A New Chapter of Water Sector Reform and Development in the 13^th Five-year Plan Period

Chen Lei

1 Targets for the 12^th Five-year Water Conservancy Plan are Completed,with Remarkable Results Achieved in Reform and Development

In 2015,the Chinese government attached great importance to water sector reform and development,witnessing remarkable results.Severe flood and droughts as well as typhoons in some parts of the country were effectively handled,with the death toll and the number of people missing (400) reduced to the lowest level since the founding of the People's Republic of China in 1949.In terms of annual investment in water conservancy,investment by the central and local governments was RMB 168.5 billion (USD 25.9 billion) and RMB 413.7 billion (USD 63.7 billion) respectively,an increase of 3.6%and 27.1%on year-on-year basis.The completion rate of Central Government investment reached 95.9%.In terms of major water conservancy projects,construction began on 28 new projects,and 85 of the 172 major projects for water conservation and supply;with the scale of investment on projects under construction maintained at over RMB 800 billion (USD 123.1 billion).In terms of water projects for people's livelihood,64.34 million rural residents and teachers and students were provided with access to safe drinking water,and the renovation and rehabilitation of 41 large irrigation districts and 40 large irrigation and drainage pumping stations were completed with newly-added water-saving irrigation district exceeding 20 million mu (1.3 million hm²).In terms of the water ecological progress,the implementation of the most stringent management system for water resources and water pollution control was accelerated.A total of 54,000 km² of area affected by soil erosion as well as over 3,000 small eroded watersheds were harnessed,and more than 4 million mu(267,000 hm²) of sloping farmland were rehabilitated.The installed capacity of rural hydropower stations has increased by over 2 million kW.In terms of water sector reform and innovation,reform was deepened in the administrative examination and approval system,the building of diversified investment and finance mechanisms was accelerated,and active progress was made in the reform of the agriculture water price,water rights market,and made active progress in the reform of irrigation facilities property rights system.

The year 2015 marked the end of the 12^th Five-year Plan for water sector reform.The 12^th Five-year Plan period witnessed the largest scale of investment in water conservancy,fastest growth in water conservancy construction,and most comprehensive benefits for the people.Overall it was an exciting and fruitful period in the history of water conservancy in China.

First,major successes were made in flood control,drought relief and disaster reduction,significantly reducing the losses caused by floods and droughts.Floods in the Yellow River and the Yangtze River,mega typhoons such as Typhoon Fitow and Haiyan (also known as Typhoon Yolanda),and successive droughts in southwestern China were effectively controlled.Success was scored in water conservancy in the aftermath of the earthquakes in Lushan,Sichuan Province and Ludian,Yunnan Province.The death toll and number of people missing,population and areas affected by flood disasters were reduced by 64%,38%and 28%respectively as compared with the 11^th Five-year Plan period,the lowest level since the founding of the People's Republic of China in 1949.

Second,major water conservancy projects construction was accelerated and the ability to regulate and control water resources was significantly improved.The construction on the project of Datengxia in Xijiang River was started,harnessing of major rivers and lakes was accelerated,and flood control projects were launched for the Heilongjiang River,Songhua River and Nenjiang River.The first Phase of the Eastern and Central Route Projects of South-to-North Water Diversion were completed and began to deliver water.The Lechangxia Reservoir and Xiajiang River projects were essentially completed,further improving the modern water conservancy project system.

Third,the targets for rural drinking water safety were exceeded,with water conservancy benefiting hundreds of millions of people.340 million rural residents and teachers and students were provided with access to safe drinking water,and the coverage of tap water was expanded to 76%of rural areas.The reinforcement and hazard removal of 5,400 small Type-I reservoirs and 15,891 key small Type-Ⅱreservoirs were completed.The reinforcement and hazard removal of 25,378 small Type-Ⅱreservoirs and the control of 156 main tributaries and more than 4,500 small and medium key rivers were basically completed.2,058 county-level monitoring and early warning systems for torrential floods were also constructed.

Fourth,irrigation and water conservancy facilities continued to be enhanced,and the water conservancy infrastructure for grain safety was further consolidated.The rehabilitation of 344 large irrigation districts,637 key medium-sized irrigation districts and 184 large irrigation and drainage pumping stations was carried out,with 24 newly-built large irrigation districts.An effective irrigation district of 75 million mu (5 million hm²) was added,and an irrigation district of 280 million mu (18.7 million hm²) was improved.Highly efficient water-saving irrigation district of 120 million mu (8 million hm²) was developed,and the effective utilization coefficient of water used in farmland irrigation was raised to 0.532.

Fifth,implementation was accelerated for the most stringent water resources management system,with progress made in water ecological progress.The coverage of the "Three Red Lines"^[1]was expanded to the provincial,municipal and county levels.Water consumption for each ten thousand yuan (RMB) of industrial added value and each ten thousand yuan (RMB) of GDP were reduced to 61 m³ and 105 m³ respectively from 90 m³ and 150 m³ at the end of the 11^th Five-year Plan period.A pilot program of building some cities into ones characterized by water ecological progress and the comprehensive control of excessive extraction of groundwater was launched in northern China.The soil erosion in an area of 260,000 km²was controlled.The newly installed capacity for rural hydropower stations amounted to 14 million kW.719 state-level scenic spots for water conservancy were designated.

Sixth,breakthroughs were made in the reform of key areas of water conservancy,with further improvement in the water governance system.The number of administrative examination and approval items was reduced from 48 to 22.Many polices and measures were introduced to increase financial investment from government on water conservancy and encouraged the participation of social capital.Effective results were achieved in the comprehensive reform of the water price for agriculture in pilot areas and in water use rights verification,registration and trading.Steady progress was made in the reform of the construction and management systems of water conservancy projects.The number of grass-root water service entities,water user associations and county-level drought relief teams reached 29,300,83,400 and 2,000 respectively.

Seventh,steady progress was made in law-based governance of water resources,with fruitful results in water science and technologies and international cooperation.The amended Law of the People's Republic of China on Soil and Water Conservation was officially enforced,and the Regulation on the Management of Taihu Basin and Regulation on Water Supply and Water Use of South-to-North Water Diversion Project were promulgated and implemented.18 major plannings received approval from the State Council,including the revised comprehensive planning on the 7 major river basins in China,the national drought relief planning and the soil and water conservation planning.The water conservancy project construction market credit system for water conversancy was gradually established,and effective control of salient problems in water conservancy projects construction and major production accidents was realized.International cooperation was enhanced and the first national water census was completed.

Over the past 5 years,there were a number of hard-won achievements and plenty of valuable experience was accumulated.First,we must adhere to the Central Government's guidelines on water conservancy.Second,we must focus on overcoming weaknesses and breaking bottlenecks in water conservancy.Third,we must promote the harmony between humans and nature,which holds the key to water resources management.Fourth,we must coordinate with water sectors and local governments.Fifth,we must remain committed to institutional reform and innovation to inject vigor and vitality into water conservancy.