China has made remarkable progress in safeguarding the water ecology of its key river basins, showcasing significant improvements in national water quality during the first half of 2023. According to the Ministry of Ecology and Environment (MEE), the proportion of surface water bodies nationwide classified as having excellent water quality reached an impressive 89.4 percent this year, marking a 1.5 percentage point increase from the previous year.
MEE official Huang Xiaozeng highlighted that this achievement surpasses the target set in the 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-2025) by 4.4 percentage points, demonstrating China's unwavering commitment to environmental sustainability.
Focusing on the Yangtze River Basin, Huang reported that 98.5 percent of monitoring sites achieved excellent water quality in 2023, a 0.4 percentage point rise from the previous year. This exceptional performance is complemented by a notable increase in biodiversity, with the number of indigenous fish species in the basin rising to 227, up by 34 species compared to 2022. Additionally, the count of nationally protected aquatic wildlife species grew to 14 in 2023, an increase of three species from the previous year.
In June last year, the MEE, in collaboration with relevant departments, introduced detailed assessment criteria for water ecology in the Yangtze River Basin. The first assessment under these new criteria is slated for 2025, paving the way for more comprehensive evaluation and monitoring.
Building on the pilot efforts in the Yangtze, China plans to refine its water ecology monitoring and evaluation methods on a nationwide scale. This includes establishing and enhancing water ecology standards and supporting the evaluation system aimed at constructing a beautiful China, Huang emphasized.
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China reports significant progress on water ecology protection
cgtn.com
