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Speakers:

Mr. Li Guoying, minister of water resources

Mr. Zhang Xiangwei, director general of the Department of Planning and Programming of the Ministry of Water Resources (MWR)

Mr. Chen Mingzhong, director general of the Department of Rural Water and Hydropower of the MWR

Mr. Yao Wenguang, director general of the Department of Flood and Drought Disaster Prevention of the MWR

Chairperson:

Mr. Chen Wenjun, spokesperson of the Publicity Department of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC)

Date:

Sept. 13, 2022

Chen Wenjun:

Ladies and gentlemen, good morning. Welcome to this press conference. Today, we are holding the 30th press conference under the theme of "China in the past decade." We have invited Mr. Li Guoying, minister of water resources, to brief you on achievements in water development since the 18th CPC National Congress and take your questions. Also joining us today are Mr. Zhang Xiangwei, director general of the Department of Planning and Programming of the Ministry of Water Resources (MWR); Mr. Chen Mingzhong, director general of the Department of Rural Water and Hydropower of the MWR; and Mr. Yao Wenguang, director general of the Department of Flood and Drought Disaster Prevention of the MWR.

Now, let's give the floor to Mr. Li for his introduction.

Li Guoying:

Ladies and gentlemen, friends from the media, good morning. I am very glad to brief you on water development work since the 18th CPC National Congress. I would like to express my heartfelt thanks to people from all walks of life for your long-standing interest in and support for China's water development.

China suffers from water scarcity, imbalanced seasonal and regional water availability, and frequent floods and droughts. This makes China one of the countries with the most complicated water resource conditions and the most difficult and arduous task in terms of water management. The CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core attaches great importance to water development. Since the 18th CPC National Congress, General Secretary Xi Jinping, mindful of the sustainable development of the Chinese nation, has set out a policy framework for water management that prioritizes water conservation, balances spatial allocation, adopts a systematic approach, and involves both government and market efforts; established development strategies for the Yangtze River and the Yellow River; and arranged major water conservancy projects such as the national water network, thus providing strategic guidance and a roadmap for China's water development in the new era. These steps are of milestone significance in the history of water management of the Chinese nation. With General Secretary Xi Jinping at the helm and guided by Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, people from all walks of life have made concerted efforts to scientifically manage water resources, thus solving many tough problems that were long on the agenda but never resolved, and accomplished multiple major goals that affect the country's overall strategic and long-term development and the people's wellbeing. China has made historic achievements and transformations in water development.

The past decade has witnessed overall improvements in the country's capabilities to guard against floods and droughts. We have acted on the principles of "giving priority to disaster prevention and combining prevention, response and relief; integrating routine disaster reduction and urgent disaster relief; shifting the focus from post-disaster relief to pre-disaster prevention, from response to a single disaster to comprehensive disaster reduction, and from reducing disaster losses to alleviating disaster risks," put people's lives first, improved flood prevention systems in drainage basins, enhanced forecasting, early warning, disaster drills and preparedness, and operated water projects in a fine-tuned fashion. In this way, we have contained severe floods of the Yellow River, Yangtze River, Huaihe River, Haihe River, Pearl River, Songhuajiang-Liaohe River and Taihu Lake. In the past decade, the annual cost of damage caused by floods, as a share of China's GDP, dropped to 0.31% from 0.57% in the previous decade. Since 2021, we have seen a mega flood in the upper stream of the Heilongjiang River, autumn floods on a rarely seen scale in the middle and lower reaches of the Yellow River, and a rarely seen flood in the Beijiang (north river) of the Pearl River Basin; nationwide, 8,135 large and medium-sized reservoirs have controlled 225.2 billion cubic meters of floodwater; 12 national floods storage areas have been put into use, avoiding flooding events in 3,055 cities and towns, floods in more than 39.48 million mu (2.63 million hectares) of arable land, and the relocation of 21.64 million people. Meanwhile, we have effectively responded to severe droughts in the Pearl River Basin and other areas, ensuring basic water supply in a year of extraordinary droughts. This year, faced with the most severe drought in the Yangtze River Basin since 1961, we adopted precise and targeted measures in a specific scope and carried out a special joint action for drought relief and water supply of reservoirs, thus ensuring drinking water security for 13.85 million people and meeting the irrigation needs of 1.9 million hectares of autumn grain crops. 

The past decade has witnessed the resolution of the long-standing drinking water security problem in rural areas. Drinking water security in rural areas is a key indicator for eradicating absolute poverty. With this firmly in mind, we have solved the drinking water security problem for 17.1 million registered poor people and a total of 280 million rural residents over the past decade. To date, 84% of the rural population have access to tap water. In this way, the problem of drinking water which troubled generations of Chinese farmers has been resolved. We have promoted the construction of farmland irrigation projects. A total of 7,330 large and medium-sized irrigation districts have been built and the effective irrigated area has reached 69.13 million hectares. In the irrigated areas, which account for 54% of China's arable land, farmers produced 75% of the country's grain and more than 90% of cash crops. This has laid a solid foundation for ensuring food security through our own efforts.

