In March 2026, the 4th Session of the 14th National People’s Congress deliberated and passed the “Ecological Environment Code.” Among its provisions, the independent section on Green and Low-Carbon Development stands as a core innovation of the Code. By legalizing targets, systematizing institutions, coordinating governance, and enforcing accountability, it transforms the “dual‑carbon driven strategy” from a policy goal into binding law, providing a top‑level legal guarantee for a comprehensive green transformation of the economy and society.
In an article published on Page 4 of “Social Sciences Weekly” on March 19, 2026, Peng Feng from the Institute of Law at the Shanghai Academy of Social Sciences points out that global competition in the green economy has already shifted from a “peripheral issue” to a “mainstream narrative,” becoming one of the most decisive variables in the current international economic and trade landscape. Against this macro background, the significance of structuring the Green and Low-Carbon Development section as an independent part of the “Ecological Environment Code” extends far beyond mere legislative technique. It is not only a milestone in the rule of law for domestic ecological civilization, but also a strategic response by China to actively participate in rule‑setting and reshape the competitive landscape in this global arena.
The scholar further notes that this “forward‑looking arrangement” of an independent Green and Low-Carbon Development section—in the absence of separate laws on dual‑carbon issues—uses the authority and stability of a code to provide a “framework” for the still‑developing green and low‑carbon legal system. This breaks with the traditional legislative path of “separate laws first, codification later,” establishing a reverse construction approach of “code first, guiding separate laws.” It offers a “system‑building” wisdom in legislative pathways, making a unique contribution to the development of codification techniques on a global scale.