BEIJING, May 21 (Xinhua) -- China has unveiled an action plan to protect and create beautiful rivers and lakes from 2025 to 2027, with a focus on improving the quality of aquatic ecosystems.
The plan, jointly released by the Ministry of Ecology and Environment and other government organs on Wednesday, set the goals of achieving notable progress in creating beautiful rivers and lakes by 2030 and completing the initiative by 2035.
Liu Jing, deputy director of the department of water ecology and environment at the ministry, said that beautiful rivers and lakes generally need to meet several criteria.
In terms of water resources, they should have a stable source of replenishment, good water flow and adequate ecological water use, thus steadily achieving the goal of "rivers with flowing water," Liu explained.
As for water ecology, the ecological functions of water bodies and their buffer zones should be maintained or restored, biodiversity effectively protected, and the return of representative native species ensured, thereby achieving a stable state of "rivers with fish and aquatic plants."
Concerning water environment, pollutant discharge within the basin should be effectively controlled, water quality significantly improved or be consistently excellent, public needs for waterfront landscapes and recreational spaces well met, and ecological concerns raised by the public properly addressed, ultimately achieving "harmonious coexistence between people and water," according to Liu.
The plan aims to promote targeted, science-based and lawful pollution control, coordinate the management of water resources, aquatic environments and water ecology, and build an integrated ecological governance system across upstream and downstream areas in key river basins to improve the health of aquatic ecosystems.
The plan outlines 19 specific measures, focusing on consolidating and deepening water environment management, guaranteeing basic ecological water use, and comprehensively advancing protection and construction efforts.
A total of 2,573 water bodies have been included in the national list for protecting and creating beautiful rivers and lakes, covering major river trunks, key tributaries, and important lakes and reservoirs with critical ecological functions, fragile environments, or significant public interest.
This includes full coverage of more than 6,300 kilometers of the Yangtze River trunk stream and over 5,400 kilometers of the Yellow River trunk stream.
China has carried out pilot programs for water ecology assessment in the Yangtze River Basin for three consecutive years, and similar efforts have been explored in the Yellow River Basin.
According to the plan, by 2027, the index of aquatic biological integrity in the Yangtze River Basin is expected to improve, the decline in aquatic biodiversity in the Yellow River Basin will be initially curbed, and ecological protection compensation mechanisms will be established in major river basins, such as the Yangtze River and the Yellow River.
The plan urges strengthening scientific and technological support in the field of aquatic ecological environment by advancing innovation, enhancing research on key technologies, leveraging the role of the national platform for the transformation of ecological and environmental science and technology achievements, and promoting the application of research outcomes.
Central finance will provide backing to ensure funding support, while local governments and private capital will be encouraged to increase investment, says the plan.
Efforts will be made to encourage social capital to actively participate in the initiative through approaches such as government procurement of services, third-party environmental pollution treatment, and environment-oriented development, said Liu. Enditem
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