On Oct. 31, Minister Li Ganjie signed a framework agreement with CMA Administrator Liu Yaming on general cooperation between the MEE and China Meteorological Administration (CMA). The two sides had talks before the signing ceremony.

The year 2018 is a hallmark in the history of ecological and environmental protection, said Li, which has witnessed the success of the National Conference on Ecological and Environmental Protection, the announcement of a document by the CPC Central Committee and the State Council on comprehensively strengthening ecological and environmental protection and resolutely putting up an uphill fight against pollution, as well as the birth of the Ministry of Ecology and Environment. The agreement came as a concrete move of the two departments to act upon the Xi Jinping Thought on Ecological Civilization and the guiding principles of the National Conference on Ecological and Environmental Protection, which provides a strong support to combat pollution.

The CMA and MEE have established cooperation and made remarkable progress in the areas of environmental monitoring, air and water pollution control, the delineation and management of the ecological conservation red lines, and nuclear and radiation safety for a long period of time, in the principle of mutual complement, win-win cooperation, resource sharing, division of responsibilities, and effective and steady progress. He hoped the two sides would take this opportunity to deepen bilateral communications and advance the development of the ecological and environmental protection and the meteorological undertaking. In particular, he hoped the two sides would work harder at the monitoring, forecast, and early warning of the air quality during the autumn and winter, and conduct situation analysis and estimation of the air pollution; give full play to their respective advantages in guarding the blue sky from air pollution, mobilize the research resources, make technological breakthroughs, and constantly enhance the S&T support and the use of S&T outcomes for the control of the air pollution.

The development of the ecological civilization is a major policy towards the sustainability and rejuvenation of the Chinese nation, the implementation of which is in dire need of the expertise and full-fledged cooperation between the environmental and meteorological departments, said Administrator Liu. The two departments have kept close ties, enhanced the capacities for emergency response to heavy air pollution, and improved the bilateral cooperative mechanisms and expanded the areas of cooperation.

By renewing the bilateral cooperation, she hoped the two departments would mull over further cooperation to implement the decisions and deployments of the CPC Central Committee and the State Council and give a boost to the ecological progress. She hoped that the bilateral cooperation reaches wider areas and deeper levels and that they leverage their respective strengths and mobilize their resources.

In accordance with the two agreements, the two sides will open full-swing cooperation in the areas of science, technology, ecological and environmental monitoring, air environment management, climate change, marine ecological and environmental cooperation, nature and ecology conservation, nuclear and radiation safety, and information sharing.