The Law of the People’s Republic of China on Island Protection 2009

The Law of the People’s Republic of China on Island Protection (hereinafter, Island Protection Law), which was adopted at the 12th session of the Eleventh National People’s Congress Standing Committee on 26 December 2009, came into force on 1 March 2010. It is the first national law developed by China’s top legislature to preserve/restore the ecosystem of islands and to protect its “Special Purpose Islands”, against a background in which overexploitation has led to serious environmental problems and even endangered the country’s territorial integrity and marine rights and benefits. This article reviews the background to the legislation, indicating the need for environmental measures and the extent to which the new law meets these needs