70
3 Water Resources Management Institutions
planning, urban planning and key construction projects; issuing national water
resources bulletins; organizing the implementation of the water abstraction permit
system and water resources fee system; guiding national hydrological works.
• Drafting water-saving policy, water-saving plans, and water use standards;
organizing the guidance and supervision of water-saving works.
• Formulating water resource protection plans according to national resources and
environmental protection legislation and standards; organizing water function
zoning and controlling wastewater discharge to drinking waters; monitoring water
quantity and quality in rivers, lakes, and reservoirs; and reviewing pollutionloading capacities of water bodies and providing total pollutant discharge
opinions.
• Organizing the guidance of water law enforcement; coordinating and arbitrating
water conflicts between sectors and provinces.
• Formulating economic regulatory measures for the water sector; macro-regulating
the use of water resources capital; guiding water supply, hydropower, and multioperation for the water sector; researching and providing economic regulationrelated opinions concerning the water sector, including pricing, loan, and financial
policies.
• Drafting and reviewing infrastructure construction proposals and feasibility
reports for large- and medium-scale projects; organizing key water-related scientific research and technological promotion; drafting and supervising the implementation of technical standards for the water sector and specifications and codes
for water works.
• Providing guidance on the management and protection of water infrastructure and
of water bodies and their bank lines; organizing and guiding the development and
harnessing of major rivers, lakes, river estuaries, and coastal beaches; organizing
the construction and management of key or inter-province water infrastructures;
organizing safety supervision for reservoir and hydropower dams.
• Guiding rural water resources development; organizing the coordination of
agricultural irrigation development, rural power supply, and township water
supply.
• Organizing water and soil conservation activities.
• Being responsible for the routine work of the national flood-control and droughtresistance headquarter.
The main characteristic of the 1998 governmental restructuring in China was to
clarify the departmental functions to overcome the problems of multi-department
management and policy. Therefore, similar and closely related functions were
designed to be administered by one department, such as water affairs by the MWR.
Almost all water resources management functions that were previously scattered
across other departments, such as groundwater management, urban water management, and water saving, among others, were handed over to the MWR. Following
these reforms, all resources management functions were incorporated into the MWR.
It was specified that water abstraction permits would be unified under the management of the MWR and not assigned to other departments. Therefore, the MWR was
3 Water Resources Management Institutions
planning, urban planning and key construction projects; issuing national water
resources bulletins; organizing the implementation of the water abstraction permit
system and water resources fee system; guiding national hydrological works.
• Drafting water-saving policy, water-saving plans, and water use standards;
organizing the guidance and supervision of water-saving works.
• Formulating water resource protection plans according to national resources and
environmental protection legislation and standards; organizing water function
zoning and controlling wastewater discharge to drinking waters; monitoring water
quantity and quality in rivers, lakes, and reservoirs; and reviewing pollutionloading capacities of water bodies and providing total pollutant discharge
opinions.
• Organizing the guidance of water law enforcement; coordinating and arbitrating
water conflicts between sectors and provinces.
• Formulating economic regulatory measures for the water sector; macro-regulating
the use of water resources capital; guiding water supply, hydropower, and multioperation for the water sector; researching and providing economic regulationrelated opinions concerning the water sector, including pricing, loan, and financial
policies.
• Drafting and reviewing infrastructure construction proposals and feasibility
reports for large- and medium-scale projects; organizing key water-related scientific research and technological promotion; drafting and supervising the implementation of technical standards for the water sector and specifications and codes
for water works.
• Providing guidance on the management and protection of water infrastructure and
of water bodies and their bank lines; organizing and guiding the development and
harnessing of major rivers, lakes, river estuaries, and coastal beaches; organizing
the construction and management of key or inter-province water infrastructures;
organizing safety supervision for reservoir and hydropower dams.
• Guiding rural water resources development; organizing the coordination of
agricultural irrigation development, rural power supply, and township water
supply.
• Organizing water and soil conservation activities.
• Being responsible for the routine work of the national flood-control and droughtresistance headquarter.
The main characteristic of the 1998 governmental restructuring in China was to
clarify the departmental functions to overcome the problems of multi-department
management and policy. Therefore, similar and closely related functions were
designed to be administered by one department, such as water affairs by the MWR.
Almost all water resources management functions that were previously scattered
across other departments, such as groundwater management, urban water management, and water saving, among others, were handed over to the MWR. Following
these reforms, all resources management functions were incorporated into the MWR.
It was specified that water abstraction permits would be unified under the management of the MWR and not assigned to other departments. Therefore, the MWR was