Shandong Adds Three New Types of Key Controlled Emerging Pollutants, Involving Chlorpyrifos, Medium-Chain Chlorinated Paraffins, and UV-328

On December 26, 2025, the Shandong Provincial Department of Ecology and Environment, in conjunction with seven other departments including the Department of Industry and Information Technology, jointly released the Shandong Province Supplementary List of Key Controlled Emerging Pollutants (2025 Edition). This list was formulated based on the Shandong Province Emerging Pollutant Treatment Work Plan and the national List of Key Controlled Emerging Pollutants (2023 Edition), taking into account the actual conditions of Shandong Province. It further supplements and expands the scope of key controlled emerging pollutants in Shandong, aiming to improve and perfect the management mechanism. Through refined environmental risk control via a "one substance, one policy" approach, it seeks to promote the development of a robust emerging pollutant treatment system in Shandong Province. The list will take effect on February 1, 2026, and remain valid until January 31, 2031, with dynamic adjustments to be made based on actual circumstances.

The list mainly includes 17 categories of emerging pollutants:

14 types of substances from the National List:

• Perfluorooctanesulfonic acid, its salts and perfluorooctanesulfonyl fluoride (PFOS)
• Perfluorooctanoic acid, its salts and related compounds (PFOA)
• Decabromodiphenyl ether
• Short-chain chlorinated paraffins
• Hexachlorobutadiene
• Pentachlorophenol and its salts and esters
• Dicofol
• Perfluorohexanesulfonic acid, its salts and related compounds (PFHxS)
• Dechlorane Plus and its syn-isomer and anti-isomer
• Dichloromethane
• Chloroform
• Nonylphenol
• Antibiotics
• Already phased-out substances

The overall environmental risks of the above 14 substances are considered controllable within Shandong Province. Therefore, in the Supplementary List, the original control measures are retained without the addition of new ones. Simultaneously, expired or invalid exemption statements from the National List have been removed. For these 14 categories of emerging pollutants, environmental risk control measures such as prohibition, restriction, and emission limits must be strictly implemented in accordance with national requirements.

Furthermore, based on the 14 categories from the National List, the list adds 3 new controlled substances, all of which are newly listed Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) under the Stockholm Convention:

• Chlorpyrifos
• Medium-chain chlorinated paraffins
• UV Absorber 328 (UV-328)

General Measures (applicable to the 3 newly added substances):

• List Management: Establish and dynamically update a list of production/use enterprises.
• Key Supervision: Include relevant enterprises in the list of key environmental supervision units.
• Cleaner Production: Relevant enterprises shall conduct mandatory cleaner production audits in accordance with the law.
• Soil Pollution Prevention and Control: Enterprises designated as key soil pollution supervision units must submit annual reports, establish a hidden risk investigation system, and formulate prevention and control plans.

Specific Measures (applicable only to Chlorpyrifos):

• Prohibition: Prohibit use on vegetables.
• Limit Standards: Strictly enforce maximum residue limits in food.
• Pollutant Discharge: Strictly implement water pollutant discharge standards for the pesticide industry.

Drafting Background and List Characteristics

As a major province for the chemical industry and POPs convention compliance, Shandong faces numerous types of emerging pollutants and a heavy treatment workload. The formulation of this list aims to implement national deployments, improve the management mechanism, proactively control POPs slated for phase-out, and reduce environmental and health risks.

The list's characteristics are reflected in the following: Firstly, it precisely supplements three types of POPs based on the province's actual conditions and international convention developments, maintaining logical coherence with the National List. Secondly, it adheres to a guidance principle focusing on source control and effective supervision. Thirdly, it scientifically designs measures to minimize potential impacts on the high-quality development of industries and the stable operation of the regional economy.

Significance

The formulation of the Supplementary List, by clearly identifying priority controlled substances, helps avoid overly broad treatment scopes and poorly targeted measures. It improves the management mechanism, strengthens the treatment system, and comprehensively enhances the capacity for emerging pollutant treatment. This is conducive not only to the coordinated implementation of environmental risk management for emerging pollutants but also to promoting high-level ecological and environmental protection alongside high-quality economic development. It facilitates the synergistic and integrated advancement of carbon reduction, pollution reduction, green expansion, and growth, effectively mitigating the harm caused by emerging pollutants to the ecological environment and human health, and earnestly safeguarding public health.

Specific details of the Shandong Province Supplementary List of Key Controlled Emerging Pollutants (2025 Edition) can be found at:

http://xxgk.sdein.gov.cn/zfwj/lhf/202512/P020251226585972810629.pdf

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