The General Office of the Ministry of Ecology and Environment ("MEE") has recently issued the Technical Specification for Application and Issuance of Pollutant Discharge Permits: Automobile Manufacturing Industry (Draft for Comment) (the "Draft for Comment") to solicit opinions from the entities concerned by July 15, 2018.
The Draft for Comment applies to the administration of discharge permits for air pollutants and water pollutants discharged by pollutant discharge entities in the auto manufacturing segment. Certain pollutant discharge entities in the auto manufacturing sector, such as whole vehicle manufacturers and motor engine manufacturers, will be subject to strengthened regulation; by contrast, some other pollutant discharge entities engaging in the manufacturing refitted vehicles or trams and trolleybuses, will be subject to streamlined administration. Further, the Draft for Comment provides the principles on how to determine the volume of oil paint (including the diluent) usable by a pollutant discharge entity that produces auto spare parts and accessories; for an existing pollutant discharge entity that makes auto spare parts and accessories, the said volume shall be the maximum quantity of oil paint (including the diluent) annually used by this entity during the past three years; where an entity has not been put into operation yet or has been put into use for shorter than one year, the said volume shall be determined based on the environmental impact assessment documents; but for an entity that has been put into operation for longer than one year but shorter than three years, the volume shall be the maximum annual consumption during the period of operation.