CCTV News:On April 18th, the Ministry of Ecology and Environment announced that it had joined hands with the Shanxi Provincial People’s Government to supervise the environmental violations of Sanwei Group in Hongdong County, Shanxi Province (for details, click: 4.5 billion assets listed companies dumped industrial waste, such as waterfalls, CCTV reporters were detained unannounced), and jointly punished the group with the CSRC.
On April 17th, CCTV Finance "Economic Half-hour" reported "Three-dimensional Group in Hongdong County, Shanxi Province illegally dumped industrial waste residue to pollute farmland, and the production wastewater was discharged directly into Fenhe River, and CCTV reporters were detained unannounced". In this regard, the Ministry of Ecology and Environment stated in the announcement issued on April 18th that measures have been taken:
First, the joint supervision of the Shanxi Provincial People’s Government requires the Linfen Municipal People’s Government to strictly investigate the illegal sewage discharge behavior of enterprises, the performance of government and regulatory authorities and other issues in accordance with the law, and make them public in a timely manner.
Second, it will jointly punish the listed companies of Sanwei Group with the CSRC. Our department has informed the CSRC of the environmental violation information of Sanwei Group for the first time, and conducted joint investigation and punishment according to the memorandum of cooperation on joint punishment of environmental violations of listed companies.
The announcement also stated that Shanxi Province also attached great importance to this and responded at the first time. The Environmental Protection Department of Shanxi Province set up the "4.17 Report on the Environmental Problems of Shanxi Sanwei Group" and rushed to the scene on the night of the report to supervise, organize forces to conduct on-the-spot investigation on the contaminated site, monitor the waste water and industrial waste residue, and administratively detain two village cadres according to law. At present, various investigations are under way.
Then, why can such a big polluter pollute the environment for a long time and unscrupulously? What is the real problem behind it? Who is acting as their "black protection"?
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Shanxi Sanwei Group has been illegally dumping industrial waste residue, polluting a lot of farmland and discharging industrial wastewater directly into Fenhe River, which has brought serious threats to the lives of people in villages along the way. The news media even used "evil deeds" to describe this shocking incident of stealing platoon.
Here, we must ask a few more why!
Do the three-dimensional group leaders, especially the group leaders, know what they are doing?
Sanwei Group is an enterprise that produces hundreds of chemical products such as polyvinyl alcohol, adhesive, benzene and coke. As a listed company with 4.5 billion assets, do you know how to treat the wastewater, carbide slag and fly ash produced by the enterprise?
Calcium carbide slag and fly ash need to be stored in a special yard and managed strictly, and industrial wastewater must be treated in compliance before it can be discharged. However, the three-dimensional group has been dumping industrial waste into the pit without impervious layer for a long time, and the wastewater is also directly discharged into Fenhe River, the mother river of Shanxi Province. Business leaders don’t know whether it is dereliction of duty or dereliction of duty? It is even more terrible if you know it, whether it is directly directed or not.
Why do local governments and environmental protection departments turn a blind eye to sewage discharge?
The media has long noticed that the three-dimensional group has seriously polluted the environment by illegally discharging pollutants.
As early as 2014, China Youth Network reported the fact that "Shanxi Three-dimensional Pollution has been confirmed by the Environmental Protection Bureau for nearly 40 years";
In 2016, national business daily also exposed the news that "Shanxi Sanweicheng environmental protection boss was investigated every year";
In 2017, a survey by China Legal Reporting Network found that Shanxi illegally dumped industrial waste residue to pollute farmland;
In 2017, the Ministry of Environmental Protection sent eight inspectors to inspect 13 cities, and Sanwei Group was one of the inspected objects.
With such intensive media attention and under the supervision of the Inspector Group of the Ministry of Environmental Protection, how did the local government and environmental protection departments respond and solve the problem? Don’t you turn a blind eye to the media reports and the inspectors of the competent departments? Why do local government departments turn a blind eye to sewage discharge?
Why are village cadres at the grassroots level willing to guard the door for polluting enterprises?
In the interview, the reporter found that the people around him had long complained, but they dared not speak out. The villagers said, there is no need to reflect, which one of the cadres in the village doesn’t know? The real situation is that in the face of the lawless and unscrupulous environmental pollution behavior of enterprises, local village cadres have acted as thugs for polluting enterprises to guard their homes. Villagers and journalists have said a few words and are worried that they will be retaliated.
It can be said that this scene in Hongtong County has reached the point of absurdity. Listed companies are lawless in discharging pollutants, village cadres pay money to guard the hospital, and the Environmental Protection Bureau ignores corporate pollution. Reports from local villagers range from verbal warnings to suffering from skin and flesh. When they talk to reporters, they must worry about retaliation. After repeated media exposure, environmental protection special inspectors, pollution has become increasingly serious. There are too many reasons to answer and too many questions to explain.
Polluting enterprises should be investigated and punished, and the umbrella behind them should be destroyed. At present, the Ministry of Ecology and Environment has cooperated with the Shanxi Provincial Government to supervise the environmental violations of Sanwei Group, and the local authorities have also formed a joint investigation team.We will be interesting to see who makes the people dare to speak out, who makes the central government’s policies unable to be implemented here, and who makes the national laws unable to be implemented here.
China International Radio Station, China Central Radio and Television Headquarters.
Hong Lin, Chief International Current Affairs Commentator