The past decade has witnessed transformations in the utilization of water resources. We have prioritized water conservation, implemented a national water-saving initiative, strengthened a rigid constraint system for water resources, and promoted efficient and intensive water utilization. In 2021, water consumption per 10,000 yuan of GDP and per 10,000 yuan of value-added of industry dropped by 45% and 55% respectively compared to 2012. The effective utilization coefficient of farmland irrigation water went up from 0.516 in 2012 to 0.568 in 2021. In the past decade, China's total water consumption has remained stable. With 6% of the world's fresh water, China feeds nearly 20% of the global population and generates over 18% of global economic output.

The past decade has witnessed holistic upgrading in the distribution of water resources. Based on the overall and spatially balanced allocation of water resources in drainage basins, we have accelerated major water diversion projects and key water supply projects. The first phase of the eastern and central routes of the South-to-North Water Diversion Project were put into operation, supplying 56.5 billion cubic meters of water so far and benefitting 150 million people. The construction of other major projects has started, including water diversion projects such as channeling water from the Yangtze River to the Hanjiang River, a follow-up project for the South-to-North Water Diversion Project, water transfer to central Yunnan province, water diversion from the Yangtze River to the Huaihe River, and the Pearl River Delta Water Resources Allocation Project, as well as large reservoirs such as Jiayan Reservoir in Guizhou province and Laluo Reservoir in Tibet. As such, a complete, secure, reliable, efficient, environmentally friendly, smart, smooth and well-regulated national water network is taking shape at a fast pace. The supply capacity of water conservancy projects across the country increased from 700 billion cubic meters in 2012 to 890 billion cubic meters in 2021.

Over the past decade, the condition of rivers and lakes has improved fundamentally. Guided by the philosophy that clean water and green mountains are just as valuable as gold and silver, we have advanced the protection and governance of water ecosystem. We have fully established the river-chief and lake-chief system, with 1.2 million river and lake chiefs at the five administrative levels of province, city, county, township and village performing their duties. We launched the Mother River restoration project, and the groundwater level of northern China has picked up. In 2021, shallow groundwater in controlled areas rose 1.89 meters on average from the same period in 2018, while deep confined water climbed 4.65 meters. The aquatic ecosystem of the Baiyangdian Lake has been restored; many rivers that have dried up for many years, such as the Yongding River, have fully resumed water supply; and the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal has realized full operation for the first time in a century. We have brought soil erosion under control across 580,000 square kilometers of land over the past 10 years. The area and intensity of soil erosion have declined, with barren mountains covered with green and flaming mountains transformed into mountains of flowers and fruits. More rivers have been restored, more basins have been revitalized and more rivers and lakes have become pleasant rivers and lakes that benefit the people. 

Over the past decade, the capability of water conservancy governance has improved systematically. We strengthened the management of water conservancy systems and mechanisms under the rule of law, deepened unified planning, unified governance, unified control and unified the administration of basins, and advanced modernization of water conservancy systems and capability of water conservancy governance. The law on the protection of the Yangtze River and regulation on the management of groundwater were released and implemented, and the mechanism for coordinating water resources law enforcement and criminal justice and the cooperation mechanism between water resources law enforcement and procuratorial public interest litigations have been continuously improved. Reforms in key areas, such as market-oriented trading of permits for water use, have been accelerated, and breakthroughs have been made to reform water conservancy investment and financing. Water conservancy investment from bank loans and social capital has reached 238.8 billion yuan since the beginning of the year, setting a record. The construction of digital twin basins, digital twin water networks, and digital twin water projects has been accelerated. There has been a significant advancement in the science and technology of water conservation. 

Embarking on a new journey, guided by Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, water resource authorities will apply the new development philosophy in full and correctly. Authorities from all fields will endeavor and fully implement the thinking of prioritizing water conservation, spatially balanced allocation, systematic governance, and leveraging the government's and the market's strengths. We will focus on enhancing the national ability to safeguard water safety and make concrete efforts to promote the high-quality development of water conservancy in a new development stage and make our contributions to writing a brand-new chapter in building a modern socialist country in all respects. Thank you. 

Chen Wenjun:

Thank you, Mr. Li. The floor is now open for questions. Please identify the media outlet you represent before raising questions.

CCTV:

The river-chief and lake-chief system was fully established by the end of 2018. It has been almost four years since then. What specific work has the MWR done during this period and what achievements have been made? Thank you. 

Li Guoying:

The river-chief and lake-chief system is a major reform planned, deployed and promoted by General Secretary Xi Jinping personally. It is a major institutional innovation formally approved by the CPC Central Committee. In October 2016, guidelines on appointing local government heads as river chiefs across the nation to clean up and protect its water resources were rolled out by the general offices of the CPC Central Committee and the State Council. In December 2017, guidelines for establishing a lake chief system were released by the general offices of the CPC Central Committee and the State Council. This innovative system is based on upholding the people's fundamental interests and aims to resolve floods, problems of the water ecosystem, water environment and water resources, which are of the utmost and immediate concern to the people. Therefore, the establishment and implementation of the system have won extensive support and positive response from Party committees and governments at all levels and people from all sectors of society. Since establishing and implementing the system, tangible progress has been made in at least three aspects. 

