Cutting through the Qinling Mountains and linking the Wei River, the Han River now nourishes the Guanzhong region. Since the start of this year, the second phase of the Han-to-Wei Water Diversion Project has kept setting new progress records. In Guangdong, at Liyuzhou in Shunde on the main stream of the Xijiang River, pumps roar as the Pearl River Delta Water Resources Allocation Project began supplying Xijiang water to receiving areas along its route on June 1.
In the first seven months of this year, investment in water conservancy construction reached 689.4 billion yuan, up 12.8% year on year. As an important area of infrastructure investment, water conservancy projects, especially major ones, fully play their role in absorbing large investment, having long industrial chains and creating many employment opportunities, providing strong support for expanding effective investment, promoting coordinated regional development and facilitating stable economic growth.
With rivers crisscrossing the land, the water network is being woven ever more densely, and the construction of the national water network has been put on the fast track.
　　Stabilizing investment, expanding domestic demand —
In the first seven months, 40,000 water conservancy projects were implemented nationwide, up 17% year on year
Among the great rivers, major water diversion projects are being interconnected and supplemented. With robotic arms swinging and rock being cut through, excavation of the main tunnel of the Yangtze-to-Han River Water Diversion Project keeps making breakthroughs. Once completed, the Three Gorges Reservoir will be "joined hands" with the Danjiangkou Reservoir, with an average annual water transfer volume of 3.9 billion cubic meters.
Across the vast fields, construction of water projects for people's livelihood is in full swing. At the construction site of the Beiguhuang Water Plant in Shilongdong Village, Yanzhi Town, Hefeng County, Hubei Province, the main structure of the plant is nearly 90% complete. "Once the plant supplies water, we won't have to worry about water cuts in winter," the villagers said with great anticipation.
From large water networks to small water facilities, water conservancy construction has been comprehensively accelerated. In the first seven months, 40,000 water conservancy projects were implemented nationwide, up 17% year on year, of which 26,000 were newly started, up 23.9% year on year. "These water projects cover flood control works, water diversion and key water source projects, new construction and renovation of irrigation districts, rural water supply, and ecological restoration and governance, playing an important role in safeguarding water supply security, food security and ecological security," said Xie Yibin, a first-level inspector of the Planning and Program Department of the Ministry of Water Resources.
The comprehensive acceleration of water conservancy construction stems from continuous process optimization.
In the lower reaches of the Qingdu River in Sinan County, Guizhou Province, construction of the diversion tunnel and access tunnel of the Huatanzi Reservoir, one of the 150 major water conservancy projects nationwide, is in full swing.
From blueprint to reality, how do water projects get implemented and accelerated? Yi Yun, director of the Guizhou Provincial Department of Water Resources, explained that to speed up the construction of the Huatanzi Reservoir, Guizhou has established a joint meeting system for the construction of large and medium-sized water conservancy projects, with departments working in coordination and upper and lower levels collaborating to accelerate project implementation.
Speed must be accompanied by quality. Yi Yun said major water conservancy projects strictly follow the principle of "genuine need, ecological safety and sustainability." The Huatanzi Reservoir strictly conducts surveys of the current water supply situation in receiving areas in accordance with regulations and standards, and earnestly carries out demonstrations of project necessity and feasibility.
Xie Yibin explained that the Ministry of Water Resources guides local water departments in establishing mechanisms such as "work lists" for feasibility study review and approval, handling of prerequisite documents and completion deadlines, so as to encourage more projects to start early; construction plans are optimized and construction support strengthened to fully advance water infrastructure construction on the premise of ensuring quality and safety.
The comprehensive acceleration of water conservancy construction stems from adhering to the "two hands" of both the government and the market and deepening reform of water conservancy investment and financing.
In Shandong, water projects funded by additional government bonds, such as the Menghe Shuanghou Reservoir and the Dawen River Zhuanshe Sluice Project, are being accelerated. Huang Hongguang, director of the Shandong Provincial Department of Water Resources, explained that Shandong has strengthened supervision and scheduling and reinforced factor guarantees to accelerate project implementation. All water projects funded by additional government bonds started construction by the end of June, with 11 billion yuan of additional government bond funds for water conservancy completed, a completion rate of 70%.
Nationwide, of the 689.4 billion yuan of completed investment in water conservancy construction, 258.5 billion yuan was completed for water projects funded by additional government bonds. Water departments are actively attracting social capital to participate in water conservancy construction, building a diversified, multi-level and multi-channel water investment and financing system, further broadening long-term funding channels for water conservancy construction and safeguarding the funding needs of large-scale water conservancy construction.
