The Ministry of Environmental Protection and the Ministry of Natural Resources recently jointly issued the “Notice on Doing a Good Job in Environmental Assessment of Mineral Resource Planning” (hereinafter referred to as the “Notice”), which calls for vigorously promoting ecological civilization construction, strictly implementing the system of environmental impact assessment for planning, and conducting environmental impact assessments for mineral resource planning in a categorized manner. For city-level overall plans for mineral resources, it is sufficient to prepare only an environmental impact chapter or explanatory statement; in principle, county-level mineral resource plans are not required to undergo environmental impact assessment.

　　The Notice requires that, when preparing mineral resource plans, the competent departments of land and resources shall, in accordance with relevant laws and regulations, strictly implement the planning impact assessment system and concurrently carry out environmental impact assessments for these plans. During the plan preparation process, it is essential to uphold the principle of coordinated development between resource exploitation and environmental protection, promptly conduct environmental impact assessments, fully incorporate the optimization and adjustment recommendations as well as the countermeasures proposed in the environmental impact assessments, and strengthen the rational spatial layout of resource development, promote efficient and intensive resource utilization, and enhance ecological protection in mining areas.

　　The Notice points out that mineral resource plans requiring the preparation of an environmental impact chapter or statement include: the National Mineral Resource Plan, national and provincial geological exploration plans, city-level overall plans for mineral resources at the prefectural-level cities, and special plans for key mineral types. Mineral resource plans requiring the preparation of an environmental impact assessment report include: provincial overall plans for mineral resources, special plans for the exploitation and utilization of mineral resources at or above the prefectural-level cities, planning areas designated by the state, and development and utilization plans for large-scale and above mineral deposits. In principle, county-level mineral resource plans are not required to undergo environmental impact assessments. The environmental impact chapter or statement, as well as the environmental impact assessment report, may be prepared either by the agency responsible for plan formulation or by a technical institution commissioned to conduct environmental impact assessments.

　　The “Notice” clearly defines the specific requirements for environmental impact assessments of mineral resource planning at the national, provincial, and municipal levels. The environmental impact assessment of provincial-level mineral resource planning shall be based on the carrying capacity of resources and the environment, and shall scientifically evaluate the coordination and consistency between the overall layout of mineral exploration and development and regional economic and social development as well as the ecological security framework. The relevant technical guidelines will be jointly formulated by the two ministries and issued separately.

　　The Notice emphasizes the need to strictly standardize the review of environmental impact assessment reports for mineral resource planning. If an environmental impact chapter or explanation, or the environmental impact assessment report itself, has not been prepared in accordance with the law, the planning approval authority shall require the submitter to supplement it; if the supplement is not provided, the planning approval authority shall refuse to approve the plan. For mineral resource plans that are required to prepare an environmental impact assessment report, prior to approval, the environmental protection department at the same level, in coordination with the planning approval authority, shall review the report upon receipt. 30 Submit written review comments on the same day.