The Ecological Environment Code of the People's Republic of China was adopted at the Fourth Session of the 14th National People's Congress on March 12, 2026, and shall come into effect on August 15, 2026. This article outlines the key provisions concerning "household waste" within the Code.

I. Household Waste Classification System, Principles, and Definitions

Article 499

The State implements a household waste classification system.

Household waste classification adheres to the principles of government promotion, public participation, urban-rural coordination, local adaptation, and simplicity and ease of use.

"Household waste" as referred to in this Law means solid waste generated in daily life or in activities providing services for daily life, as well as solid waste deemed as household waste by laws and administrative regulations.

II. Establishing and Improving the Household Waste Management System

Article 500

Local people's governments at or above the county level shall accelerate the establishment and improvement of a household waste management system covering classified delivery, collection, transportation, and treatment, to achieve effective coverage of the household waste classification system.

Local people's governments at or above the county level shall establish and improve a coordination mechanism for household waste classification work, and strengthen and coordinate the capacity building for household waste classification management.

People's governments at all levels and their relevant departments shall organize and carry out publicity on household waste classification, educate and guide the public to develop the habit of classifying household waste, and supervise and guide household waste classification work.

Article 515

Local people's governments at or above the county level shall establish and improve a household waste treatment charging system based on the "polluter pays" principle.

When formulating household waste treatment charging standards, local people's governments at or above the county level shall, based on local realities and in light of household waste classification, reflect differentiated management such as classified pricing and volume-based charging, and fully solicit public opinions. The charging standards shall be published in a timely manner.

Household waste treatment fees shall be used exclusively for the collection, transportation, and treatment of household waste, and shall not be diverted for other uses.

III. Source Reduction and Classified Delivery

Article 506

Units, households, and individuals that generate household waste shall fulfill their obligations of source reduction and classified delivery of household waste in accordance with the law, and bear the responsibility of waste generators.

All units and individuals shall deliver household waste in categories at designated locations in accordance with the law. Illegal dumping, stockpiling, discarding, scattering, or incineration of household waste is prohibited.

Government agencies, public institutions, and others shall play an exemplary and leading role in household waste classification.

Classified household waste shall be collected, transported, and treated according to regulations.

Article 501

Relevant departments of local people's governments at or above the county level shall strengthen the management of product production and circulation within their respective responsibilities to avoid excessive packaging, organize the marketing of clean vegetables, and reduce the generation of household waste.

IV. Full-Process Chain of Household Waste Classification and Treatment

Article 502

People's governments at or above the county level shall coordinate the construction of urban and rural household waste collection, transportation, and treatment facilities and sites, determine their locations, improve the comprehensive utilization and harmless disposal of household waste, promote the industrial development of waste collection and treatment, and gradually establish and improve the social service system for household waste pollution prevention.

Article 504

The competent department of environmental sanitation under the people's government at or above the level of a prefecture-level city shall formulate construction and operation specifications for household waste cleaning, collection, storage, transportation, and treatment facilities and sites, publish a guidance catalogue for household waste classification, and strengthen supervision and management.

Article 505

The competent departments of environmental sanitation and other relevant departments of local people's governments at or above the county level shall organize the cleaning, collection, transportation, and treatment of urban and rural household waste within their respective responsibilities, and may select qualified units to engage in the cleaning, collection, transportation, and treatment of household waste through bidding or other means.

Article 507

The cleaning, collection, transportation, and treatment of urban and rural household waste shall comply with relevant national regulations on ecological environment protection and environmental sanitation management to prevent environmental pollution.

Hazardous waste collected separately from household waste shall be managed as hazardous waste if it falls under that category.

Article 508

Units engaged in public transportation operations shall promptly clean and collect the household waste generated during the transportation process.

Article 509

Agricultural product markets, wholesale markets, etc., shall strengthen environmental sanitation management, maintain cleanliness, and promptly clean, classify, collect, and properly dispose of the generated waste.

Article 510

Units engaged in the development of new urban areas, reconstruction of old areas, construction and development of residential communities, and village construction, as well as the management units of public facilities and venues such as airports, docks, stations, parks, shopping malls, and stadiums, shall construct supporting household waste collection facilities in accordance with relevant national environmental sanitation regulations.

Local people's governments at or above the county level shall coordinate the effective connection between public transfer and treatment facilities for household waste and the collection facilities specified in the preceding paragraph, and strengthen the integration of the household waste classification collection and transportation system and the renewable resource recovery system in terms of planning, construction, and operation.

Article 511

Substances recovered from household waste shall be used in accordance with the purposes and standards prescribed by the State, and shall not be used to produce products that may endanger human health.

Article 512

The construction of household waste treatment facilities and sites shall comply with the ecological environment protection and environmental sanitation standards stipulated by the competent department of ecological environment and the competent department of housing and urban-rural development under the State Council.

The coordinated construction and sharing of household waste treatment facilities across administrative regions is encouraged.

