Rapid industrialization and urbanization have immensely impacted human health ensued by the increasing environmental pollution in China. Environmental protection and safeguarding public health have become the urgent demand of the public. China's 12th Five-Year Plan for the Environmental Health Work of National Environmental Protection aims to tackle these issues by outlining the current situation and problems in the development of environmental health work and identifying and improving the key areas that will contribute to safeguarding measures.
The environmental problems occurred in different development stages in the developed countries’ industrialization process in the past hundreds of years have appeared in China in a focused way. The problem of the damage to public health caused by environmental pollution occurred frequently in recent years. The scope of environmental pollution is extensive, the exposure level of the pollutants is high and the impact of the pollution accumulated historically to the health cannot be eliminated in a short period of time. Additionally, the difference between urban areas and rural areas is distinct. Air pollution is the main environmental health problem in urban areas whereas water and soil pollution are the main problems in rural areas. While the traditional environment and health problems caused by the inadequate sanitation infrastructure have not been properly solved, the environmental pollution and health risks brought by the industrialization and urbanization process are gradually increasing.