Central water conservancy investment is expected to exceed 80 billion yuan this year

       Interviewee: Minister of Water Resources Chen Lei

This year's No. 1 Central Document wrote "further consolidating the foundation for agricultural and rural development" into its title, and set new requirements for water conservancy infrastructure construction as well as flood control and drought relief, rural drinking water safety, and other matters. Recently, Minister of Water Resources Chen Lei accepted an interview with reporters, interpreting the water conservancy-related content of the No. 1 Central Document and setting specific goals for this year's water conservancy work.
Reporter: This year's No. 1 Central Document clearly states that "in national fixed asset investment, water conservancy construction must be placed in an important position." At the same time, on the basis of last year's No. 1 Central Document requirement to increase central and provincial fiscal investment in small-scale farmland water conservancy, this year it added "substantially," proposing to "substantially increase the scale of special subsidy funds for the construction of small-scale farmland water conservancy facilities from central and provincial finance." So what specific arrangements are there for water conservancy investment this year?
Chen Lei: At present, the Ministry of Water Resources is strengthening communication and coordination with the National Development and Reform Commission, the Ministry of Finance, and other ministries and commissions, and actively striving to increase water conservancy investment from central budgetary fixed asset investment and special fiscal funds. According to preliminary implementation, central water conservancy investment this year is expected to exceed 80 billion yuan, a record high. At the same time, in accordance with the spirit of the No. 1 Central Document, we will accelerate reform of the water conservancy investment and financing system, stabilize and strengthen existing investment sources, actively open up new investment channels, and strive to introduce as soon as possible policy documents extending the collection period of the water conservancy construction fund and broadening fundraising channels; make full and good use of preferential policies such as the central "one case, one discussion" policy, subsidies for the purchase of agricultural machinery and tools, and fiscal interest discounts to increase investment in farmland water conservancy construction; and strive to give play to the role of market mechanisms to expand water conservancy investment and financing channels.
Reporter: Last year's severe drought subjected our country's farmland water conservancy construction to a huge test. Relevant experts also believe that in the coming period our country will enter a period of frequent extreme weather. What new measures do we have this year in farmland water conservancy construction, flood control and drought relief, and other areas?
Chen Lei: At present it is exactly the time for carrying out winter and spring farmland water conservancy basic construction. We are firmly seizing this favorable opportunity, broadly mobilizing the masses, and carrying out farmland water conservancy construction focusing on small-scale irrigation and drainage projects, small-scale water source projects, and the repair of flood-damaged projects. For small and micro farmland water conservancy projects such as small ponds and dams, small water pools, and small water cellars in hilly and mountainous areas, we are carrying out desilting and capacity expansion, repair and reinforcement, and hazard elimination and efficiency improvement, striving to set off a new upsurge in farmland water conservancy basic construction so that investment, scale, and benefits all exceed those of the previous year. In addition, this year, on the basis of earnestly summarizing the experience of the first batch of key counties for small-scale farmland water conservancy construction, and taking county-level farmland water conservancy planning as the foundation, a new batch of key counties will be added through open competition and expert review.
Affected by climate change, in recent years our country's climate has been abnormal, with sudden, frequent, and concurrent occurrences of heavy rainstorms, extreme high temperatures and drought, and super typhoons in some areas, making the problem of weak water conservancy infrastructure and comprehensive disaster prevention and mitigation capacity increasingly prominent. This year, in accordance with the requirements of the No. 1 Central Document, we will continue to strengthen the governance of major rivers and large lakes, comprehensively launch a new round of Huai River governance project construction, and do a good job in the comprehensive governance of Taihu Lake, Dongting Lake, and Poyang Lake; accelerate the near-term governance of small and medium-sized rivers in key areas and advance the prevention and control of mountain torrent disasters; implement the national plan for the construction and management of flood storage and detention areas, with emphasis on the safety construction of the 10 billion cubic meter flood storage and detention area near Chenglingji on the Yangtze River, the Huai River flood storage and detention areas, and important flood storage and detention areas of the Hai River; fully implement all flood control and drought relief responsibility systems with the administrative chief responsibility system as the main content, strengthen the construction of non-engineering measures such as hydrological monitoring and forecasting, contingency plan early warning, and decision-making command, and further reduce losses from flood and waterlogging disasters. At the same time, we will persist in grasping both flood control and drought relief, do a good job in the construction of emergency water source projects for drought relief, strengthen unified management and scientific dispatch of drought relief water sources, ensure the safety of urban and rural domestic water use, and strive to meet the water needs of industrial and agricultural production.
Reporter: In recent years the No. 1 Central Document has all mentioned the issue of rural drinking water safety, and this year it again proposed to "increase investment in rural drinking water safety projects." What is the current situation of farmers' drinking water safety in our country? What are this year's goals?
Chen Lei: The "Eleventh Five-Year" Plan for the Construction of National Rural Drinking Water Safety Projects approved by the State Council in 2006 required that during the "Eleventh Five-Year" period the drinking water safety problem of 160 million rural people be solved, and that by 2015 the drinking water safety problem of all 320 million rural people nationwide be solved. Last year we solved the drinking water safety problem of 60.69 million rural people, and together with the drinking water safety problem of nearly 100 million people solved in the previous three years, we have now completed the "Eleventh Five-Year" drinking water safety planning task one year ahead of schedule. We must, in accordance with the central government's requirements, strive to completely solve the rural drinking water safety problem by 2013.
At present we are actively coordinating with relevant national departments, increasing investment in rural drinking water safety projects, urging all localities to implement supporting funds, accelerating preliminary work, and strengthening construction management, so as to solve the drinking water safety problem of another 60 million rural people this year. In addition, we will summarize and promote the experience of Shandong, Jiangsu, Gansu, and other places, promote centralized water supply and joint urban-rural water supply methods according to local conditions, and continuously improve the support capacity of rural water supply projects. We will promptly complete the review of the newly added rural population without safe drinking water, compile the 2010-2013 national rural drinking water safety project plan, and coordinate the resolution of newly added drinking water safety problems.
Reporter: Our country is a water-scarce country, and water resource shortage is one of the factors restricting our country's agricultural development. This year's No. 1 Central Document once again reiterates the need to "vigorously develop water-saving irrigation." What specific measures will the Ministry of Water Resources take in this regard?
Chen Lei: This year, in conjunction with water-saving transformation of irrigation districts and small-scale farmland water conservancy construction, we will substantially increase investment in water-saving irrigation and achieve a leap from project demonstration to comprehensive promotion of water-saving irrigation. In addition, this year we will also launch an action plan for regional promotion of high-efficiency water-saving irrigation, taking the lead in building high-efficiency water-saving project areas in Northeast China, the arid region of Inner Mongolia, and the inland river region of Northwest China. We will promote all localities to develop high-efficiency water-saving technologies such as canal seepage prevention, pipeline water conveyance, sprinkler irrigation, drip irrigation, and micro-irrigation according to local conditions, and do a good job in water saving in the processes of water conveyance, irrigation, water use, and management. In hilly and mountainous areas, we will build rainwater collection and utilization projects such as water cellars and mountain ponds, and develop rainwater harvesting and supplementary irrigation. We will establish a system for total agricultural irrigation control and quota management, and strengthen planned water use and scientific water use. We will actively develop water-saving irrigation technologies and equipment, and establish and improve a water-saving irrigation technology service system.