Right to curb waste imports

China notified the World Trade Organization on Tuesday that it will stop accepting imports of 24 types of solid waste at the end of the year as part of its efforts to tackle environmental pollution and protect people's health.

In response to growing public concerns over the potential environmental and health hazards posed by the increasing amounts of solid waste imported into the country for recycling and treatment, China enacted a special law in 1995 to regulate imports of waste materials, such as plastics, slag from steelmaking, unsorted scrap paper and discarded textile materials.

A year later, the country published a catalog for solid waste imports and began implementing a permit system to control the import volumes and types of waste imported.