Environment is a Major Political Issue Which Bears …
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advantage in boosting environmental protection, an advantage that must especially
be brought into full play in this special period of fighting the critical battle of pollution
prevention and control.
1. What obstacles to overcome in pollution prevention and control?
Fighting the critical battle of pollution prevention and control means concentrating
powerful forces within a specified period of time to overcome a batch of environmental difficulties that should have been resolved in the medium and long term but
haven’t, with the focus on protruding environmental problems, so as to adapt the
environmental state to the goal of building a moderately prosperous society in all
respects. It’s safe to say that the battle of pollution prevention and control is a special
one waged to achieve specific objectives, for which a swim-or-sink battle of strong
firepower and unusual measures is inevitable.
In fighting this battle, we have to crack three “hard nuts.” First, we must resolve
protruding environmental problems and notably improve environmental quality;
second, we must resolve the conflict between development and environmental protection and foster a green development mode and lifestyle; third, we must deepen the
institutional reform for ecological civilization and advance the modernization of
ecological governance system and capability.
These difficulties that have been piled up over long years are hard to overcome
with regular governance measures, but call for necessary political approaches and
systematic political strategy. We used to employ many “administrative means,” some
of which are essentially political approaches.
2. Political strategy for fighting and winning the tough battle of pollution
prevention and control
The political strategy for fighting and winning the tough battle of pollution prevention
and control consists of the following points.
(1) Resolutely safeguarding the CPC Central Committee’s authority and centralized and unified leadership. Guided by the Xi Jinping Thought on Ecological
Civilization, we must uphold the CPC Central Committee’s decisions and
deployments on ecological progress and environmental protection, especially
the Opinions of the State Council of CPC Central Committee on Comprehensively Strengthening Environmental Protection and Resolutely Fighting the
Tough Battle of Pollution Prevention and Control, as the paramount political
requirement and implement it in the whole process of strict Party discipline
and state governance. No place or organization shall selectively implement
this requirement with local interests as the yardstick, no leniency or second
chance shall be given to violators, and typical cases shall be dealt with and
severe punishment imposed to set examples.
(2) Resolutely fulfilling the political responsibility for ecological progress. Chief
leaders of CPC Committees and governments at all levels are the principals
bearing overall responsibility for local environmental protection work and
481
advantage in boosting environmental protection, an advantage that must especially
be brought into full play in this special period of fighting the critical battle of pollution
prevention and control.
1. What obstacles to overcome in pollution prevention and control?
Fighting the critical battle of pollution prevention and control means concentrating
powerful forces within a specified period of time to overcome a batch of environmental difficulties that should have been resolved in the medium and long term but
haven’t, with the focus on protruding environmental problems, so as to adapt the
environmental state to the goal of building a moderately prosperous society in all
respects. It’s safe to say that the battle of pollution prevention and control is a special
one waged to achieve specific objectives, for which a swim-or-sink battle of strong
firepower and unusual measures is inevitable.
In fighting this battle, we have to crack three “hard nuts.” First, we must resolve
protruding environmental problems and notably improve environmental quality;
second, we must resolve the conflict between development and environmental protection and foster a green development mode and lifestyle; third, we must deepen the
institutional reform for ecological civilization and advance the modernization of
ecological governance system and capability.
These difficulties that have been piled up over long years are hard to overcome
with regular governance measures, but call for necessary political approaches and
systematic political strategy. We used to employ many “administrative means,” some
of which are essentially political approaches.
2. Political strategy for fighting and winning the tough battle of pollution
prevention and control
The political strategy for fighting and winning the tough battle of pollution prevention
and control consists of the following points.
(1) Resolutely safeguarding the CPC Central Committee’s authority and centralized and unified leadership. Guided by the Xi Jinping Thought on Ecological
Civilization, we must uphold the CPC Central Committee’s decisions and
deployments on ecological progress and environmental protection, especially
the Opinions of the State Council of CPC Central Committee on Comprehensively Strengthening Environmental Protection and Resolutely Fighting the
Tough Battle of Pollution Prevention and Control, as the paramount political
requirement and implement it in the whole process of strict Party discipline
and state governance. No place or organization shall selectively implement
this requirement with local interests as the yardstick, no leniency or second
chance shall be given to violators, and typical cases shall be dealt with and
severe punishment imposed to set examples.
(2) Resolutely fulfilling the political responsibility for ecological progress. Chief
leaders of CPC Committees and governments at all levels are the principals
bearing overall responsibility for local environmental protection work and