ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION

    Resources saving and environmental protection are China's basic national policy and concerned with the overall situation of economic and social development, Wu said.

    "Last year, the NPC Standing Committee set the issues relating to resources and environment on top agenda on its supervision work.The legislature assigned a group to examine the law enforcement onwater pollution prevention and control, and heard and discussed the report on current energy security situation made by the State Council," said Wu.

    The legislature found that the strain in water supply and demand and the severe water environmental deterioration should be blamed for the unreasonable economic structure and the extensive economic growth mode. It urged governments at all levels to solve the problems by fully implementing the conception of scientific development, he said.

    After considering legislature's suggestions, the State Council has mapped out measures to transfer economic growth mode, improve innovation capacity, speed up economic structure adjustment and vigorously develop circular economy, so as to relieve the pressure from resources strain and environmental deterioration.

    Facing the issues of resources strain and environmental deterioration in the past few years, the Fifth Session of the 16th CPC Central Committee put forward the goals of reducing energy cost for per unit GDP by 20 percent in the coming five years and curbing the environmental deterioration trend by and large.