This Plan is a sectoral policy document at national level, aiming to improve the country’s capability to safeguard its water security during the 14th Five-Year Plan period (2021-2025). The Plan is the first five-year plan (FYP) for water security to be implemented nationally. It specifies the main goals and key tasks for water security assurance during the 14th Five Year Plan period. The Plan aims to significantly enhance China’s national water security capability by addressing water concerns through four main goals: improving the ability to prevent floods and droughts; improving the ability to conserve water resources; improving water resources and optimizing allocation capacity; and strengthening the ecological protection and governance of large rivers and lakes. The Plan focuses on eight key tasks in ensuring water security: 1. to implement national water-saving initiatives and strengthen rigid constraints on the use of water resources (including the establishment of a sound rigid constraint index system for water resources and strict control of the total amount of water intake in the watershed areas); 2. to strengthen the construction of major water resource projects and improve the ability to optimize the allocation of water resources; 3. to improve the flood control and disaster reduction capabilities of the basins; 4. to strengthen soil and water conservation and river and lake remediation, and improve the ability of water ecological environment protection and governance; 5. to strengthen the construction of agricultural and rural water conservancy projects, and improve the water conservancy guarantee capacity for rural revitalization; 6. to strengthen the construction of smart water conservancy and improve the level of digitalization, networking, and intelligence; 7. to strengthen the reform of key areas of water conservancy and improve the innovation and development capacity of water conservancy; 8. to strengthen water conservancy management and improve the modernization level of water governance. The measures proposed in the Plan include: 1. Develop regulatory systems for water conservation, which includes the creation of water conservation regulations; 2. Promote the water efficiency labeling system while making it applicable to a wider range of products; 3. Continuously promote the water conservation certification system by incorporating it in the green product certification labeling system; 4. Carry out a water resources tax pilot program, in which companies and individuals are taxed on surface water or groundwater resources they use, at an appropriate time; 5. Effectively manage water allocation and promote water conservation technologies and equipment to get companies to adapt themselves for water conservation; Carry out industrial waste water recycling projects with water intensive industries; etc.
China · 2022-01-01