First, a management system of water conservancy governance has been continuously improved. At the national level, we established and improved the inter-departmental joint meeting mechanism for the river-chief and lake-chief system. Leading officials from the State Council serve as conveners, and 18 member units act closely to strengthen the coordination, organization and leadership of promoting the river-chief and lake-chief system nationwide. In terms of basins, seven basin institutions, including the Yangtze River, the Yellow River, the Huaihe River, the Haihe River, the Pearl River, the Liaohe River and the Taihu Lake basin institutions, have established their own provincial inter-departmental joint meeting mechanisms for the river-chief and lake-chief system. Their offices are located in their management institutions, which aim to strengthen coordination between basins and form a joint prevention, joint control and joint treatment working mechanism for coordinating upstream and downstream, left bank and right bank, and mainstream and tributary. In terms of areas, river-chief and lake-chief offices at the provincial, prefectural, or county levels are established to form a coordinated joint working mechanism for the related department within their jurisdictions and pool a powerful joint force for the protection and governance of rivers and lakes. 

Second, a responsibility system has been fully established. It is a responsibility system for river and lake protection and governance, with leading Party and government officials taking responsibility at the core. Up to now, leading Party and government officials from 31 provinces, centrally administered municipalities and autonomous regions, have served as river and lake chiefs at the provincial level. There are more than 300,000 river and lake chiefs at the provincial, city, county, and township levels and more than 900,000 at the village level, including river patrol staff and river protection staff. Therefore, each river and each lake are managed well and under protection. 

Third, the conditions of rivers and lakes have been continuously improved. All localities give full play to the advantages of the river-chief and lake-chief system and take an active role. Facing acute problems related to floods, water resources, the water ecosystem and the water environment, we work in light of actual conditions and take targeted measures to deal with the chaos of rivers and lakes. We manage the space of rivers and lakes according to law, protect water resources strictly, quicken our steps to restore the water ecosystem and make great efforts to tackle water pollution. Thanks to these efforts, the conditions of rivers and lakes have changed historically, more and more rivers have been restored, more and more basins have been revitalized and more and more rivers and lakes have become beautiful rivers and lakes that benefit the people. Thank you!

Hong Kong China Review News Agency:

Accelerating the construction of water conservancy infrastructure is highly relevant to the overall strategic situation and people's well-being. Since the 18th CPC National Congress, China has successively carried out 172 major water-saving and water supply projects and 150 major water conservancy projects. Since the beginning of this year, the MWR has further intensified efforts to promote water conservancy infrastructure construction. Over the last decade, what role has the water conservancy infrastructure system played in promoting the high-quality development of China's economy and society? Thank you.

Zhang Xiangwei:

Thank you for your question. The CPC Central Committee and the State Council have attached great significance to the construction of water conservancy infrastructure. Since the 18th CPC National Congress, we have implemented 172 major water-saving and water supply projects and 150 major water conservancy projects. Over the last decade, China's investment in water conservancy projects has reached 6.66 trillion yuan, five times that of the previous decade. During this period, a number of key flood control projects were carried out, such as the construction of major flood storage and detention areas along the Yangtze River, flood control in the downstream of the Yellow River, and the Datengxia water conservancy project on the Xijiang River. A set of large-scale projects were also carried out to harness small and medium-sized rivers and reinforce dilapidated reservoirs. Storage capacity was increased by 105.1 billion cubic meters, and 56,500 kilometers of levees of grade 5 or higher were added. A system of river basin flood control projects mainly consisting of river channels, levees, reservoirs, and flood storage and detention areas has been basically formed for major rivers, playing an important role in ensuring the safety of people's lives and property and major infrastructures. Over the past decade, we have completed 54 cross-basin and cross-regional water diversion projects, such as the first phase of the Middle East Route of the South-to-North Water Diversion Project, the diversion of water from the Yangtze River to the Huaihe River, the Han River to the Wei River, and the allocation of water resources in the Pearl River Delta, increasing the designed annual water diversion volume to 64.79 billion cubic meters. The overall deployment capacity of water resources has been significantly improved in China.

Since the beginning of this year, we have thoroughly implemented the guiding principle of the important speech delivered by General Secretary Xi Jinping at the 11th meeting of the Commission for Financial and Economic Affairs of the CPC Central Committee, and earnestly carried out a series of measures made by the CPC Central Committee and the State Council to stabilize economy. We have accelerated construction of water conservancy projects, and achieved remarkable results in project construction, investment, and job creation. 

First, compared with the same period of past years, the number of projects started this year hit a record high. Since the beginning of this year, a record 19,000 new water projects have been started nationwide. In particular, a number of major projects of strategic significance, such as the second phase of the Huaihe Waterway to the Sea, the middle route of the South-to-North Water Diversion Project to replenish the Han River, and the allocation of water resources in Guangdong around the Beibu Gulf, have started construction smoothly. All of the above are major water infrastructure projects that had been needed for many years but had not been undertaken until this year.

Second, the scale of investment was larger than at any time in history. While increasing government investment, local governments have issued special bonds and gathered financial support and private capital to raise funds for water conservancy projects through multiple channels. From January to August, China invested 977.6 billion yuan in water conservancy projects, up 50.9% year on year. The national investment in water conservancy projects exceeded 700 billion yuan, reaching 703.6 billion yuan, up 63.9% year on year.

Third, a larger number of jobs have been created. We have given full play to the advantages of water conservancy projects with wide areas, long industrial chains, and more job opportunities, especially in terms of providing jobs for rural labor forces. From January to August, the water conservancy projects have delivered jobs to a total of 1.91 million people, including 1.53 million rural workers.

The construction of large-scale water conservancy infrastructure has played an important role in stabilizing growth and employment, and promoting high-quality development of the economy and society. Thank you.

