How can we address the issue of insufficient green development in the chemical industry?

The chemical industry is large in scale, features an extensive industrial chain, and is capital- and technology-intensive, making it a foundational sector and a vital component of China’s national economy. After decades of development, China has emerged as a global hub for the chemical industry and has become the world’s largest producer and seller of chemicals. However, compared with advanced industrialized nations, China’s chemical industry still faces significant challenges, including an underdeveloped industrial structure, limited technological capabilities, and insufficient progress in green development.

Green development in the chemical industry is the prevailing trend of the future.

The chemical industry features complex production processes, numerous pollution‑generating stages, a diverse array of pollutants, and significant treatment challenges, with environmental safety incidents occurring from time to time—particularly given the substantial total emissions of industrial “three wastes.” In 2017, the petroleum and chemical industries in China discharged approximately 4 billion tons of industrial wastewater, accounting for 20% of the national total; the petrochemical sector emitted roughly 600 million cubic meters of VOCs, representing over 40% of all industrial VOC emissions; and the total generation of industrial solid waste reached about 270 million tons, ranking second among industrial sectors. The dual characteristics of high output value and heavy pollution necessitate that the chemical industry proactively pursue green, low‑carbon, safe, and environmentally friendly clean production processes and pollution‑control technologies. “Green chemistry” has thus become an overarching trend shaping the future development of the chemical industry.

In recent years, guided by the coordinated advancement of the “five-sphere integrated plan,” China has not only expanded and strengthened its chemical industry but has also placed increasing emphasis on ecological and environmental protection and industrial transformation and upgrading. A series of important policies and regulations in the field of green development for the chemical sector have been successively introduced. Policies and regulations such as the “Guiding Opinions on Adjusting the Structure, Promoting Transformation, and Enhancing Efficiency in the Petrochemical Industry,” the “Guiding Opinions on Promoting Green Development in the Petrochemical Industry,” and the “Evaluation Guidelines for Green Chemical Parks” have helped the chemical industry achieve certain progress in green and sustainable development. However, compared with international advanced standards, China’s chemical industry still faces numerous shortcomings in its green development. The author identifies the following three key areas:

First, there is insufficient emphasis on R&D and a relatively low level of innovation. In terms of the share of R&D spending in sales revenue, in 2015, the chemical industries in Europe and North America maintained an R&D investment ratio of around 1.7% of sales, whereas China’s chemical sector allocated only 0.8%. Regarding patent applications, although the number of filings by Chinese chemical firms has been increasing year by year, foreign‑invested and multinational companies still file significantly more patents than domestic Chinese enterprises. As for R&D personnel, the number and proportion of scientific and technical staff in China’s chemical parks are also markedly lower than those in leading international chemical parks. Clearly, China’s chemical industry still needs to substantially increase its investment in scientific and technological innovation.

Second, the degree of industrial integration remains low. An integrated development model in the chemical industry fosters symbiosis and coupling among sectors, enabling the establishment of circular‑economy systems among chemical enterprises. Overall, China’s chemical industry exhibits a relatively limited level of integration, largely due to inadequate planning within industrial parks. Within these parks, products from different firms lack interconnectivity, preventing both the realization of agglomeration benefits and the formation of circular‑economy frameworks or industrial ecosystems. During field research, the author observed that many companies reported that by‑products generated during production could serve as feedstocks or intermediates for other chemical products; however, because the parks have not yet developed an integrated circular‑economy system, these materials are often disposed of as hazardous waste through landfilling. This not only wastes resources that could otherwise be recovered and reused but also increases environmental treatment costs and exacerbates adverse environmental impacts.

Third, China’s chemical industry still lags behind in environmental governance, and the level of refined management within industrial parks remains low. Luo Jianhua, vice president of the Environmental Chamber of Commerce of the All-China Federation of Industry and Commerce, has noted that, at present, only 20% to 30% of chemical parks across Shandong, Zhejiang, Jiangsu, and other provinces meet environmental standards. Pollution caused by inadequate environmental management in these parks is a frequent occurrence.

