Implications of Foreign Environmental Codification Paradigms for China’s Ecological Civilization Code Compilation

Abstract

Under the context of advancing ecological civilization, China’s codification of an eco-environmental code constitutes both a legal system upgrade and a manifestation of green governance values. This study examines the urgency of codifying China’s fragmented environmental legislation, addressing critical challenges such as regulatory gaps, normative inconsistencies, and legislative redundancies. Through comparative analysis of Swedish and French codification paradigms, the paper highlights codification’s systemic advantages in harmonizing environmental governance frameworks. A three-stage codification pathway is proposed: establishing value-oriented principles, defining moderate codification objectives with adaptable scope, and adopting a “general-special provisions” structure with logically sequenced chapters. The findings suggest a medium-scale codification model that integrates international experiences with China’s ecological modernization needs. This hybrid approach balances code stability with regulatory flexibility, accommodating evolving environmental challenges while providing systematic legal support for ecological civilization construction. The proposed framework addresses current legislative fragmentation through hierarchical integration while preserving necessary regulatory adaptability—a strategic response to the dynamic nature of environmental governance in developing jurisdictions.