Full Text: Integrated Reform Plan for Promoting Ecological Progress

V. Improving the Systems for Total Resource Management and Comprehensive Resource Conservation

17. Improving the systems for providing the strictest possible protection for farmland and securing the economical and intensive use of land

The system for the protection of basic cropland will be improved and a redline below which the area of China' s permanent basic cropland must not fall will be established. To ensure that the area of basic cropland are not diminished, its quality does not deteriorate, and it is not converted to any other uses, the duty of basic cropland protection will be assigned to farming households and every piece of this cropland will be captured through photo-imaging and entered into the national cropland protection database, and its strict protection will be enforced. With the exception of unavoidable cases as specified by law in which basic cropland has to be used as the site of key national projects, no basic cropland may be used for construction purposes. Efforts will be redoubled to grade and monitor as well as maintain and improve the quality of cultivated land. The system for offsetting the occupation of cultivated land for purposes other than cultivation will be improved. A cap will be set on total cultivated land that can be used for new construction projects. It will be made sure that equivalent land is offset ahead of occupation and that the replacement land is of equal or higher grade than the cultivated land to be occupied. A cap will also be on total land that can be occupied for construction purposes, management will be instituted to reduce the amount of cultivatable land that is used as such, and incentive and constraint mechanisms will be established to encourage more economical and intensive use of land. Reasonable annual plans will be made for the use of land, adjusting the structure of land used for different purposes and making the best use of land that has already been made available.

18. Improving the system for the strictest possible management of water resources

To give priority to saving water, achieve harmony between development and water conservation, carry out systemic governance, and ensure that both government and market play their respective roles, the system for controlling total water usage will be improved to ensure water security. Efforts will be accelerated to formulate water allocation plans for major river basins, strengthen coordination between provincial-level governments, and improve the system of targets for control of total water usage at the provincial, municipal, and county levels. Effective mechanisms will be established to ensure economical and intensive water usage. More work will be done to adjust the way water resources are used and improve their allocation. The system for evaluating the impact of plans and construction projects on water resources will be improved. Efforts will be made to draw principally on pricing and taxation to gradually establish systems for controlling and instituting quota-based management of the volume of water used in irrigation, and for controlling and instituting quota-based management of the planned water usage of high-water-consuming industrial enterprises. In regions seriously affected by water scarcity, water quotas will be used as a threshold for market entry and the development of high-water-consuming projects will be strictly controlled. The protection and environmental restoration of areas producing aquatic products will be strengthened, their aqua culture will be controlled, and mechanisms will be established for the protection of aquatic plant and animal life. Regulation of water functional zones will be improved and systems for promoting the utilization of alternative water resources will be established.

19. Establishing a system for total energy consumption management and energy conservation

High priority will be given to energy conservation, the control of energy intensity will be strengthened, and the responsibility system and the system of incentives for meeting energy conservation targets will be improved. Improvements will be made to the energy statistics system. The management system for energy conservation by major energy-consuming organizations will be improved, and a mechanism for making voluntary pledges on energy conservation will be implemented on an explorative basis. The system of energy conservation standards will be improved to make timely updates to energy efficiency standards for energy-consuming products, limits on energy consumption for energy-intensive industries, and energy efficiency standards for buildings. A reasonable target will be established for total national energy consumption and broken down and assigned to the provincial-level and major energy-consuming organizations. The mechanism for promoting the use of energy-saving, low-carbon products, technologies, and equipment will be improved and lists of technologies will be issued at regular intervals. Supervision over energy conservation will be strengthened. Stronger support will be provided for the development of renewable energy sources, and subsidies for all fossil fuels will be phased out. A system for controlling total national carbon emissions and a mechanism for breaking down the responsibility for implementation will be gradually established. A mechanism for effectively increasing forest, grassland, wetland, and ocean carbon sinks will be set up. China's involvement in international cooperation on responding to climate change will be strengthened. (more)

20. Establishing a system for protecting virgin forests

All virgin forests will be placed under protection. A national timber forest reserve system will be established. Government administration will be gradually separated from the management of state-owned forests, and the public benefit forest protection and management system will be improved for state-owned forestry farms drawing principally on service procurement. The collective forest tenure system will be improved. Tenure contracts for collective forests will be kept stable, the operations allowed under these contracts will be expanded, and the systems by which forest tenure rights are used as collateral for loans and tenure rights are transferred will be improved.