　　Promoting development, benefiting people's livelihood —
In the first seven months, water projects nationwide absorbed 1.353 million rural laborers
The Xijiang River winds through the Yunkai Mountains to quench the thirst of the Leizhou Peninsula, and the Guizi branch tunnel of the Beibu Gulf Rim Guangdong Water Resources Allocation Project has recently been successfully holed through. Li Hang, general manager of the Party and Mass Personnel Department of Yuehai Yuexi Water Supply Company, explained that the project is large in scale and strong in driving capacity. Since construction began, it has used 55,000 tons of steel rebar, 278,000 tons of cement, 6 units (sets) of large equipment such as shield machines and tunnel boring machines (TBMs), and more than 2,600 units (sets) of other medium and large construction machinery.
Li Hang explained that at peak times the Beibu Gulf Rim Guangdong Water Resources Allocation Project employed about 800 design and scientific research construction personnel, and currently more than 9,700 workers are on site.
The commencement of one water project after another plays an important role in driving industrial development and stabilizing employment. Water projects promote the development of upstream hydropower, electromechanical and building materials enterprises, midstream design and construction enterprises, and downstream operation and maintenance enterprises. In the first seven months, water projects nationwide absorbed 1.683 million employed people, up 3.3% year on year, of which 1.353 million were rural laborers, up 8.1% year on year.
While expanding profitable investment, water projects continue to unleash positive externalities.
In the Qiyi River Irrigation District of Xiajin County, Shandong Province, excavators and transport vehicles shuttle back and forth as the old irrigation district takes on new vitality. "This year we will focus on improving the canal head, sluices and pipelines, and the project is expected to be put into operation by the end of the year. The upgraded irrigation district will not only improve agricultural irrigation conditions but also help reduce groundwater extraction and enhance flood control and waterlogging drainage capacity in surrounding areas," said Han Xiaochen, deputy director of the Xiajin County Water Conservancy Development Center.
Water projects promote development, benefit people's livelihood and protect ecology. In the middle reaches of the Le'an River in Jiangxi, the first-phase dry-season cofferdam of the Leping City Water Conservancy Hub Project has been officially closed, with a flood control storage capacity of 245.7 million cubic meters and a designed irrigation area of 700,800 mu. On the main stream of the Qingshui River in Guizhou, construction of the Xuanwei Reservoir, a major national water conservancy project, has begun; the project will provide a reliable water source for 832,000 urban and rural residents and 64,900 mu of contiguous irrigation districts. Since the start of this year, water departments have accelerated the modernization and renovation of large and medium-sized irrigation districts, given priority to advancing integrated urban-rural water supply and large-scale centralized water supply, and vigorously implemented ecological restoration and governance projects for important rivers and lakes, ensuring that water projects start early, are completed early and take effect early.
　　Building the framework, unblocking the arteries —
In the first seven months, 34 major water conservancy projects started construction, accelerating the building of the national water network
On the Yellow River, the Guxian Water Conservancy Hub Project has officially entered the construction stage. Zhejiang's "water vat" — the Jingling Reservoir on the Cao'e River in Zhejiang — has started construction. In the first seven months, 34 major water conservancy projects started construction, 8 more than in the same period last year, accelerating the building of the national water network.
Since the start of this year, water departments have been anchored to the goal of "a complete system, safety and reliability, intensive efficiency, green intelligence, smooth circulation and orderly regulation," accelerating the construction of the main framework of the national water network, unblocking the main arteries of the national water network, building key water conveyance and drainage channels, and speeding up the formation of a single "one network" for the national water network.
Connecting the last mile of the national water network. Ningbo in Zhejiang has completed the reservoir group interconnection project and the urban water supply interconnection project, building a municipal water network. Xiushan Tujia and Miao Autonomous County in Chongqing has built a county-level water network pattern of "four horizontals, seven verticals linking eight reservoirs, storing in the south and diverting in the north to nourish central Xiushan." Water departments have strengthened the connection between the national backbone network and provincial, municipal and county water networks. To date, all 31 provincial-level water network construction plans have been approved and implemented, and 80% of municipal-level and 43% of county-level water network construction plans have been completed.
Digital twin technology empowers the construction of the national water network. At present, the framework plan for the digital twin national backbone water network has been completed, digital twin construction has been launched in 10 provincial-level water network pilot areas, and digital twin water network construction at the municipal and county levels is being actively advanced.
A relevant official of the Ministry of Water Resources said that water departments are actively practicing the water governance approach of "prioritizing water conservation, balancing space, systematic governance and exerting both hands," coordinating high-quality development and high-level safety, and focusing on the key tasks of the Outline of the National Water Network Construction Plan to accelerate water infrastructure construction and make positive contributions to the sustained improvement of the economy.