China CPC Central Committee vows to reduce 2020 waste imports to zero

Reports from the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China, published on 24 June 2018, highlight that China plans to reduce its imports of solid waste to zero by the end of 2020.

Currently, China defines 'Solid wastes' in the National Standards of the People's Republic of China "Identification standards for solid wastes - General rules" , whilst the quality thresholds for imported solid wastes as raw materials are set out in the National Standards of the People's Republic of China Series GB 16487 .

As Governments create their circular economies by substituting primary raw materials with recycled raw materials, questions will inevitably arise about exactly when wastes cease to be wastes and become those recycled raw materials. Furthermore, countries that are not self-sufficient in recycled raw materials will need to import them for their manufacturing needs. BIR predicts further changes to Chinese standards and laws in order to affect its recycled raw material needs.

BIR provides the original news item of the Xinhua News Agency in Beijing in Chinese so that users may utilise their 'in-browser translation facility' to read this in their own language.