China's ecological environment construction and water resources protection and utilization

Author: Shen Guofang
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2001-07-01
Features: The major consulting project of the Chinese Academy of Engineering, "Research on the Sustainable Water Resources Strategy of China," is divided into 7 topics: water resources assessment and supply-demand balance analysis, flood control and disaster mitigation strategies, agricultural water use and the construction of water-saving high-efficiency agriculture, urban water resources utilization and protection, water pollution control, ecological environment construction and water resources protection and utilization, water resources allocation in northern China and the South-to-North Water Diversion Project, and water resources development and utilization in western China. After nearly two years of intensive work by 43 academicians from the Chinese Academy of Sciences and the Chinese Academy of Engineering, as well as nearly 300 external experts, a series of major research achievements have been obtained. Eight thematic reports were produced, and on the basis of these reports, a comprehensive project report was formed. "The Report Collection of Research on the Sustainable Water Resources Strategy of China" (hereinafter referred to as "The Report Collection") is divided into 9 volumes, gathering the series of research achievements of this project. This book is the 7th volume of "The Report Collection," divided into 5 parts and 11 chapters. Based on an assessment of China's achievements in ecological environment construction, the current status and development trends of the ecological environment, this book combines quantitative and qualitative methods, supported by scientific experimental results, to demonstrate the role of ecological environment construction in water resources protection and utilization. The main contents include: increasing water storage capacity and reducing flood peaks while enhancing dry-season water availability; improving the effective utilization rate of water resources, thereby reducing the total river runoff to some extent; reducing soil erosion and river sediment, protecting and improving water quality. Ecological environment construction plays a very important role in promoting local socio-economic development. This book defines the connotation of ecological environment water use and estimates the volume of ecological environment water use in China. It also discusses the main technical measures for ecological environment construction in different types of regions in China. In response to the current problems in national ecological environment construction, countermeasures and suggestions are proposed, including: ① further enhancing the understanding of the long-term and arduous nature of ecological environment construction; ② improving the management methods for ecological environment construction projects to enhance the benefits of comprehensive governance; ③ in areas with soil erosion, adhering to small river basins as the unit, combining comprehensive soil erosion control and comprehensive development, while balancing ecological and economic benefits; ④ in desertification areas, adhering to the rational use of water and soil resources as the core, conducting comprehensive governance and development; ⑤ attaching great importance to vegetation construction and actively promoting the "returning farmland to forests/grasslands" initiative; ⑥ increasing investment efforts, broadening investment channels, and implementing policies related to the auction of "four wastelands" (、、、); ⑦ strengthening scientific research and technical extension services to improve the effectiveness of engineering construction; ⑧ strengthening legal and regulatory frameworks, prioritizing prevention and supervision, and legally protecting and governing the ecological environment to reverse the current serious phenomenon of simultaneous governance and destruction; ⑨ adhering to the principle of sustainable development and fully meeting the water demand requirements for ecological environment protection and construction. The research work of the "Research on the Sustainable Water Resources Strategy of China" project and the publication of "The Report Collection" have received strong support from the State Council leadership and relevant ministries and commissions. Comrade Wen Jiabao wrote the preface for "The Report Collection."