People.cn:

Water-saving is highly relevant to the production and life of people. The report to the 19th CPC National Congress has also made it clear that we should implement a national water-saving initiative. The National Development and Reform Commission and the MWR have jointly issued the National Water Saving Action Plan, transforming the water-saving action into a national initiative. Therefore, I would like to ask, what achievements have been made since the launch of the national water-saving initiative? What are the next steps? Thank you,

Chen Mingzhong:

The implementation of a national water-saving initiative is an important task deployed at the 19th CPC National Congress. Since the National Water Saving Action Plan was introduced in April 2019, a cross-department coordination mechanism for the national water-saving work led by the MWR and 20 other departments has been put in place to push for achievement of various targets and tasks set in the action plan. At present, various tasks have been well accomplished, and the six key actions are being implemented in a steady manner. All of these key actions, including the dual control of total water use and water intensity, the action to save water and improve efficiency in agriculture, the action to save water and reduce emissions in industry, the action to save water and reduce losses in urban areas, the action to develop water sources and promote water conservation in key areas, and the action to give a better play to the role of scientific and technological innovation, have been actively carried out. At the same time, we have further deepened reform on water-saving systems and mechanisms, continuously improved policies, regulations and technical standards, and constantly enhanced organizational guarantees and basic capabilities. As of now, all 31 provincial-level regions have established departmental coordination mechanisms or water-saving joint conference systems, issued provincial water-saving action plans, and carried out water-saving actions in a solid and orderly manner. Through joint efforts over the years, we have made remarkable progress in water-saving. These achievements have been mainly manifested in the following aspects:

China's water use efficiency has dramatically improved, especially regarding public awareness of water conservation. In recent years, we have continued our efforts in water-saving transformation in large- and medium-sized irrigation areas, with newly-built high-efficiency water-saving irrigation areas growing by over 120 million mu nationwide from the beginning of the 13th Five-Year Plan period (2016-2020). We have stepped up efforts to promote water-saving transformation in the industrial sector and encouraged more enterprises to put water conservation high on the agenda. As such, the reuse rate in industrial enterprises above the designated size reached 92%. Meanwhile, planned water use management was practiced by 99% of enterprises above the designated size in key water-intensive industries experiencing overexploitation of water resources. Building water-efficient cities has become a priority. Cities of prefectural level and above that lack water have all been established as water-saving cities, and 119,000 enterprises in the service sector have become water-saving enterprises. We have made unconventional water resources part of the water allocation system and established pilot programs for using recycled water in certain areas. China's total unconventional water use rose to 13.83 billion cubic meters in 2021 from 10.77 billion cubic meters in 2019. We have launched a campaign to promote water-saving efforts in counties across the country, with 1,094 counties (districts) becoming water-saving counties. In 2021, China's total water use was kept below 610 billion cubic meters. Its water consumption per 10,000 yuan of GDP was 51.8 cubic meters, while the water consumption per 10,000 yuan of industrial added value was 28.2 cubic meters, dropping by 45% and 55% from the 2012 level, respectively. China's farmland irrigation efficiency index rose to 0.568 in 2021 from 0.516 in 2012.

Going forward, the MWR will take full advantage of the coordination mechanism on water conservation to encourage synchronized efforts between departments and local governments. We will encourage national water conservation action and implement the plan to build a water-saving society in the 14th Five-Year Plan period (2021-2025). We will continue to advance the actions mentioned earlier in terms of six areas to ensure that sustainable water use will support China's high-quality economic and social development. Thank you. 

Xinhua News Agency:

The soil erosion problem in China is one of the most severe in the world. Over the past decade, what achievements have been made in comprehensively controlling soil erosion? What are the subsequent plans? Thank you.

Yao Wenguang:

Thank you for your questions. Since the 18th CPC National Congress, departments responsible for water resources at all levels have implemented Xi Jinping Thought on Ecological Civilization and firmly upheld and practiced the notion that lucid waters and lush mountains are invaluable assets to advance the comprehensive control of soil erosion. Thanks to these efforts, the area and intensity of soil erosion in the country have declined, and the erosion caused by water and wind also dropped. Around 2.6742 million square kilometers of land experienced soil erosion in China in 2021, a decrease of 274,900 square kilometers from the 2011 level, with the share of land areas experiencing severe soil erosion, or worse, falling to 18.93%. The water and soil conservation rate hit 72.04%. 

China has made remarkable progress over the past decade in soil erosion control, especially in intensity, speed and efficiency. These efforts have laid a solid foundation for building an ecological civilization. Over the past 10 years, we have prioritized prevention and control to reduce soil erosion as much as possible. We have tightened supervision according to the law and ensured that around 500,000 projects have implemented soil erosion prevention and control policies, thereby effectively reducing potential soil erosion caused by human activity. We have practiced comprehensive management to reduce soil erosion. Following the national strategy, we have promoted major water and soil conservation projects in light of actual conditions, with 580,000 square kilometers of land with soil erosion being treated. We have put people and their lives first and endeavored to ensure that soil erosion prevention and control will promote agricultural production and the development of local specialty industries. For example, we have made efforts to control soil erosion in Dingxi city of Gansu province, Ganzhou city of Jiangxi province and the northern part of Shaanxi province, where planting potatoes, navel oranges and apples have become local specialty industries. As such, more than 10 million people living in poverty nationwide have benefited from soil erosion control, with an annual income increase of about 5 billion yuan. Thanks to these efforts, those places with unfavorable natural conditions have transformed into areas with lucid waters and lush mountains, generating remarkable economic benefits. 

