The Chinese Communist Party on Friday laid out in broad strokes at least three areas where it plans to combat the severe environmental degradation currently choking China. The country will allow freer markets to efficiently distribute resources, harshly penalize heavy consumers and polluters, and improve monitoring and accountability.

The question now whether Beijing is willing to follow through.

A number of episodes in recent months have added to growing public concern over the environment in China, including severe air pollution in January in Beijing and several other places, as well as the discovery of cadmium-tainted rice in supplies in the southern province of Guangdong. Environmental degradation is now seen as a threat to China's social instability and a key component in economic reform.

In the economic and political roadmap released Friday, China said it wants to introduce a system that will lead to more compensation for environmental damage. The country will gradually introduce a tax for the use of almost every natural resource, and the fees are aimed at those who exploit, damage and pollute the country's natural resources. Those who cause environmental damage may also be held "criminally responsible," it said.

The document's emphasis on using markets to combat pollution appears to reflect wider thinking among current party leaders that liberalizing markets can solve many of the country's economic problems. Inefficient resource allocation in the state-dominated economy is among the reasons why China's environmental woes have climaxed in recent years, environmental experts say.

The statement is short on specifics, and in many ways appears to build on some programs that are already being tested in parts of the country. Whether and how stringently new policies are enforced—particularly at the local level—will provide strong indications of the Xi administration's willingness tackle pollution.

The document references a need to develop environmental marketplaces, including pushing forward what it calls "carbon emissions rights." The line appeared to be a nod that the government is considering how to expand pilot carbon-trading schemes, which some environmental scholars see as an important way to limit China's carbon dioxide emissions, a contributor to climate change.

Among the efforts, China plans to beef up its monitoring and assessment capabilities. The country wants to set up an early warning mechanism to detect when land, water and marine resources are being overused and improve the monitoring of emissions. China is advocating for the timely disclosure of environment information and also wants to hold exit interviews for outgoing leaders to assess their environmental record. Scholars have contended that a evaluation system for party officials that traditionally rewarded economic growth over environmental protection long contributed to weak enforcement of environmental regulations.

The document said cadres may be forced to go through an outgoing audit of local natural resources, a move that would presumably help detect severe resource degradation during their tenure. Such a move, if enforced, could mark a small step in giving local officials a greater incentive to protect their environments.

Other notable measures included restricting the development of ecologically fragile areas and waiving the assessment of gross domestic product in those places.

--Wayne Ma and Brian Spegele. Follow Wayne on Twitter @waynema and Brian at @bspegele.