The unauthorized closure, idling, or demolition of household waste treatment facilities or sites is prohibited. If it is truly necessary to close, idle, or demolish them, approval must be obtained from the competent department of environmental sanitation of the people's government at the city with districts or county level after consultation with the competent department of ecological environment at the same location, and measures to prevent environmental pollution must be taken.

Article 513

Household waste treatment units shall, in accordance with national regulations, install and use monitoring equipment, monitor pollutant emissions in real time, and disclose emission data to the public in real time. The monitoring equipment shall be networked with the monitoring equipment of the competent department of ecological environment at the same location.

V. Standardized Management of Food Waste

Article 514

The competent department of environmental sanitation under the local people's government at or above the county level shall be responsible for organizing the resource utilization and harmless treatment of food waste.

Units and other producers or operators that generate or collect food waste shall entrust the harmless treatment of such waste to units with the corresponding qualifications.

The use of untreated food waste to feed livestock and poultry in farms is prohibited.

VI. Legal Liability

Article 1169

Where a violation of this Law involves the unauthorized dumping, stockpiling, discarding, scattering, or incineration of solid waste, the competent department of ecological environment, competent department of urban drainage, or competent department of environmental sanitation shall, according to their respective duties, order the violator to cease the illegal act, take remedial measures to eliminate pollution, confiscate illegal gains, and impose a fine of not less than 100,000 yuan but not more than 1,000,000 yuan. If the circumstances are serious, the violator shall be ordered to limit production or suspend production for rectification. If the violator refuses to take remedial measures, a designated unit with the capacity for treatment shall be assigned to conduct the treatment, and the required costs shall be borne by the violator.

If the solid waste specified in the preceding paragraph is hazardous waste, sludge generated from urban sewage treatment facilities, or treated sludge, a fine of not less than 200,000 yuan but not more than 2,000,000 yuan shall be imposed; the person directly in charge and other directly responsible personnel shall be fined not less than 20,000 yuan but not more than 100,000 yuan; if serious consequences are caused, a fine of not less than 2,000,000 yuan but not more than 5,000,000 yuan shall be imposed.

Where an individual illegally dumps, stockpiles, discards, scatters, or incinerates household waste or construction waste generated by the individual, the competent department of environmental sanitation shall order correction and impose a fine of not less than 100 yuan but not more than 1,000 yuan.

Article 1174

Where a violation of this Law involves any of the following circumstances, the competent department of environmental sanitation shall order correction, confiscate illegal gains, and impose a fine:

(1) Unauthorized closure, idling, or demolition of household waste treatment facilities or sites;

(2) Units generating or collecting food waste or other producers or operators failing to entrust the harmless treatment of food waste to units with corresponding qualifications;

(3) Construction project entities failing to utilize or dispose of construction waste generated during the construction process in accordance with regulations;

(4) Construction project entities failing to formulate a construction waste treatment plan and file it for record, or failing to promptly clear and transport the construction waste generated during the construction process.

For units committing any of the circumstances listed in the preceding paragraph, a fine of not less than 100,000 yuan but not more than 1,000,000 yuan shall be imposed; for individuals committing the circumstance specified in Item (2) of the preceding paragraph, a fine of not less than 100 yuan but not more than 500 yuan shall be imposed.

Where household waste is not classified and delivered at designated locations in violation of this Law, the competent department of environmental sanitation shall order correction; if the violator refuses to correct, a fine of not less than 50,000 yuan but not more than 500,000 yuan shall be imposed on the unit, and a fine shall be imposed on the individual in accordance with the law.

Article 1179

Where a violation of this Law involves any of the following circumstances, the public security organ shall detain the legal representative, principal responsible person, and other directly responsible personnel for not less than 10 days but not more than 15 days; if the circumstances are relatively minor, they shall be detained for not less than 5 days but not more than 10 days:

(1) Unauthorized dumping, stockpiling, discarding, scattering, or incineration of solid waste, causing serious consequences;

(2) Failure to take preventive measures, resulting in the scattering, loss, leakage, or other serious consequences of hazardous waste;

(3) Transferring hazardous waste without approval;

(4) Constructing centralized storage, utilization, or disposal facilities or sites for industrial solid waste, construction waste, or hazardous waste, or household waste landfills, within ecological protection red lines, concentrated areas of permanent basic farmland, and other areas requiring special protection;

(5) Engaging in the collection, storage, utilization, or disposal of hazardous waste without a license or not in accordance with license provisions;

(6) Providing or entrusting hazardous waste to units or individuals without a license for related activities.

Translation Notes for International Audiences:

1. Legal Terminology: Terms like "Local people's governments at or above the county level" and "People's governments at or above the level of a prefecture-level city" are standard translations for Chinese administrative divisions, ensuring legal accuracy.

2. Currency: Fines are kept in yuan (RMB). For an international website, you may optionally append a note such as "(approx. X USD based on current exchange rates)" for reader reference, though legal texts usually retain the original currency.

3. Formatting: The structure strictly follows the original legal numbering (Article 499, 500, etc.) to facilitate cross-referencing with the Chinese version.