21. Establishing a system for protecting grassland

The system by which collective grassland is contracted out for operation to individual households will be kept stable and improved to ensure that the plot and area of every piece of grassland contracted out is measured accurately, contracts are signed, and contracting certificates are granted. Proper procedures will be introduced for the transfer of grassland under such contracts. A system for protecting basic grassland will be put into effect to ensure that the area of basic grassland does not diminish, its quality does not deteriorate, and it is not converted for any other use. The subsidy and award mechanisms for the ecological conservation of grassland will be improved. Grazing on certain areas of grassland will be banned or temporarily suspended, rotational paddock grazing will be introduced, and efforts will be made to strike a balance between grass and livestock. Oversight over there view and approval of grassland requisitions will be strengthened and the use of grassland for any purpose other than animal husbandry will be strictly controlled.

22. Establishing a system for protecting wetlands

All wetlands will be placed under protection, and the unauthorized requisition or occupancy of wetlands of international importance, and those of national importance,and wetland reserves will be banned. The services of wetlands will be determined, their protection and utilization will be standardized, and a mechanism for the ecological restoration of wetlands will be established.

23. Establishing a system for closing off desertified land for protection

Contiguous areas of desertified land for which conditions are not currently in place to carry out anti-desertification programs will be designated as closed-off protection zones. Systems for strict protection will be established, construction of infrastructure needed to close off and protect and manage such zones will be stepped up, desertified land governance will be strengthened, and vegetation will be increased. The appropriate development of the sand industry will be encouraged. The mechanisms for protection and management drawing principally on service procurement will be improved. New approaches that combine development with governance will be explored.

24. Improving the system for developing and protecting marine resources

Marine functional zones will be established, the major functions of offshore waters and islands will be determined, and efforts will be made to guide, control, and standardize behavior related to the use of oceans and islands. A system will be introduced to control total sea reclamation, imposing binding limits on the total area of ocean over which reclamation can take place. A system will be established for maintaining natural coastlines. The system for managing total marine fishery resources will be improved. The systems for instituting fishing off-seasons and bans on fishing will be strictly enforced. Limits on offshore fishing will be imposed. The scale of offshore and mudflat aquaculture will be controlled.

25. Improving the system for managing the development and utilization of mineral resources

A system for the investigation and evaluation of the development and utilization of mineral resources will be established. The ascertainment and registration of mineral resources and registration management of their pay-per-time occupation will be strengthened. A mechanism for the intensive development of mineral resources will be established, the concentration of enterprises in mining areas will be increased, and large-scale development is encouraged. National standards including those regarding the mining recovery rate of major mineral resources, ore dressing recovery rate, and the comprehensive utilization rate of mineral resources will be improved. The economic policies for encouraging better utilization of mineral resources will be refined. A system will be established to make available to the public information on whether mining enterprises are utilizing mineral resources efficiently and comprehensively, and a system will be set up for blacklisting those breaking mining operation rules. The mechanism for introducing industry-based approaches will be improved to support the recycling of major mineral resources. The systems for protecting the geological environment in mining areas and reclaiming deserted areas will also be improved.

26. Improving the system of resource recycling

An effective system will be established to record resource-output ratio statistics. The extended producer responsibility (EPR) system will be put into effect, pushing producers to perform their responsibilities for take-back and disposal of their end-of-life products. A system will be established to utilize farming, livestock, and aquaculture waste and achieve the organic integration and circular development of farming, husbandry, and aquaculture. The establishment of a system for making the separation of waste compulsory will be accelerated. A list of renewable resources to be recycled will be worked out and the mandatory recycling of composite packaging, batteries, agricultural plastic sheeting, and other low-value waste will be required. Efforts will be accelerated to develop standards for the recycling and reuse of resources by type. A system for promoting the use of products and raw materials made of recycled resources will be established to require enterprises consuming related raw materials to use a certain proportion of recycled products. The system for restricting the use of single-use disposable products will be improved. Taxation policies will be implemented and improved to promote the comprehensive utilization of resources and the development of the circular economy. A list of circular economy technologies will be formulated and policies such as priority government procurement and discounted interest on loans will be implemented.