The editorial department of this newspaper: correctly handle the relationship between high-quality development and high-level protection
The relationship between man and nature is the most basic relationship of human society, and human beings are inevitably faced with the problem of how to get along with the ecological environment when they live, produce and develop in nature.
Since the Industrial Revolution, the interference of human activities on the natural environment has deepened, exacerbating the contradiction between development and protection. Although human beings have been solving this problem, just as "one mountain is entering the circle of ten thousand mountains, a mountain releases a mountain block", with the development of economy and society, old problems have been solved, and new problems will appear.
practiceNear-flatThe general secretary pointed out that properly handling the relationship between development and protection is a difficult problem in the world and an eternal topic facing the development of human society.
To solve this problem, China's solution is to implement the new development concept completely, accurately and comprehensively, and correctly handle the relationship between high-quality development and high-level protection.
Properly handling the relationship between development and protection is a major issue in promoting high-quality development
Development is our party's most important task in governing and rejuvenating the country. The ecological environment is a major political issue related to the party's mission and purpose, and it is also a major social issue related to people's livelihood. How to deal with the relationship between development and protection is related to the success of high-quality development and determines whether high-quality development can be truly realized.
How to understand the relationship between development and protection? One is a mechanical and one-sided epistemology that simply separates development and protection from each other, and holds that protecting the environment will hinder economic development. The other is the epistemology of dialectical unity, which holds that development and protection are both opposite and unified, and that protecting the ecological environment is to protect the productive forces, and improving the ecological environment is to develop the productive forces.
Two different epistemologies have produced two different views of development, two different views of political performance, and two very different ways of development, which have brought about completely different results.
In some places, the pursuit of economic growth at the expense of the environment has made short-term gains, but the environmental pollution and ecological damage caused by it will take a long time and huge investment to repair and manage it well, and some have even caused irreparable losses, seriously damaging the foundation of development.
A large number of facts have proved that the path of pitting development and protection against each other is unworkable. China has been exploring the development path of coordinating economic development with ecological and environmental protection, and has found the internal law of building Chinese-style modernization, and has achieved remarkable results.
In the past decade, China's ecological and environmental protection efforts have been continuously increased, while the total economic output has achieved an average annual growth rate of 6.5%, pollutant emissions have continued to be greatly reduced, with the emission reduction of sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides exceeding 84% and 58% respectively, the cumulative reduction of energy intensity by 26.4%, and the carbon dioxide emission per unit of GDP falling by 34.4%. These data show that high-level ecological and environmental protection will not only not hinder economic development, but also add new momentum to economic development and promote high-quality development. In solving the global problem of how to deal with the relationship between development and protection, China has contributed its own solutions and wisdom.
At present, China's economic development is at an important juncture of shifting from "quantitative expansion" to "qualitative improvement," and is in a critical period of transforming the mode of development, optimizing the economic structure, and changing the driving force of growth. In terms of development mode, it has changed from extensive to intensive, in terms of industrial structure, it has been adjusted and optimized from high consumption, high emission and low output to low consumption, low emission and high output, in terms of development momentum, it has changed from environmental resources to green and low-carbon kinetic energy, and in terms of development goals, it has changed from satisfying material life to satisfying a better life. Promoting high-quality development has put forward higher requirements for handling the relationship between development and protection.
High-level protection is an important support for high-quality development, and high-quality development that prioritizes ecology and is green and low-carbon can only be achieved by relying on high-level protection. We must continuously improve the quality of the ecological environment through high-level protection of the ecological environment, promote the transformation of the economic development mode, optimize the economic structure, and support services to ensure the smooth operation and development of the economy. At the same time, through high-quality development, it is necessary to reduce the consumption of environmental pollution resources from the source, improve the stability and sustainability of ecosystem diversity, and keep the bottom line of ecological environment quality, so that "green becomes a universal form".
Promote green and low-carbon transformation with pollution reduction and carbon reduction as the overall starting point
The report of the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China pointed out: "Promoting green and low-carbon economic and social development is the key to achieving high-quality development. ”
The traditional development model is driven by the consumption of a large number of resources and the environment, emphasizing the conquest and transformation of nature, the pursuit of the growth of material wealth, scientific and technological progress and the improvement of productivity, although it has improved the material living standards of human beings, but also brought serious ecological and environmental problems, worsened the relationship between man and nature, and threatened the survival and development of human beings.
High-quality development is the development that embodies the new development concept, and on the basis of inheriting the achievements and reasonable factors of the traditional development model, it is necessary to criticize and surpass its irrational factors, so as to achieve a qualitative leap in the development form and model of human society. From conquest and transformation to harmonious coexistence, high-quality development is a major adjustment to the relationship between man and nature, and a redefinition of human development.
Green and low-carbon development is the only way to achieve high-quality development. China's huge population, tightening resource and energy constraints, limited environmental capacity, and fragile ecosystems constitute realistic constraints on high-quality development. In addition, China's green development and economic transformation are carried out simultaneously, industrialization and urbanization are in the stage of in-depth development, the industrial structure and energy structure have obvious high-carbon characteristics, the demand for energy resources will still maintain rigid growth in the coming period, and the pressure on the production and living system to green and low-carbon transformation is great.
