China will have a new regulation on the charges for waste disposal and noise pollution as of July 1, an official with the State Environmental Protection Administration (SEPA) said Monday.

According to the regulation on the collection and use of waste charges, noises which are above the state standards for environmental noise will be charged as a new kind of waste. But noise damage is not covered by the fee and the noisemakers are not exempted from their legal responsibilities and other regulations they violate.

The fees will be collected according to the varieties and amounts of wastes.

All enterprises that discharge pollutants will be charged according to the regulation, regardless of their size.

The new regulation will replace the existing one that began to be implemented in 1982. Under the 1982 regulation, charges are imposed on the amount of waste beyond the state-set limit and small businesses will not pay the wastes they discharge.

"The implementation of the new regulation is a progressive step toward better environmental protection," said Wang Jirong, deputy head of the SEPA.

(Xinhua News Agency June 30, 2003)