11 People Who Stolen Sea Sand Were Filed with Public Interest Litigation in Qingdao

December 12, the Qingdao Maritime Court, composed of "three judges and four people's jurors", opened a public hearing to hear a public interest litigation case of compensation for damage to marine natural resources and ecological environment caused by illegal mining of sea sand. This is the first such case accepted by Qingdao Maritime Court after the introduction of the two high judicial interpretations. In the early morning of November 25,

2020, the Qingdao Maritime Police Bureau seized the ships "Jianghai 93" and "Sulianyungang Cargo 1798" in the waters near Dongjiakou Port in the West Coast New Area of Qingdao. The two ships carried more than 2600 tons of sea sand and could not provide relevant documents, suspected of illegal sand mining. After the trial, the procuratorial organ found that in August 2020, Wang Moulin and other four people, without obtaining the certificate of the right to use the sea area for sea sand mining and the mining license, planned to obtain benefits by excavating sea sand. After that, the "Jianghai 93" was responsible for excavating sea sand, and the "Changyun 1898" ship and the "Sulianyungang Cargo 1798" ship were responsible for purchasing and transporting the stolen sea sand. When captured by the marine police, more than 2000 tons of stolen sea sand had been traded.

Qingdao People's Procuratorate believes that sea sand belongs to mineral resources and cannot be exploited at will. The ocean is the common property of mankind and belongs to public goods. The public shares the climate regulated by the marine system and the ecological benefits it brings. Damage to marine natural resources and ecological environment is related to social and public interests. The Qingdao People's Procuratorate, in accordance with the Provisions on Several Questions Concerning the Handling of Public Interest Litigation Cases Concerning Marine Natural Resources and Ecological Environment of the Supreme People's Court and the Supreme People's Procuratorate of the Supreme People's Court, filed a public interest lawsuit with the Qingdao Maritime Court against 11 people, including Wang Moulin, who had destroyed the marine ecology, demanding that Wang Moulin and others pay for the restoration of the marine ecological environment and the loss and preventive measure during the restoration period. He also demanded a public apology in the state-level media. During the

trial, the collegial panel organized all parties to conduct court investigations and conduct court debates in an orderly manner, fully guaranteed the litigation rights of parties in judicial proceedings according to law, and achieved good results in the trial. After the trial, the collegial panel will conduct a collegial discussion in accordance with the law, and the case will be adjudicated at a later date.

This case is the first case of public interest litigation compensation for damage to marine natural resources and ecological environment brought by the People's Procuratorate as a prosecutor of public interest litigation after the promulgation of the two judicial interpretations by the Qingdao Maritime Court. As a special court, Qingdao Maritime Court has always attached great importance to the trial of marine ecological environment damage, actively paid attention to relevant cases and actively docked and exchanged with the procuratorates within its jurisdiction on the development of public interest litigation of marine natural resources and ecological environment, tried every case of public interest litigation of marine natural resources and ecological environment, and played a role in protecting marine environment. Protect the marine environment, promote the marine rule of law, and serve the construction of a powerful marine province.