In the new stage of development, we will implement the new development philosophy in a thorough, accurate and comprehensive manner, accelerating institutional reform and innovation. We will ramp up efforts to prevent and control soil erosion, and enhance supervision and management, to promote a comprehensive green transition of economic and social development. We will scientifically advance comprehensive soil erosion control and implement the small river basin ecological improvement policy. We will rejuvenate the ecological environment of rivers and lakes, and improve the quality and stability of the ecosystem, to offer more high-quality environmental products. All these efforts will serve as solid support for the building of a beautiful China. Thank you!

Zhonghongwang.com:

As the flood control and drought relief systems have been improved in recent years, we have greater confidence to deal with flood and drought disasters. Could you introduce the achievements we have made in flood and drought disaster prevention? Also, this year the Yangtze and Pearl River basins have experienced the worst drought in the past 60 years. What has the MWR done to deal with this severe drought? What is the progress so far? Thank you. 

Yao Wenguang:

Thank you for your questions. In the past decade, the MWR has actively followed General Secretary Xi Jinping's concept of "two commitments and three transformations" in disaster prevention, reduction and relief. We have resolutely implemented the decisions and deployments of the Party Central Committee and the State Council, and continuously strengthened the building of flood and drought disaster prevention capabilities. In terms of engineering, flood control engineering systems, which consist of river channels, dykes, reservoirs, and flood storage and detention areas, have been formed and put in place for major river basins. Through comprehensive measures of "blocking, dividing, storing, delaying and draining" water, we are now able to prevent flooding on a scale equivalent to the largest that has occurred since the founding of New China. The annual water supply capacity of China's water conservancy projects has reached 890 billion cubic meters. Through comprehensive measures such as "storing, diverting and pumping" water, the safety of urban and rural water supplies have been guaranteed and losses caused by drought have been minimized. In terms of non-engineering measures, monitoring and early warning capabilities have been significantly improved. The number of hydrological stations across the country has increased from more than 70,000 in 2012 to 120,000 in 2021, and the time for collecting information from all stations has been shortened from 30 minutes to 15 minutes. The accuracy of flood forecasting for major rivers in the south and north have increased to over 90% and 70% respectively. Monitoring and early warning platforms for mountain flood disasters have been set up in 2,076 counties with disaster prevention and control tasks.

Through a combination of engineering and non-engineering measures, we have been able to overcome major floods and severe droughts. Compared with the previous decade, the average annual loss rate of flood disasters in China has dropped from 0.57% to 0.31%. We have effectively guaranteed the safety of people's lives and property, water supply and food security, and economic and social operation.

In recent years, China has experienced frequent floods and droughts, and the system of water conservancy projects and non-engineering measures have played important roles in the flood control and drought relief.

In terms of flood control, in 2021, the middle and lower reaches of the Yellow River experienced the worst flooding during any fall since the founding of New China. The MWR adhered to the principles of "systematic, coordinated, scientific and safe" and made great efforts to provide highly tailored responses and solutions. The MWR accurately calculated each criteria to schedule reservoir groups including the Yellow River Xiaolangdi, Luhun, Guxian, Hekou Village and other main and tributary reservoirs to block and reduce flood water flow as effectively as possible. As a result, the water flow at Huayuankou Station was controlled at around 4,800 cubic meters per second, avoiding the evacuation of 1.4 million people downstream and flooding of 3.99 million mu of farmland. We have achieved the goal of "no casualties, no flooding of flood plains and no running of dams" and won the tough battle against floods. This June, the Pearl River has experienced severe floods, and flooding in the Beijiang River has been the most severe since 1915. Water resources departments jointly scheduled 37 reservoirs, such as the Xijiang Longtan, Dateng Gorge and Beijiang Feilai Gorge, to block and reduce floods. We resolutely activated the flood storage and detention area of the Pa River and used the Beijiang Lubao Floodgate and Southwest Floodgate to divert flood water in time. Floods of the Xijiang River and Beijiang River avoided each other, and the water level and flow of important river sections were controlled within a safe range. As a result, the flood control safety of the Xijiang River Dam, Beijiang River Dam, Guangzhou and the Pearl River Delta was ensured.