Recommendations for Promoting the Green Transformation and Upgrading of China’s Chemical Industry

In light of the aforementioned issues facing China’s chemical industry, the author puts forward the following recommendations:

Environmental standards have been progressively tightened in stages, compelling the chemical industry to undergo transformation and upgrading. In 2003, Shandong Province formulated and implemented the “Water Pollutant Discharge Standard for the Papermaking Industry” (DB37/336-2003), adopting a long-term, phased approach to gradually strengthen its local emission limits for water pollutants from the papermaking sector. Practice has shown that this policy has provided enterprises with stable regulatory expectations and allowed them sufficient time to upgrade their facilities to meet the new standards. As a result, the industry has achieved an 88% reduction in COD—the primary pollutant—and the scale of Shandong’s papermaking sector, along with its profits and taxes, have grown to twice and four times their levels eight years earlier, respectively. Coupled with region-specific discharge standards for watershed pollutants, Shandong Province has also optimized the spatial distribution of its industrial sectors.

The author believes that this experience can be studied and drawn upon to develop a phased, progressively stringent system of pollutant emission standards for the chemical industry, aligned with industrial policies and environmental planning requirements. By enforcing enterprises’ primary responsibility for environmental protection, we can empower them to take the lead in pollution prevention and control as well as technological innovation, thereby driving the green transformation and upgrading of China’s chemical sector.

Leverage the roles of industry associations and leading enterprises to promote the “Responsible Care” framework. By fully harnessing the capacity of industry associations, voluntary environmental regulatory initiatives such as the “Responsible Care” system can be advanced across the chemical industry, thereby activating informal governance mechanisms. The “Responsible Care” system mandates the establishment of communication channels between companies and local communities, fostering ongoing dialogue with the public—particularly residents in surrounding neighborhoods—throughout all stages, from project planning and site selection to construction and operational phases. This helps alleviate public fears arising from a lack of understanding about chemical projects. Moreover, by organizing events like corporate open‑house days, companies are encouraged to strengthen their internal standards and management practices, continuously enhancing their environmental and safety performance.

At the same time, we should leverage the roles of leading enterprises and advanced foreign-invested firms in promoting the “Responsible Care” system. These companies often catalyze the development of upstream–downstream chemical industry clusters in their surrounding areas, help prevent safety and environmental incidents, and are motivated to share and disseminate cutting-edge environmental management practices. For example, the Binjiang Economic Development Zone in Changzhou, Jiangsu Province, is among the earliest chemical parks in China to commit to implementing “Responsible Care,” with key contributions from the German chemical company LANXESS and the Dutch firm Arlanxeo, both of which operate within the zone.

Accelerate the development of chemical enterprises within industrial parks to achieve upstream–downstream integration. Adhering to the principles of “unified planning, rational layout, stringent access criteria, and integrated management,” we will carefully carry out park site selection and enterprise placement, enforce strict safety‑related admission standards for chemical firms operating in the park, strengthen integrated oversight, and promote coordinated development between the park and the broader community. It is essential to establish and refine a park‑management framework characterized by clear responsibilities, efficient administration, and resource sharing; reinforce safety‑production controls among resident enterprises; and minimize inter‑enterprise spillover effects. From the planning stage onward, chemical parks should cultivate comprehensive competitiveness, prioritize integrated development, and strive to establish mutual supply chains for products and raw materials among enterprises. Furthermore, they should advance the integration of materials, energy, information, logistics, and infrastructure, thereby optimizing both economic and environmental benefits.

Increase investment in scientific and technological R&D to support enterprises’ green transformation. Seize the strategic opportunities presented by the State Council’s release of the “New‑Generation Artificial Intelligence Development Plan,” and accelerate the cultivation of indigenous innovative enterprises that integrate technologies such as intelligent manufacturing and smart monitoring, thereby giving enterprises’ green transitions a powerful boost and fostering sustainable, green production practices grounded in standardized environmental data. Employ a range of policy instruments to help capable companies establish R&D institutions and strengthen support for the commercialization of independently developed innovations. Raise the entry threshold for projects seeking to locate in industrial parks, giving priority to those featuring independent innovation and new products that can fill domestic technological gaps. Through innovative development and operational models—such as the “park‑within‑a‑park” approach—promote the construction of park‑based innovation platforms and establish collaborative partnerships among industry, academia, and research institutions.

Through the aforementioned measures to enhance innovation capacity, the chemical industry cluster within the park will strengthen its independent innovation capabilities, particularly in green chemical technologies, leveraging scientific and technological advancement to support enterprises’ green transformation.

Source: China Environmental News Author: Pan Fanfan, Cao Shengxi