Policies in any industry cannot be rushed headlong. The window for rapid development typically lasts around five to ten years, or one to two five-year plan cycles.

Subsequently, the industry will undergo adjustments, driven by the self-healing and competition within the entire society (including various factions). All parties have motives and necessity to reflect and adjust based on the past rapid growth and issues.

In 2013, the State Council issued the "Ten Measures for Air Pollution," followed by the "Ten Measures for Water Pollution" in 2015, and then the "Ten Measures for Soil Pollution" were released the next year.

A seasoned environmentalist of 20 years in the industry since 2015, at a convention of a public environmental company, humorously and self-deprecatingly quipped that the release of these three major tenets marks the sunrise industry truly embracing the dawn of the sun.

After 20 years of being playfully called a sunrise industry, it's finally earned its stripes, as it's now welcoming the "unleashing" of three trillion-level markets.

In the vast ocean of opportunities, amidst the great tide, someone has set a billion-dollar revenue target for their enterprise.

Although it may seem ambitious, setting a goal of a trillion-dollar scale in a market that's either in the tens or even hundreds of trillions, is not an absurd endeavor. It's a dream many companies and investors aspire to achieve.

Amid the global trend towards carbon neutrality, exporting China's environmental capabilities abroad is set to become a big business in the future. However, given our current industrial capabilities, there is still a long way to go to achieve this.

At the time, regardless of policy, market, or everyone's state, it was truly a shining moment for the environmental industry.

Many businesses have just hit the gas pedal, ready for a high-speed race, only to find out that there's a cliff ahead (deleveraging). It's too late to brake now; everyone has to dive into the pit.

Many businesses are still struggling in the hole they're in.

Even without the storm of deleveraging, doing things that defy business and technical logic would inevitably end in chaos, the hot potato game, and someone would have to bear the consequences.

This isn't hindsight bias; it's the early consensus among top entrepreneurs and investors in the industry, who predicted the PPP's collapse beforehand. Their clear understanding of both business and policy allowed them to avoid a major storm.

But at that time, while others were pressing the gas pedal, you were applying the brakes, which was bound to lead to misunderstandings from shareholders. This was truly a test of an entrepreneur's caliber.

After deleveraging, the environmental protection industry may have slowed down, but it still maintained a high growth rate. The market size of the Chinese environmental protection industry has grown from 1,151.2 billion yuan in 2016 to 1,930.04 billion yuan in 2020, with a compound annual growth rate of 14.7%.

As we enter the 14th and 15th Five-Year Plan, many of us have noticed a sense that the industry wants to accelerate its pace but just can't seem to get started.

The shift behind this is actually a transition from an offensive to a defensive policy stance.

Looking back at the development of the environmental protection industry over the past two to three decades, our policies have been behind, off track, and even misguided. However, it is fortunate that we possess a strong ability to correct our mistakes and engage in self-reflection.

No one can hit a home run on their first try; what matters is continuously solving problems in the process of growth.

In the first year of the 14th Five-Year Plan, many friends have noticed that there are fewer projects worth undertaking than before. This is naturally due to macroeconomic reasons, but more importantly, the development of the industry itself has entered a period of adjustment.

From an environmental protection industry policy perspective, the 12th Five-Year Plan was a year of policy gestation, the 13th Five-Year Plan was a year of policy implementation, and the 14th Five-Year Plan is a year of policy adjustment.

The year 2022 will continue the stability of 2021, displaying a significant defensive posture, whether it be in environmental supervision or policy relaxation.

Policy has shifted from broad strokes to precision and specificity, with a focus on deepening, solidifying, and refining efforts to become the primary direction ahead.

Some friends may be pessimistic about the current industry development, and that's completely understandable. Under the situation of preparing for a drought and preparing for war, no one can easily win.

The fast era of the environmental protection industry is over, but the great era is just beginning.

Only environmental protection companies that have survived through cycles and policy adjustments have the chance to find their niche in the great era of environmental protection.