Drought-relief efforts: From 2021 to the spring of 2022, the East River and the Han River of the Pearl River Drainage Basin experienced the most severe drought in the past 60 years. In addition, influenced by the upstream expansion of the salty tide at the Pearl River Estuary, the drought was continuous from autumn, winter and spring and was made worse by salt. The MWR formulated emergency water regulation plans, and formed three defense lines to guarantee water supply by organizing local reservoirs to store water in a timely way. The MWR ordered nearby reservoirs to dispatch water to dilute the salt and remote reservoirs to reserve water. The MWR also delicately administered water conservancy projects like the Dateng Gorge of Xijiang River and Jiantan Dam of Dongjiang River repeatedly and replenished water for dilution to effectively inhibit the upstream flow of the salty tide at the Pearl River Estuary and guarantee the water supply in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macau Greater Bay Area and areas like East Guangdong and South Fujian. Since July of this year, heat waves and diminished rainfall have hit the Yangtze River Basin; the water sources of rivers and lakes have been highly scarce; the water level of rivers and lakes has continued to fall; the drought has become severe. The MWR worked out the Yangtze River Basin emergency water dispatch plan. It carried out a project entitled "coordinated command of water reservoirs in the Yangtze River Basin to resist drought and guarantee water supply." The MWR delicately utilized reservoirs near the Three Gorges Dam, namely, the cascade reservoir groups in the upper reaches of the Yangtze River, the reservoir groups of the main and tributary rivers named Xiang, Zi, Yuan and Li of the Dongting Lake, and Gan, Fu, Xin, Rao and Xiu of the Poyang Lake. Water conservancy departments in Hubei, Hunan, Jiangxi, Anhui and Jiangsu provinces along the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River were guided by the MWR to deal with every irrigated area and each intake in cities and countryside for better water diversion, pumping and dispatching. Until now, a total of 3.57 billion cubic meters of water has been replenished in the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River, and 356 large and middle-sized irrigated areas have irrigated a total of 1.904 million hectares of farmland. These efforts have benefited 13.85 million people and ensured water safety in drought-affected areas and the water supply for large-scale farming, livestock breeding and autumn crop planting. 

Southern Metropolis Daily:

Providing safe drinking water and adequate supply in rural areas is essential for rural residents' well-being. My question is, what progress and achievements have been made in rural water supply since the 18th CPC National Congress? In line with advancing rural revitalization, what will the MWR do to guarantee water supply in rural areas?

Chen Mingzhong:

Thank you for your question. The CPC Central Committee and the State Council have emphasized the issue of drinking water safety in rural areas. Since the 18th CPC National Congress, great efforts have been made to manage the issue. The MWR has collaborated with local governments to construct water supply projects in rural areas, completing a total investment of 466.7 billion yuan. The MWR has guaranteed drinking water safety for 280 million rural residents, improving the water supply for 340 million rural people, with the penetration rate of tap water in rural areas reaching 84%, 19 percentage points higher than in 2012. The problem of carrying water on shoulders generation after generation has been resolved with historical significance.

First, we have set up a complete system of water supply projects. By the end of 2021, a total of 8.27 million water supply projects were completed in rural areas across China, offering services for 900 million people.

Second, we have guaranteed safe drinking water in poverty-stricken rural areas. A total of 17.1 million registered poor people have access to safe drinking water. Many farmers and herders in poverty-stricken areas have realized strides from buckets to tap water facilities.

Third, we have eradicated water-borne diseases. A total of 9.75 million rural residents no longer drink water with excess amounts of fluorine and 1.2 million rural residents no longer have salty water. Chinese farmers bid farewell to high fluorine and salty water.

Fourth, we have stepped up administrative responsibility systems. As for rural water supply, local governments have shouldered the primary responsibility, the water conservancy administrative departments have taken the supervision responsibility and the water supply units assumed the management responsibility. The centralized water supply projects in rural areas have fixed pricing and charging systems and the long-term operation system and mechanism of the project have kept improving. 

In order to better meet people's yearning for better lives, the next step for the MWR will be to continue increasing its efforts in promoting the construction of rural water supply projects to further ensure safe drinking water in rural areas in accordance with the overall deployment and requirements of rural revitalization. The work will focus on the following aspects:

First, we will fully consolidate and build on the achievements of rural water supply projects, and meet people's basic needs. We will strengthen the comprehensive assessment and dynamic monitoring of drinking water safety in rural areas. By sticking to the dynamic zero policy, we will make sure that drinking water problems are solved as soon as they are found. Second, we will accelerate the construction of large-scale water supply projects. On the basis of building stable water sources, we will carry out large-scale water supply projects and standardized transformation of small-scale projects in light of local conditions. The integration of urban and rural water supplies will be encouraged in areas where conditions permit. Third, we will carry out special actions to improve the quality of rural water supply and ensure water quality and safety. We will speed up the construction of water source protection areas to fully ensure drinking water safety in rural areas, put in place purification and disinfection facilities and equipment, and improve the water quality assurance system which goes from water sources to faucets. Fourth, we will constantly improve the long-term management and maintenance mechanism to yield greater benefits. We will promote coordinated regional management and specialized management and maintenance of the rural water supply, and improve the pricing mechanism for water supply. In particular, we will strengthen digital empowerment to realize smart water supply. Thank you.

The Paper:

The overexploitation of groundwater in North China has drawn much attention from society. What progress has been made in the comprehensive treatment of this problem and the ecological water replenishment of rivers and lakes in the region since the 18th CPC National Congress was held? Thank you.

