Whether it is environmental quality assessment, pollution source supervision, emergency response to sudden ecological and environmental incidents, or the implementation of ecological protection compensation mechanisms, legal observation cannot do without scientific, accurate, and reliable monitoring data. The State Council recently announced the "Regulations on Ecological and Environmental Monitoring" (hereinafter referred to as the "Regulations"), which will come into effect on January 1, 2026. As the first fundamental administrative regulation in the field of ecological environment monitoring in China, the Regulation establishes the basic institutional framework for ecological environment monitoring, ending the long-standing dependence on departmental regulations in this field and providing a more clear, stable, and authoritative legal guarantee for ecological environment monitoring work. Ecological environment monitoring is an important foundation for strengthening ecological environment protection and implementing ecological environment management. Whether it is environmental quality assessment, pollution source supervision, emergency response to sudden ecological and environmental incidents, or the implementation of ecological protection compensation mechanisms, scientific, accurate, and reliable monitoring data are indispensable. At present, China has established the world's largest ecological environment monitoring network with complete coverage of elements and a scientifically reasonable layout, which has played an important role in supporting ecological civilization and the construction of a beautiful China. However, while the ecological environment monitoring capability is rapidly improving, problems such as uneven monitoring data quality, data distortion, and even data fraud still occur from time to time, seriously affecting the accuracy of monitoring results. These behaviors not only mislead environmental decisions and harm public environmental rights, but also weaken the credibility and authority of monitoring work, posing a serious challenge to the construction of ecological environment rule of law in China. In the face of these issues, it is urgent to pass higher-level legislation to further enhance the standardization and institutionalization of ecological environment monitoring work, and provide solid legal guarantees for the high-quality development of ecological environment monitoring work. In this context, the Regulations have emerged. The Regulations have established a basic institutional framework for ecological environment monitoring by clarifying the legal status, basic principles, management system, rights and responsibilities of all parties, behavioral norms, and legal responsibilities of ecological environment monitoring work. This marks a new stage of legal, standardized, and high-quality development in China's ecological environment monitoring work. From the content perspective, the "Regulations" have many highlights: firstly, they focus on improving the ability and level of ecological environment monitoring. The Regulation requires the construction of an ecological environment monitoring network that integrates land and sea, integrates heaven and earth, collaborates vertically, and shares information, comprehensively improving the automation, digitization, and intelligence level of ecological environment monitoring. Encouraging the use of non-contact technologies such as remote sensing monitoring in ecological environment supervision and monitoring, improving monitoring efficiency, and reducing the impact on normal production and business activities, reflects the organic unity of scientific supervision and service development. Secondly, establish separate systems for public monitoring and self-monitoring. The Regulation establishes a dual monitoring pattern that complements public monitoring and self-monitoring, shaping an ecological environment monitoring and governance system led by the government, coordinated by departments, and participated by society. This institutional design not only helps provide scientific basis for government decision-making, environmental supervision, and regional collaborative governance, but also further consolidates the main responsibility of enterprises and institutions, promotes the transformation of enterprises from "I want to control pollution" to "I want to control pollution", and helps enterprises achieve green and low-carbon transformation. Thirdly, strengthen the standardized management of ecological environment monitoring technology service institutions. Third party monitoring technology service agencies are important forces in the ecological environment monitoring system. To guide its standardized development, the Regulation implements a filing commitment system for technical service institutions, implements hierarchical and classified supervision, and strengthens their self-discipline awareness. For technical service institutions that engage in serious illegal activities, the Regulation clearly stipulates that they may be fined, ordered to suspend operations, have their qualification certificates revoked, and even prohibited from engaging in monitoring services. This system design directly addresses the current chaos in the third-party monitoring market, which helps to effectively combat data fraud and prevent the phenomenon of "bad money driving out good money", promoting the formation of a fair competition market environment. Fourthly, by clarifying the legal responsibilities and punishment measures for data fraud, establish a full chain accountability mechanism. If it is explicitly stated that enterprises are fully responsible for the authenticity of self-monitoring data, data fraud will face high fines, production and business suspension, and even criminal responsibility. This' zero tolerance 'institutional arrangement has a strong deterrent effect, which can effectively force enterprises to strengthen internal management, eliminate fraudulent behavior, and shift from passive compliance to active emission reduction. To ensure the effective implementation of the Regulations, it is necessary to strengthen the following aspects of work in the future: relevant departments should scientifically plan local monitoring stations, actively promote cross regional joint monitoring, and improve overall monitoring efficiency; Enterprises and institutions need to establish and improve monitoring data quality management systems, and take responsibility for the authenticity of data. At the same time, it is necessary to strengthen the innovation of regulatory measures, promote non-contact technologies such as remote sensing monitoring, promote the automation and intelligent upgrading of monitoring equipment, and enhance the emergency monitoring and response capabilities for sudden ecological and environmental incidents. In response to data fraud, a joint investigation mechanism should be established between the ecological environment department and public security, judicial, market supervision and other departments to implement joint credit punishment and form a regulatory synergy. In addition, it is necessary to accelerate the introduction of supporting systems such as monitoring standards and qualification certification for monitoring personnel, smooth social supervision channels, and carry out propaganda and interpretation through various forms, so that all parties can accurately understand the spirit of the Regulation and strictly abide by its provisions. It can be foreseen that the Regulation, with its rigorous institutional design and rigid legal constraints, will strengthen the lifeline of environmental monitoring data, comprehensively promote the ecological environment monitoring industry to move towards a new stage of high-quality development, and provide solid data support and legal guarantee for the continuous and in-depth promotion of pollution prevention and control, the construction of a beautiful China where humans and nature coexist harmoniously, and the realization of high-quality economic and social development. (The author is the director of the Institute of Environmental and Resource Law at China University of Political Science and Law) (News Agency)