December 2016

The State Council of the People's Republic of China issued the "Comprehensive Action Plan on the Safety Control of Hazardous Chemicals" (危险化学品安全综合治理方案) (the Action Plan) on 29 November 2016. The Action Plan aims to further strengthen the decisions and policies regarding safety management of hazardous chemicals, in light of the explosion accident that occurred in Tianjin last year. The Action Plan does not impose any direct requirements on individual facilities. Instead, it provides guidelines and goals for government agencies responsible for safety supervision of hazardous chemicals in China. Specifically, the Action plan outlines 40 major enforcement actions to be taken by relevant authorities from December 2016 to November 2019. It also provides targeted deadlines for each individual enforcement action. The Action Plan has an impact on facilities that produce, store, use, sell, import, transport, or dispose of hazardous chemicals.