Preventing Environmental Risks …
753
4 Suggestions
Establishing a spatial planning system is a basic, all-inclusive, and arduous task that
is problem-oriented, goal-oriented and based on current and future conditions and
overall planning. By the same token, it is an equally arduous task to gradually build
a multi-level risk prevention system characterized by strict prevention beforehand,
strict management during the process, and disposal afterwards in a systematical
manner. Environmental risks span a wide range of fields, which means we should base
the building of a comprehensive environmental risk prevention system on specific
and actual conditions, and from the perspectives of laws, institutional functions and
policies, to optimize implementation methods, management measures, and guarantee
conditions for environmental risk prevention.
To improve the mechanism of spatial planning and environmental risk prevention,
and enhance the capacities of territorial space governance, we propose the following
suggestions.
The first is to improve the laws and regulations related to spatial planning, with
the aim of providing a strong legal basis for planning preparation, approval, supervision and implementation, and ensuring smooth spatial planning. Environmental
protection must rely on the rule of law. For one thing, the top-level design should be
strengthened. We recommend that the general provisions of the basic law of territorial
space planning clarify the principles of environmental priority and ecological safety,
regard the prevention of environmental risks as the basis, and clarify the status of
forestalling such risks in laws related to territorial space planning. For another, since
the laws of territorial space planning are mainly used as a guide in planning, they
should be relatively easy to adopt. Therefore, we recommend that the prevention of
environmental risks be deemed the purpose or one of the main contents of managing
territorial space planning at all levels, and that prevention of environmental risks be
included into relevant legal provisions guiding the formulation and implementation
of territorial space planning.
The second is to establish an overall and coordinated departmental management
mechanism. A cross-departmental, collaborative management mechanism should be
created to break down administrative barriers. With the Ministry of Natural Resources
and the Ministry of Ecology and Environment taking the lead, followed by the
Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, the National Forestry Administration
and other relevant ministries and commissions, a unified management system with
a clear division of labor should be established to give full play to the system aimed
at preventing environmental risks.
The third is to establish a well-arranged supervision mechanism. The enhanced
transparency of environmental risk-related information—a vital part of public participation—can not only prompt the government to disseminate risk-related information
to the public, but also help the people more objectively understand environmental
risks, thereby contributing to a more stable society thanks to reduced risks. We
should clarify the importance of supervision and feedback to territorial space planning, build a safeguard mechanism for avoiding environmental risks based on space
753
4 Suggestions
Establishing a spatial planning system is a basic, all-inclusive, and arduous task that
is problem-oriented, goal-oriented and based on current and future conditions and
overall planning. By the same token, it is an equally arduous task to gradually build
a multi-level risk prevention system characterized by strict prevention beforehand,
strict management during the process, and disposal afterwards in a systematical
manner. Environmental risks span a wide range of fields, which means we should base
the building of a comprehensive environmental risk prevention system on specific
and actual conditions, and from the perspectives of laws, institutional functions and
policies, to optimize implementation methods, management measures, and guarantee
conditions for environmental risk prevention.
To improve the mechanism of spatial planning and environmental risk prevention,
and enhance the capacities of territorial space governance, we propose the following
suggestions.
The first is to improve the laws and regulations related to spatial planning, with
the aim of providing a strong legal basis for planning preparation, approval, supervision and implementation, and ensuring smooth spatial planning. Environmental
protection must rely on the rule of law. For one thing, the top-level design should be
strengthened. We recommend that the general provisions of the basic law of territorial
space planning clarify the principles of environmental priority and ecological safety,
regard the prevention of environmental risks as the basis, and clarify the status of
forestalling such risks in laws related to territorial space planning. For another, since
the laws of territorial space planning are mainly used as a guide in planning, they
should be relatively easy to adopt. Therefore, we recommend that the prevention of
environmental risks be deemed the purpose or one of the main contents of managing
territorial space planning at all levels, and that prevention of environmental risks be
included into relevant legal provisions guiding the formulation and implementation
of territorial space planning.
The second is to establish an overall and coordinated departmental management
mechanism. A cross-departmental, collaborative management mechanism should be
created to break down administrative barriers. With the Ministry of Natural Resources
and the Ministry of Ecology and Environment taking the lead, followed by the
Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, the National Forestry Administration
and other relevant ministries and commissions, a unified management system with
a clear division of labor should be established to give full play to the system aimed
at preventing environmental risks.
The third is to establish a well-arranged supervision mechanism. The enhanced
transparency of environmental risk-related information—a vital part of public participation—can not only prompt the government to disseminate risk-related information
to the public, but also help the people more objectively understand environmental
risks, thereby contributing to a more stable society thanks to reduced risks. We
should clarify the importance of supervision and feedback to territorial space planning, build a safeguard mechanism for avoiding environmental risks based on space