China launches third phase of Green Fence action

Named Earth Goddess Phase III, the new action started on October 7 and will last until the end of November 2013, focussing on combating the illegal smuggling of hazardous waste to the Asia-Pacific region from Europe and North America.

The new Earth Goddess action is an extension of operation Green Fence, which was initiated by the Chinese government earlier this year at the request of the newly elected President Xi Jinping.

Commodity experts said in March 2013 that the crackdown – aimed at reducing the amount of poor quality waste that enters Chinese ports from overseas – led to volatility in the export market (see letsrecycle.com story).

The details emerged in a report by the Xinhua news agency , which states that, so far, the Green Fence project has investigated 54 smuggling cases and seized 33,500 tonnes of waste batteries, waste slag, waste paint, tyres, old clothes and other foreign garbage.

Organisations involved

According to the report, the US, the Netherlands, 43 members of the World Customs Organization and three Regional Intelligence Liaison Officers from the organisation are involved in the latest crackdown.

And, the Basel Convention Secretariat, the International Criminal Police Organization, United Nations Environment Programme, the International Network for Environmental Compliance and Enforcement have also applied to join the EU environmental enforcement action.

A translation of the article states: According to the General Administration of Customs of PRC, China Customs started the action of the Earth Goddess Phase III within the framework of the World Customs Organization. This action will be carried out from October 7th to the end of November and focus on combating the illegal behaviour of smuggling hazardous waste which exports from Europe, North America etc. to Asia-Pacific regions.

Further details on the new phase of action are expected to emerge in the coming weeks.

One recovered waste trading expert, Angus Macpherson of the Environment Exchange (t2e), commented: It is good that China, a nation which has focused on using secondary raw materials where possible in order to conserve energy, should be taking such a proactive role in trying to raise standards and police them globally.