5.1 Water Resource Allocation in China
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5.1 Water Resource Allocation in China
5.1.1 River Basin and Regional Water Resources Allocation
The 2002 Water Law provides the overall framework for water resource allocation. The macro-allocation of long-term access to water resources in China is
through “long- and medium-term water supply and demand planning,” as discussed
in Sect. 2.2.1. As their names suggest, these plans broadly identify demand for water
over the longer term, such as 20 years in the future, as well as sources to meet those
requirements.
Water resources are allocated in the shorter term via water resource allocation
plans. These plans are prepared at the river basin level for the purpose of regulating
the runoff and storage of water, and they are based on the relevant river basin plans
and the long- and medium-term water supply and demand plans (Article 45, 2002
and 2016 Water Law).
For trans-provincial river basins, the water resource allocation plans, as well as
drought contingency plans, are formulated by the applicable river basin management
commission together with relevant local (i.e., provincial) governments. The plans are
then submitted to the State Council or its authorized department (normally MWR)
for approval (Article 45, 2002 and 2016 Water Law).
Other trans-regional water resource allocation plans and drought contingency
plans are formulated by the WADs of the governments at the highest level necessary
to have jurisdiction across the whole basin (e.g., for trans-prefecture basins, they are
prepared by the provincial department), together with relevant local governments.
Water resource allocation plans are the mechanism for sharing water resources
between different administrative regions within a river basin, thus identifying the
share allotted to each region of the common resource available to them; this is the
river basin and regional water resources allocation framework defined in China’s
legislation.
Drought contingency plans typically operate in place of the water resource allocation plan during dry periods, with the trigger for their operation linked to a threshold
defined in the plan (Article 45, 2002 and 2016 Water Law). As such, the drought
contingency plan is, in effect, a type of water resource allocation plan.
Based on the water resources allocation framework in the Water Law, the 2007
Interim Measures for Water Resources Allocation details the implementation of water
resources allocation at the river basin and regional levels:
• Water resources allocation is to allocate the total amount of water resource availability or the amount of water that can be allocated to the administrative regions
level by level, and it determines the share of water consumption or abstraction for
domestic and productive uses of the administrative regions (Article 2).
– The total amount of water resource availability includes the amount of surface
water resource availability and the amount of groundwater resources that can
be exploited, minus the amount of duplication. The availability of surface water
115
5.1 Water Resource Allocation in China
5.1.1 River Basin and Regional Water Resources Allocation
The 2002 Water Law provides the overall framework for water resource allocation. The macro-allocation of long-term access to water resources in China is
through “long- and medium-term water supply and demand planning,” as discussed
in Sect. 2.2.1. As their names suggest, these plans broadly identify demand for water
over the longer term, such as 20 years in the future, as well as sources to meet those
requirements.
Water resources are allocated in the shorter term via water resource allocation
plans. These plans are prepared at the river basin level for the purpose of regulating
the runoff and storage of water, and they are based on the relevant river basin plans
and the long- and medium-term water supply and demand plans (Article 45, 2002
and 2016 Water Law).
For trans-provincial river basins, the water resource allocation plans, as well as
drought contingency plans, are formulated by the applicable river basin management
commission together with relevant local (i.e., provincial) governments. The plans are
then submitted to the State Council or its authorized department (normally MWR)
for approval (Article 45, 2002 and 2016 Water Law).
Other trans-regional water resource allocation plans and drought contingency
plans are formulated by the WADs of the governments at the highest level necessary
to have jurisdiction across the whole basin (e.g., for trans-prefecture basins, they are
prepared by the provincial department), together with relevant local governments.
Water resource allocation plans are the mechanism for sharing water resources
between different administrative regions within a river basin, thus identifying the
share allotted to each region of the common resource available to them; this is the
river basin and regional water resources allocation framework defined in China’s
legislation.
Drought contingency plans typically operate in place of the water resource allocation plan during dry periods, with the trigger for their operation linked to a threshold
defined in the plan (Article 45, 2002 and 2016 Water Law). As such, the drought
contingency plan is, in effect, a type of water resource allocation plan.
Based on the water resources allocation framework in the Water Law, the 2007
Interim Measures for Water Resources Allocation details the implementation of water
resources allocation at the river basin and regional levels:
• Water resources allocation is to allocate the total amount of water resource availability or the amount of water that can be allocated to the administrative regions
level by level, and it determines the share of water consumption or abstraction for
domestic and productive uses of the administrative regions (Article 2).
– The total amount of water resource availability includes the amount of surface
water resource availability and the amount of groundwater resources that can
be exploited, minus the amount of duplication. The availability of surface water