Li Guoying:

Due to various historical reasons, North China's ecological environment of rivers and lakes was once seriously damaged, and a large area of land subsidence has been caused because of the overexploitation of groundwater. In March 2014, General Secretary Xi Jinping made clear requirements and specific arrangements for addressing groundwater overexploitation and land subsidence in the North China Plain. The MWR, together with the relevant departments of the State Council and local governments, resolutely carried out General Secretary Xi Jinping's important instructions, and took a series of measures including "saving, controlling, replacing, replenishing and managing" to vigorously implement comprehensive treatment of groundwater overexploitation. The first is "saving," that is, saving water and strengthening the saving of water on the demand side. Three measures were adopted in North China: saving water and improving efficiency in agriculture, saving water and reducing emissions in industry, and saving water and reducing losses in urban areas. The second is "controlling," that is, strictly controlling the scale and intensity of groundwater exploitation. For agriculture, which is the largest user of water, the methods of fallow rotation and developing rain-fed agriculture were adopted. At the same time, the development of water-intensive industries was strictly controlled. The third is "replacing," that is, the replacement of groundwater with other water sources. Industries and sectors, which previously used groundwater as their source of water, switched to surface water in production. The groundwater sources for them have been replaced with water from the central and eastern routes of the South-to-North Water Diversion Project, the Yellow River, local surface water, and unconventional local water resources. The fourth is "replenishing." Underground water in North China is mainly replenished by rivers and lakes. However, rivers in the region have been cut off for some time and lakes have dried up for a long time, meaning that there is no supplementary source of groundwater. Therefore, from a broader perspective, we are considering having ecological water replenishment for rivers and lakes in North China. Over the past two years, the MWR has stepped up efforts to replenish water in the Yongding River, Baiyangdian Lake and the canal section north of the Yellow River of the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal. The fifth is "managing," that is, carrying out strict regulation over the exploitation of groundwater. The first step is to delineate the areas with groundwater overexploitation in North China, delimiting areas where exploitation is forbidden or restricted, and then implementing strict management within these areas. Especially in areas where the deep groundwater has been overexploited, mechanical and electric wells have been closed or even sealed. At the same time, the groundwater monitoring system has been established to conduct strict supervision and assessment.

By implementing the five measures I just mentioned, significant results have been achieved in recent years, which are mainly reflected in the following aspects: the latest statistics from the end of December 2021 show that shallow groundwater recovered by 1.89 meters and the deep confined water recovered by 4.65 meters in the groundwater overexploitation control areas in North China compared with the same period in 2018. Meanwhile, monitoring results show that the recharge of groundwater has reached 8 billion cubic meters over the years. The Yongding River, Chaobai River and Hutuo River have resumed their flow. Baiyangdian Lake has come back to life. The canal section north of the Yellow River of the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal, which has been cut off and dried up for nearly a hundred years, has also achieved the full flow connection this year, realizing the centennial joining-up with the Yongding River. Thank you.

The Poster News APP:

Implementing the major projects of the national water network is the major decision and plan of the CPC Central Committee. At present, China has basically formed the overall landscape of water resource allocation with water diversion channels transferring water from south to north and connecting east and west. On that basis, what can be done to accelerate the development of the national water network and ensure water security for the development of a modern socialist country in all respects? Thank you.

Zhang Xiangwei:

Thank you for your question. The spatial and temporal distribution of water resources in China is extremely unbalanced. Accelerating the construction of the national water network and building a high-quality modern infrastructure network for water conservancy are urgently needed to optimize the strategic landscape of China's national water resources, and have a bearing on national development and security. We will fully implement the guiding principles of General Secretary Xi Jinping's speeches at the 11th meeting of the Commission for Financial and Economic Affairs of the CPC Central Committee and the symposium on promoting the high-quality follow-up development of the South-to-North Water Diversion Project. Focusing on building connections, improving the network and strengthening links, we will make science-based plans for the hierarchical layout comprising three levels, taking the natural water system of major rivers and lakes, major water diversion projects, and key water transfer channels as the main structure, with connection projects of regional rivers and lakes and water supply channels at the secondary level, and key water resource regulation and storage projects at the primary level, to construct a national water network that is complete, safe, efficient, green, intelligent, circulates smoothly and is regulated in an orderly manner. We will enhance the capacity for coordinating the allocation of national water resources, flood control and improving strategic water resource reserves. Next, we will work on the following four aspects:

First, we will accelerate the construction of the backbone of the national water network. Focusing on national major strategies, based on the mainstreams of large rivers as well as major rivers and lakes, giving priority to the eastern, central and western routes of the South-to-North Water Diversion Project, we will promote the planning and construction of a number of trans-basin and cross-regional major water diversion projects in a scientific manner. Based on the ongoing construction of the central route of the South-to-North Water Diversion Project diverting water from the Yangtze River to the Hanjiang River, we will continue to work on the planning and demonstration of the follow-up construction of the South-to-North Water Diversion Project to ensure its high-quality development.

Second, we will improve the system of regional water resource allocation. Based on the needs of ensuring water security for the country, regions and different provinces, we will strengthen connectivity between national major water resource allocation projects and regional important water resource allocation projects, advance connectivity among regional rivers and lakes and the construction of water diversion projects, forming a water network system across provincial, municipal and county levels featuring integration between urban and rural areas and interconnectivity.

Third, we will advance the construction of water resource regulation and storage projects. We will fully tap into the potential of existing water resource projects in water resource regulation and storage, accelerate the construction of key water resource projects in accordance with the plans, and implement small and medium-sized water resource supporting projects to enhance the capacity for ensuring the water supply of urban and rural areas and for improving the national strategic water resource reserves.

Fourth, we will develop the digital twin water network. Through the use of digital scenarios, intelligent simulations and precise decision-making, we will vigorously promote the development of the digital water network, intelligent water diversion, automatic monitoring and early warning, so as to build a digital twin water network with forecasting, early warning, previewing and contingency plan functions, fulfilling our goal of building a more digitalized, internet-based, and intelligent water network. Thank you.

