The "Water Conservation Regulations" are based on basic water conditions and strive to be comprehensive and systematic
Continue to improve the level of water conservation and intensive utilization (authoritative release)
Recently, the "Water Conservation Regulations" were announced and will come into effect on May 1, 2024. On March 28, the State Council Information Office held a regular briefing on State Council policies, and relevant responsible comrades from relevant departments introduced the relevant situation.
The efficiency and effectiveness of water use continue to improve, and the awareness of water conservation in the whole society continues to increase.
Water is a basic natural resource and strategic economic resource related to the national economy and people's livelihood. my country's total water resources rank sixth in the world, but per capita water resources are only 35% of the world average. Nearly two-thirds of cities across the country are short of water to varying degrees.
“To solve the problem of water shortage, water saving is the fundamental solution.” Li Liangsheng, Vice Minister of the Ministry of Water Resources, said that relevant departments have implemented national water saving actions in depth, strengthened rigid constraints on water resources, established and improved water saving system policies, and continued to promote agricultural water saving and increase efficiency, industrial water conservation and emission reduction, urban water conservation and loss reduction, and water use efficiency has been greatly improved. Compared with 2014, water consumption per 10,000 yuan of GDP and water consumption per 10,000 yuan of industrial added value in 2023 will decrease by 41.7% and 55.1% respectively. Water use efficiency and benefits continue to improve, and the awareness of water conservation in the whole society continues to increase.
In the five years since the implementation of the National Water Conservation Action Plan, various goals and tasks have achieved remarkable results. Li Liangsheng introduced that the control targets have been fully achieved, and water-saving production and lifestyle have been gradually established; key actions have been solidly advanced, and a national water quota system covering more than 80% of water consumption has been established, and more than 60% of county-level administrative districts across the country have reached the standards of a water-saving society. ; Institutional and mechanism reforms continue to deepen, and the cultivated land area for comprehensive agricultural water price reform has reached 900 million acres, and the price formation mechanism for urban water supply and water conservancy project water supply has been improved; policy guarantees have been continuously strengthened, and the Ministry of Water Resources has led 20 departments to establish an inter-ministerial coordination mechanism for water conservation. .
In terms of urban water conservation, the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development has incorporated water conservation requirements into the entire process of urban planning, construction, and governance, comprehensively promoting the construction of water-saving cities and improving urban water efficiency. Hu Hujian, director of the Urban Construction Department of the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development, said that a total of 11 batches of 145 national water-saving cities have been built across the country, and pilot projects related to recycled water utilization have been carried out in 116 cities. The annual recycled water utilization in cities across the country is about 18 billion cubic meters. The utilization rate reaches 29%. Since 2015, the construction of sponge cities has been further promoted and pilot demonstrations have been carried out in 90 cities across the country.
Agriculture is a large user of water and also has the potential to save water. The water conservancy department develops agricultural water-saving irrigation, strengthens agricultural water management, deepens the comprehensive reform of agricultural water prices, promotes the construction of digital twin irrigation areas, and realizes online metering of canal head water intakes in large and medium-sized irrigation areas of more than 50,000 acres. The national level has formulated and released 14 major crops irrigation water quota.
Take effective measures to ensure the effective implementation of the "Water Saving Regulations"
Li Liangsheng introduced that the "Water Saving Regulations" have 6 chapters and 52 articles, which clarify that water conservation work should adhere to the leadership of the Communist Party of China and establish a water conservation mechanism with government leadership, coordination of all parties, market regulation, and public participation; strengthen water management, including preparation National water-saving planning, organizing the formulation of national water quotas, etc.; improving water-saving measures, including actively developing water-saving agriculture, developing water-saving irrigation, etc.; strengthening guarantees and supervision, including improving agricultural water precise subsidy mechanisms and water-saving reward mechanisms, etc.; Strict legal liability is imposed for violations.
Chen Dayong, Director of the Policy and Regulations Department of the Ministry of Water Resources, said: “The Ministry of Water Resources will fully fulfill its water conservation management responsibilities, give full play to the role of the inter-ministerial coordination mechanism for water conservation, and take effective measures together with relevant departments to ensure that the Water Conservation Regulations are implemented and effective. Implement.”
Chen Dayong introduced that the water conservancy department will continue to do a good job in publicity and implementation, and will incorporate the publicity and implementation of the "Water Conservation Regulations" into the "Eighth Five-Year Plan" water conservancy law popularization work; strengthen the construction of supporting systems, and coordinate with relevant departments to orderly promote rigid water resource constraints and national water conservation planning and other supporting system construction; promote water conservation in the whole society, and strengthen the conservation and intensive utilization of water resources in all aspects of the entire process of collection, supply, use, and discharge; strengthen supervision and inspection, increase law enforcement, and strictly investigate and deal with according to the law.
Zhang Yaobo, Director of the Fourth Legislative Bureau of the Ministry of Justice, introduced that the purpose of formulating the "Water Conservation Regulations" is to promote water conservation in the whole society, ensure national water security, promote the construction of ecological civilization, and promote high-quality development. The "Water Saving Regulations" are based on the basic water conditions as an overall idea, strive to be comprehensive and systematic, ensure practicability, and ensure system connection.
Niu Bo, head of the Department of Resource Conservation and Environmental Protection of the National Development and Reform Commission, said that the country will strengthen the conservation and intensive use of water resources, vigorously develop water-saving industries, continue to promote the use of unconventional water sources, and carry out equipment upgrades in the water-saving field.
Adhere to "efforts from both hands" to stimulate the endogenous motivation of the whole society to save water
"It is very necessary to adhere to the 'two-hand approach' in water conservation work, give full play to the role of the market mechanism, better play the role of the government, and stimulate the endogenous motivation of the whole society to save water." Chen Dayong introduced.
In terms of giving full play to the role of market mechanisms, the "Regulations on Water Conservation" has made a series of provisions. Chen Dayong introduced that, for example, establishing a water pricing system to promote water conservation, stipulating that residential water use should be subject to stepped water prices, and non-residential water use should be subject to progressive price increases beyond the quota (over the plan); cultivating and standardizing the water rights market, and supporting various forms of water rights transactions ; Guide financial institutions to increase financing support for water-saving projects; encourage the development of socialized, professional, standardized water-saving service industries, etc.
The water efficiency labeling system is an important innovation in my country's water-saving management methods and an effective measure for the government to manage water-use products under market economy conditions. At present, the National Development and Reform Commission and relevant departments have successively released four batches of water efficiency labeling implementation catalogs. There are currently more than 11,000 registered companies for water efficiency labeling equipment, and more than 110,000 registered product models. The market share of water-saving products Gradually improve. In terms of water rights trading, so far, China Water Rights Exchange has completed a total of 11,439 transactions, with a transaction volume of 4.307 billion cubic meters.
In terms of playing the role of the government, the "Water Saving Regulations" stipulates strengthening water quota management, strengthening total water consumption control and planned water management, and controlling the construction of high water-consuming industrial projects. Chen Dayong said: "In the next step, the Ministry of Water Resources will further strengthen the coordinated efforts of the government and market mechanisms, build a comprehensive water-saving system, improve policies to support the development of water-saving industries, and promote water-saving work to continuously achieve new results."
"People's Daily" (Page 4, March 29, 2024)
Our reporter Wang Hao