Zhao served as the Vice Minister of China’s Ministry of Ecology and Environment since 2016. Prior to that, he was the ministry’s Chief Engineer. In September 2005, he was appointed Director General of the Department of Science, Technology and Standards and in September 2013, he was appointed Director General of the Department of Pollution Prevention and Control of the Ministry of Environmental Protection (MEP).

He started working at the National Environmental Protection Agency (NEPA) in 1989, and later worked at the State Environmental Protection Administration (SEPA) – including as Deputy Director General of the Department of Science, Technology and Standards of SEPA between 2000 and 2005. Zhao has a doctor’s degree in Science.