State Council. An environmental planning system with Chinese characteristics has been created and played an important role in the country’s environmental protection endeavor.