<s>[INST] The next text is a question of a member of the European parliament:"Severe restrictions on imports of waste into China were adopted in December2017 and entered into force in March2018. These restrictions cover imports of mixed, unsorted paper and a maximum weight for contaminated waste to 0.3% of the total contained in the shipment. For many Member States, this is tantamount to a ban, as they do not appear to be able to meet these strict conditions.  In view of the above:  How has the Commission reacted to these Chinese restrictions up to now, and does it have a plan as to how to help affected Member States to cope with the resulting precarious situation?  Is the Commission monitoring the impact of Chinese restrictions on affected Member States in relation to the fate of waste that may no longer be exported to China, and if so, what have the results and conclusions of such monitoring been?  If it emerges that ending the export of some types of waste to China will be a major problem for Member States, does the Commission think that it should be solved exclusively at national level, or that EU instruments such as support programmes for intra-EU recycling schemes should be used, complemented by the creation of new legal standards aimed at making recycling easier?"
Analyze carefully the text and assign it to the most relevant policy area among those listed below. Do not explain your answer and return only a number.
Policy area numbers: 1 = Macroeconomics
2 = Civil Rights, Minority Issues and Civil Liberties
3 = Health
4 = Agriculture and Fisheries
5 = Labour, employment and pensions
6 = Education
7 = Environment
8 = Energy
9 = Immigration
10 = Transportation
12 = Law and Crime
13 = Social welfare
14 = Regional and Urban issues and Planning
15 = Banking, finance and domestic commerce issues
16 = Defence
17 = Space, science, technology, and communications issues
18 = Foreign trade
19 = International affairs and foreign aid
20 = Governance and government
21 = Public Lands, Water Management and Territorial Issues
23 = Culture and media
[/INST]. Answer = [7]. </s>
Severe restrictions on imports of waste into China were adopted in December2017 and entered into force in March2018. These restrictions cover imports of mixed, unsorted paper and a maximum weight for contaminated waste to 0.3% of the total contained in the shipment. For many Member States, this is tantamount to a ban, as they do not appear to be able to meet these strict conditions.  In view of the above:  How has the Commission reacted to these Chinese restrictions up to now, and does it have a plan as to how to help affected Member States to cope with the resulting precarious situation?  Is the Commission monitoring the impact of Chinese restrictions on affected Member States in relation to the fate of waste that may no longer be exported to China, and if so, what have the results and conclusions of such monitoring been?  If it emerges that ending the export of some types of waste to China will be a major problem for Member States, does the Commission think that it should be solved exclusively at national level, or that EU instruments such as support programmes for intra-EU recycling schemes should be used, complemented by the creation of new legal standards aimed at making recycling easier?