China is speeding up legislation to promote a recycling-based economy (RBE) while referring to the models from more developed countries, including Japan and Germany.

The information was released at a conference on APEC Recycling- Based Economy and China's Western Development, which opened Friday in Yinchuan, capital of northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region.

Mao Rubai, chairman of the Environment and Resource Protection Committee of China's National People's Congress (NPC), said it's necessary to map out codes to explain the Cleaning Producing Promotion Law in China and establish a basic law to standardize recycling-based activities.

China should refer to the experience of Japan and Germany to step up legislation on RBE and bring it into the country's long- term economic development strategies, he said. Proposed regulations include the recycling of household electrical appliances, construction materials and packing.

Several environmental protection laws have been in practice in China, including Environmental Protection Law, Air Pollution Prevention Law and Water Pollution Prevention Law.