At present, there are still some difficulties and challenges in the process of promoting economic recovery and improvement in various localities. However, we should not start paving the way for economic growth because we encounter difficulties, sacrificing the environment. It is necessary to adhere to ecological priority and green development, take pollution reduction and carbon reduction as the starting point, actively forge ahead in changing the mode, adjusting the structure, improving the quality and increasing the efficiency, use green and low-carbon technologies to give birth to new industries, new models and new kinetic energy, develop new quality productivity, promote the formation of green and low-carbon production methods and lifestyles, and promote the comprehensive green transformation of economic and social development.
The high-quality ecological environment provides important support for high-quality development. The natural environment is the material basis for economic and social development, and a good ecological environment is an important criterion for testing the level of high-quality development. "If the water is not thick, then it is not strong. "Only a good ecological environment can make development steady and far-reaching.
At present, for the sake of economic growth, some places have lowered the entry threshold, relaxed environmental regulatory requirements, broken the red line of ecological protection, and the problem of illegal sewage discharge and ecological damage is prominent. Judging from the monitoring data and inspections in 2023, there are problems such as the rebound of pollutant emissions and the decline in the quality of the ecological environment in some places, and there are risks and challenges in completing the "14th Five-Year Plan" ecological environment quality improvement goals.
We must maintain the strategic determination to strengthen the protection of the ecological environment, and guard the bottom line that the quality of the ecological environment can only improve, not deteriorate. It is necessary to strengthen the rigid constraints of the system, strictly implement the territorial spatial planning, take the "three lines and one order" as the starting point, build and improve the national ecological environment zoning control system, and change extensive development to intensive development. It is necessary to review and approve the entry of the environment, the pollutant discharge permit, the supervision and law enforcement and the accountability of the inspectors, make every effort to prevent and resolve risks and hidden dangers in the field of the ecological environment, severely punish and punish the illegal and criminal acts of the ecological environment, and strive to achieve higher quality, more efficient, fairer, more sustainable and safer development.
Create new momentum and new advantages for high-quality development with high-level protection
In the final analysis, the ecological environment problem is a problem of the mode of development, and in order to fundamentally solve the ecological and environmental problems, it is necessary to change the mode of development.
Extensive growth with high input, high consumption and high emissions will inevitably be unsustainable due to increasingly tight energy, resource and environmental constraints. Only by changing the way of production and life and effectively reducing the cost of resources and environment for development can we continue to enhance the potential and stamina of development.
At present, the overall level of green development in China is not high enough, the foundation is still relatively weak, the situation of heavy industrial structure and coal-biased energy structure is difficult to completely change for a while, and the new driving force of economic development is not strong enough.
In the new stage of development, the economic structure dominated by internal circulation and the industrial structure in which the manufacturing industry occupies a more important position have posed new challenges to the protection of the ecological environment. Ecological environmental protection should not only strengthen the external constraints on the development mode at the expense of the environment, but also accumulate new momentum and new advantages for high-quality development with a higher level of cleaner production, higher governance level, lower emission level and lower management and governance costs.
It is necessary to strengthen the concept of the overall situation and innovate the ways, means and ways of ecological environmental protection to participate in macroeconomic governance. It is necessary to accurately grasp the economic development situation, give full play to the function of ecological and environmental protection, grasp the timing, degree and effectiveness of the optimization and adjustment of environmental policies, and earnestly shoulder the responsibility of stabilizing the macroeconomy. It is necessary to adhere to high-quality development as the last word in the new era, coordinate the adjustment of industrial structure, pollution control, ecological protection, and response to climate change, strengthen the coordination and cooperation of ecological and environmental policies and various policies, help the overall improvement of economic operation, and promote the effective improvement of quality and reasonable growth of the economy.
It is necessary to give full play to the role of gatekeeping, leading, optimizing and forcing ecological and environmental protection more accurately and scientifically, adjust and optimize the industrial structure, and promote the establishment of a green, low-carbon and circular development economic system. Raise the entry threshold, strict emission standards, eliminate backward production capacity, resolve excess capacity, promote the transformation and upgrading of traditional industries, curb the blind development of "two high and one low" projects, and increase the proportion of green and low-carbon industries. Comprehensively use environmental and economic policies such as environmental finance, environmental prices, and ecological compensation, optimize the allocation of resources by market means, and promote ecological industrialization and industrial ecology. By accelerating the adjustment and optimization of the industrial structure, energy structure, and transportation structure, we will establish a green and low-carbon production system, circulation system, and consumption system, fundamentally alleviate the contradiction between economic development and resources and the environment, and promote the continuous transformation of new and old kinetic energy.
It is necessary to innovate policies and measures, improve work methods and methods, and grasp the rhythm and intensity of work. For a period of time, in order to promote the steady development of the economy, the ecological environment department has intensified reform, introduced a series of policy measures, and launched some innovative mechanisms such as bundling and approval of similar projects, planning environmental impact assessment and project environmental impact assessment co-ordination and linkage, to promote the quality and efficiency of environmental impact assessment and approval; Adopt measures such as a positive list of supervision and law enforcement, differentiated supervision, and promotion of enterprises' environmental protection performance to create A, encourage enterprises to consciously fulfill their ecological and environmental protection responsibilities, optimize the business environment, build green benchmark enterprises, and promote the high-quality development of the entire industry.
For the overall situation, for the long-term. On the new journey of building a strong country and rejuvenating the nation, we must grasp the dialectical unity between high-quality development and high-level protection, plan development from the perspective of harmonious coexistence between man and nature, make the road of green development broader and broader, and answer China's answer sheet for the synergy of development and protection.
