The reporter learned from the Ministry of Ecology and Environment that in recent years, China’s environmental protection industry has continued to expand in scale, and its contribution to the national economy has steadily increased. In 2021, the nationwide operating revenue of the environmental protection industry reached approximately 2.18 trillion yuan, an increase of 11.8% over 2020.
　　Zou Shoumin, Director of the Science and Finance Department of the Ministry of Ecology and Environment, stated at the ministry’s regular press conference in August that the environmental protection industry is a strategic emerging industry. With continuous conversion and application of new technologies and achievements, it has provided strong support for the battle against pollution.
　　Currently, China’s technologies and equipment for ultra-low emissions from thermal power plants, large-scale waste incineration, and flue gas treatment from coal combustion have reached world-leading levels. China has now built the world’s largest cluster of ultra-low-emission thermal power plants. The technologies for synergistic and deep treatment of multiple pollutants in industrial flue gases, as well as clean production technologies for pulp and papermaking and comprehensive control technologies for water pollution throughout the entire process, have both received the First Prize of the National Science and Technology Progress Award. Significant progress has been made in the automation, integration, intelligence, and three-dimensional development of China’s environmental monitoring instruments and equipment; many of the environmental monitoring instruments and equipment we use today are essentially domestically produced.
　　It is reported that since the 13th Five-Year Plan, thanks to technological advancements, China has upgraded 950 million kilowatts of coal-fired power plants to ultra-low emission standards. In the steel industry, the capacity undergoing ultra-low emission upgrades has reached 620 million tons. Over 2,800 urban black-and-stinky water bodies have been treated, and 240 new municipal waste-to-energy incineration plants have been built, adding approximately 640,000 tons per day of urban domestic waste treatment capacity. Waste-to-energy incineration plants have become one of the key venues for opening up environmental protection facilities to the public.
　　In addition, the structure and layout of the environmental protection industry have been further optimized. Zou Shoumin introduced that China has established a comprehensive, end-to-end environmental protection industrial system covering various links—including R&D in pollution control and ecological restoration technologies, equipment manufacturing, design and construction, operation and maintenance, investment and operation, and integrated consulting services. In response to the nation’s “Dual Carbon” strategy, China’s environmental protection industry is rapidly expanding into areas such as low-carbon, green, and circular development. (China National Radio Network)