The Beijing News:

The medium and large irrigated areas in China are the main battleground for ensuring national food security. Since the 18th CPC National Congress, China has redoubled its efforts to transform and build medium and large irrigated areas, consolidating the water conservancy foundation for food security. The No. 1 Central Document for 2022 also called for stepping up efforts to promote the follow-up construction of support facilities and transform medium and large irrigated areas, plan and newly build a number of modern irrigated areas in areas with appropriate water and soil resources, and give priority to turning medium and large irrigated areas into high-standard farmland. What progress and achievements have been made in the transformation and construction of medium and large irrigated areas? Thank you.

Chen Mingzhong:

Thank you for your question. China boasts a long history of irrigation. At present, China's effective irrigated farmland accounts for 54% of the country's arable land, and produces from the land account for over 75% of the country's grain and 90% of the country's cash crops. Irrigated areas are crucial to stabilizing high yields. The CPC Central Committee and the State Council have attached great importance to the development, construction and renovation of irrigated areas and have invested around 150 billion yuan since the 18th CPC National Congress in building and renovating irrigated areas. This has delivered remarkable results, and laid a solid foundation for irrigation work in securing China's food supply. The achievements can be summarized in the following aspects: 

First, we have established a network integrating projects for water storage, diversion, withdrawal, transportation and drainage. There are 7,330 medium- and large-sized irrigated areas each above 10,000 mu across China. We constructed a batch of canals and renovated a series of supporting facilities, water pumping stations, aqueducts and ditches. The length of major canals reached 400,000 kilometers, 10 times the Earth's circumference. The irrigated areas can water farmland in times of drought and drain water in times of flood. 

Second, we have promoted water conservation in agriculture with substantial improvements in the efficiency of irrigation water use. The national index for effective use of irrigation water increased from 0.516 in 2012 to 0.568 in 2021. The amount of water saved annually reached 48 billion cubic meters, 1.3 times the annual water supply of the Yellow River, or 10 times the amount of water in Miyun Reservoir. 

Third, we have increased and improved irrigated areas. We have restored or increased irrigated areas amounted by 60 million mu, and renovated about 300 million mu of irrigated areas, which prevented irrigated areas from declining. The area of effective irrigated farmland nationwide increased from 937 million mu in 2012 to 1,037 million mu. 

Fourth, we have increased comprehensive grain productivity. The newly added grain productivity amounted to 30 billion kilograms, with the average yield per mu of medium- and large-sized irrigated farmland areas increasing around 100 kilograms, 1.5 to 2 times the national average. 

Next, in collaboration with the national water network, major water diversion projects and programs to protect major water resources, the MWR plans to construct and renovate another batch of irrigated areas to increase China's comprehensive ability to produce grain and provide solid water conservancy support for securing national food security. Thank you. 

Chen Wenjun:

Last question.

Cover News:

The 14th Five-Year Plan for Technological Innovation in Water Conservancy emphasized the role of technology in water conservancy, and technology will underpin high-quality water conservancy development by the end of the 14th Five-Year Plan period. What progress has been made in and what measures will be taken for smart water conservancy development? Thank you. 

Li Guoying:

Since the 18th CPC National Congress, the MWR has firmly implemented General Secretary Xi Jinping's important discourses on building China's strength in cyberspace and applied the Digital China strategy, strengthening in-depth integration of information technology and water conservancy practices. We have made notable progress in the following two aspects:

First, a space-air-ground integrated network for monitoring water conservancy has been established to obtain timely and important information. We have constructed a national water resources monitoring system, a network of national groundwater monitoring stations, and 430,000 water resources information points across China. Hydrological monitoring is carried out on all 5,186 small- and medium-sized rivers for the risk of flooding. The time needed to collect and transmit rainfall and water condition monitoring information has been shortened from one hour to one minute at 110,000 state flood stations nationwide.

Second, a national water conservation map has been created to increase the efficiency of flood control, drought relief and water resources management. The map covers 16 million water conservancy facilities in 55 categories and conducts dynamic management and online updates. Spatial management has been carried out in water areas above the designated size, water conservancy facilities and water conservancy departments, underpinning detailed emergency responses to flood prevention, drought relief and other emergencies. In addition, it provides detailed services for implementing the strictest water resources management institution and the river chief and lake chief mechanisms. 

Next, complying with requirements of meeting demand, prioritizing application, harnessing digitalization and increasing capabilities, the MWR will follow the trend of digitalization and focus on intelligent development with networks, which is supported by data, algorithms and computing power. We will apply digital twin technology in basins, water networks and water conservancy projects by using digitalized scenarios, intelligent simulations and targeted solutions. We will build a smart water conservation system with functions of forecasting, early warnings, disaster relief planning, and emergency drills, which will provide strong technical support to improve the nation's water security. Thank you.

Chen Wenjun:

Thank you to all the speakers and friends from the media. That's all for today's press conference. Goodbye.

Translated and edited by Wang Qian, Zhang Liying, Yang Xi, Wang Yanfang, Qin Qi, Zhang Junmian, Gong Yingchun, Zhou Jing, Xiang Bin, Xu Kailin, Li Huiru, He Shan, Liu Jianing, Yuan Fang, Yan Xiaoqing, Mi Xingang, David Ball, Jay Birbeck, and Tom Arnstein. In case of any discrepancy between the English and Chinese texts, the Chinese version is deemed to prevail.