The Supreme People's Court (SPC) released several provisions on handling cases of ecological damage compensation on June 5 at a press conference in Beijing.

Hosted by SPC spokesperson Li Guangyu, the press conference was attended by Jiang Bixin, vice-president of the SPC;BieTao, director of the department of regulations and standards of the Ministry of Ecology and Environment; and Wei Wenchao, deputy chief judge of the SPC's Adjudication Tribunal for Environment and Resources.

Jiang Bixin, vice-president of the SPC[Photo/court.gov.cn]

Jiang explained the background, significance, main content and requirements of the provisions.

The provisions specify the conditions for accepting a case and the requirements for trial procedures and evidence rules and also improve the accountability system.

In addition, they stipulate the rules for judicial confirmation of damage compensation agreements and stress that the orders given by courts should be enforced.

According to the provisions, governments at provincial and municipal levels and the departments and institutions or departments designated by the State Council to exercise power in State-owned Natural Resources have been given the authority to sue polluters for damaging the environment.

A plaintiff should file a lawsuit only if the plaintiff and the polluter fail to reach an agreement through consultation.

Wei Wenchao, deputy chief judge of the SPC's Adjudication Tribunal for Environment and Resources[Photo/court.gov.cn]

Wei then introduced three of the five released typical cases of ecological damage compensation in Shandong, Guizhou and Chongqing to help the public understand the provisions and to better protect the ecological environment and form a green lifestyle

The provisions are expected to play a role in improving the level of China's legal system for ecological environment protection.