China's procuratorial organs have launched a yearlong public interest litigation campaign to strengthen water pollution control in the Yangtze River Economic Belt, part of broader efforts to protect the country's most important river basin and support high-quality development.

The Supreme People's Procuratorate said on May 20 that the campaign, running from May 2026 to April 2027, will focus on major pollution risks in areas such as agricultural and aquaculture waste, urban and industrial wastewater, tailings management and illegal disposal of solid waste.

The announcement came as the SPP and the Ministry of Ecology and Environment held a seminar in Yibin, Sichuan province, on procuratorial services for the high-quality development of the Yangtze River Economic Belt. The SPP also released a white paper reviewing procuratorial work in the region during the 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-25) period.

This year marks the 10th anniversary of the Yangtze River Economic Belt development strategy. The belt covers 11 provincial-level regions, accounting for about one-fifth of China's land area and roughly half of the country's population and economic output.

Ying Yong, prosecutor-general of the SPP, said procuratorial organs should help maintain security and stability along the river and support high-quality development with high-level security.

He urged strict punishment for crimes damaging the Yangtze River Basin's ecology, continued enforcement of the 10-year fishing ban and sustained crackdowns on illegal fishing. He also called for stronger use of damage compensation and punitive compensation systems, as well as coordinated ecological restoration.

Ying said procuratorial organs should better integrate into the broader framework of Yangtze River protection, strengthen coordination between law enforcement and judicial authorities, and improve links between administrative law enforcement, criminal justice, public interest litigation and ecological damage compensation.

"Serving the high-quality development of the Yangtze River Economic Belt is a shared responsibility of law enforcement and judicial organs," Ying said, adding that prosecutors will continue to work with relevant departments and the public to build stronger legal support for Yangtze River protection.

According to the white paper, procuratorial organs handled 274,000 environment and resources cases over the past five years. They approved the arrests of 32,000 people for damaging environmental resources and handled prosecutions involving 169,000 people.

Through specialized case-handling mechanisms and ecological restoration procedures, prosecutors helped protect or restore 23,133 hectares of polluted farmland, forestland, grassland and wetlands, and urged the recovery or cleanup of 15.4 million metric tons of industrial solid waste.

The white paper highlighted that procuratorial organs have increasingly used technology to address difficulties in dealing with tip-offs related to crimes and collecting evidence in river basin cases. A support system combining satellite remote sensing, drones and rapid testing has been improved, while more than 500 rapid-testing laboratories have been built nationwide, basically covering city-level procuratorates in the Yangtze River Economic Belt.

Public participation has also expanded. The SPP's "Yixinweigong" volunteer cloud platform has recruited 126,000 volunteers nationwide, who have submitted 38,000 tip-offs and participated in 40,000 activities, including case consultation, public hearings and follow-up observation.

Focusing on key environmental problems, the SPP has worked with other departments to crack down on illegal fishing in the Yangtze River Basin. It has also carried out special operations with the Ministry of Public Security and the Ministry of Ecology and Environment for five consecutive years against hazardous waste crimes and falsified automatic monitoring data.

Because river basin governance involves multiple regions, departments and regulatory links, prosecutors have strengthened integrated case handling and cross-regional cooperation. The white paper said such efforts have helped form a Chinese approach to cross-regional river basin governance through procuratorial public interest litigation. Related experience has also been presented at international forums, including side events at the United Nations Climate Change Conference, and has won widespread attention and high praise.

During the 15th Five-Year Plan period (2026-30), procuratorial organs will maintain strict enforcement against illegal industrial wastewater discharge, illegal dumping of solid waste and other environmental crimes. They will also continue to support the 10-year fishing ban, strengthen biodiversity protection, prevent invasive species, protect farmland and improve supervision over illegal land occupation along the river.

The SPP said prosecutors will also deepen public interest litigation to support green and low-carbon development, while stepping up case handling on issues affecting people's daily lives, including black and odorous water bodies, noise and light pollution, cooking fumes, unpleasant odors and livestock breeding pollution.

yangzekun@chinadaily.com.cn