8.2 Groundwater Management System in China
183
8.2 Groundwater Management System in China
8.2.1 Legislation
There is no specific groundwater management legislation at the national level. The
draft Groundwater Management Regulation is under public consultation in 2017 and
has not yet been issued. At present, legislation concerning groundwater management
is scattered across various natural resources and environmental laws and regulations,
mostly in the 2002 Water Law and its subordinate legislation.
The 2002 Water Law defines water resources management systems, which
are mostly designed for surface water resources but also applied to groundwater
resources. Article 36 of the law, the only article specific to groundwater, provides
that “the governments shall take measures to strictly control groundwater development in the overdraft region. In the groundwater heavily overdraft regions, the
forbidden development zone (FDZ) or restricted development zone (RDZ) could be
formulated and approved by the provincial government. In the coastal regions, the
development of groundwater resources shall be scientifically assessed and proper
measures shall be taken to avoid land subsidence and seawater intrusion.”
In addition to the 2002 Water Law, Articles 41, 42, and 43 of the 2017 Water
Pollution Control Law stipulate the restrictions to develop aquifers with significant
water quality difference, along with pollution control regulations for underground
construction and groundwater recharge.
At local administrative levels, at the end of 2017, 16 provinces had issued legislation and/or policies related to groundwater management, as well as 14 prefectures, including the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region and some of its prefectures, Yunnan Province and its Lijiang and Kunming Cities, the Inner Mongolia
Autonomous Region, Liaoning Province, Wuhan in Hubei Province, and Nantong in
Jiangsu Province (Water Resources Management Center, MWR 2018).
The 2009 Yunnan Province Groundwater Management Methods defines the
groundwater management systems for the province, including development and use
planning, function zoning, FDZs and RDZs, monitoring and metering, and restrictions on groundwater development in areas covered by public water supply systems.
Besides these general systems, the 2006 Wuhan Groundwater Management Methods
defines the annual exploitable volumes. In northwest China, where there is serious
groundwater overdraft, permits for well drilling and regional annual development cap
systems are implemented (e.g., those under the 2008 Jiuquan Groundwater Resources
Management Methods in Gansu Province).
The 2002 Liaoning Province Groundwater Protection Regulation is the only
legislation designated as “protection,” but most of its contents are about groundwater development management. Article 8 of the Regulation defines a groundwater
resources protection zone, including a groundwater overdraft zone and areas with
seawater intrusion, land subsidence, water body pollution, and water source drying
caused by groundwater development.
183
8.2 Groundwater Management System in China
8.2.1 Legislation
There is no specific groundwater management legislation at the national level. The
draft Groundwater Management Regulation is under public consultation in 2017 and
has not yet been issued. At present, legislation concerning groundwater management
is scattered across various natural resources and environmental laws and regulations,
mostly in the 2002 Water Law and its subordinate legislation.
The 2002 Water Law defines water resources management systems, which
are mostly designed for surface water resources but also applied to groundwater
resources. Article 36 of the law, the only article specific to groundwater, provides
that “the governments shall take measures to strictly control groundwater development in the overdraft region. In the groundwater heavily overdraft regions, the
forbidden development zone (FDZ) or restricted development zone (RDZ) could be
formulated and approved by the provincial government. In the coastal regions, the
development of groundwater resources shall be scientifically assessed and proper
measures shall be taken to avoid land subsidence and seawater intrusion.”
In addition to the 2002 Water Law, Articles 41, 42, and 43 of the 2017 Water
Pollution Control Law stipulate the restrictions to develop aquifers with significant
water quality difference, along with pollution control regulations for underground
construction and groundwater recharge.
At local administrative levels, at the end of 2017, 16 provinces had issued legislation and/or policies related to groundwater management, as well as 14 prefectures, including the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region and some of its prefectures, Yunnan Province and its Lijiang and Kunming Cities, the Inner Mongolia
Autonomous Region, Liaoning Province, Wuhan in Hubei Province, and Nantong in
Jiangsu Province (Water Resources Management Center, MWR 2018).
The 2009 Yunnan Province Groundwater Management Methods defines the
groundwater management systems for the province, including development and use
planning, function zoning, FDZs and RDZs, monitoring and metering, and restrictions on groundwater development in areas covered by public water supply systems.
Besides these general systems, the 2006 Wuhan Groundwater Management Methods
defines the annual exploitable volumes. In northwest China, where there is serious
groundwater overdraft, permits for well drilling and regional annual development cap
systems are implemented (e.g., those under the 2008 Jiuquan Groundwater Resources
Management Methods in Gansu Province).
The 2002 Liaoning Province Groundwater Protection Regulation is the only
legislation designated as “protection,” but most of its contents are about groundwater development management. Article 8 of the Regulation defines a groundwater
resources protection zone, including a groundwater overdraft zone and areas with
seawater intrusion, land subsidence, water body pollution, and water source drying
caused by groundwater development.