Focus interview： guarding the mother river according to law

　　Cctv news(Focus Interview): The Yellow River is the mother river of the Chinese nation. Protecting this mother river is a Millennium plan related to the great rejuvenation and sustainable development of the Chinese nation. In order to promote the ecological protection and high-quality development of the Yellow River basin under the rule of law, on April 1, 2023, following the Yangtze River Protection Law, the second river basin law in China was officially implemented. Now, the Yellow River Protection Law has been implemented for more than a year, and the ancient Yellow River has quietly changed.

　　From the source of the Three Rivers to the estuary, in the past year, the ancient Yellow River is full of new vitality.

　　Li Xiaojing, first-class inspector of the Policy and Regulation Department of the Ministry of Water Resources, said: "Since the implementation of the Yellow River Protection Law one year ago, the ecological flow of the main stream and tributaries of the Yellow River has all reached the standard, and the ecological flow and ecological water level of key rivers and lakes have reached the standard rate of over 90%. Ecological flow and ecological water level are a minimum set to maintain the basic ecological safety of healthy aquatic organisms in rivers and lakes. In order to strengthen the ecological protection and restoration of the Yellow River Basin, the Yellow River Protection Law also specifically stipulates the ecological flow and ecological water level of important river sections and lakes. Guarantee system. "

　　On April 1st last year, following the Yangtze River Protection Law, the second law on the protection of the Yellow River basin in China was officially implemented, which provided a strong guarantee for promoting the ecological protection and high-quality development of the Yellow River basin, and also provided a legal weapon for punishing the crime of destroying the mineral resources of the Yellow River.

　　During his detention, the defendant Yang learned the Yellow River Protection Law of People’s Republic of China (PRC) and realized the importance of ecological protection of the Yellow River. This is the first case in China that the Yellow River Protection Law was applied to punish the crime of destroying the mineral resources of the Yellow River after its implementation.

　　Xin Li, President of Criminal Trial Chamber of Zhengzhou Railway Transport Court, said: "River sand is a valuable nonmetallic mineral resource in our country. Illegal sand mining has disturbed the dynamics of the Yellow River water flow, aggravated the siltation of the river, changed the riverbed shape, increased the hidden danger of flood control, and also had an irreversible impact on the living environment of aquatic organisms in the Yellow River."

　　In 2023, as a court with centralized jurisdiction over environmental resources cases in the Yellow River Basin in Henan Province, Zhengzhou Railway Court concluded 784 cases, involving soil and air pollution, compensation for ecological environment damage, restoration of damaged ecology, and cracking down on illegal fishing, endangering wildlife, deforestation and other illegal crimes. The Yellow River Protection Law is a basic, comprehensive and commanding special law for the Yellow River Basin. In 2021, the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China and the State Council issued the Outline of the Yellow River Basin Ecological Protection and High-quality Development Plan, which clearly pointed out the shortcomings and weaknesses of the Yellow River Basin development: the biggest contradiction in the Yellow River Basin is the shortage of water resources, the biggest problem is the ecological fragility, the biggest threat is the flood, the biggest shortcoming is the insufficient development of high quality, and the biggest weakness is the insufficient development of people’s livelihood.

　　Li Xiaojing: "The Yellow River is one of the most difficult rivers to harness in the world. Historically, it once burst twice every three years and changed its course once every hundred years. The flood disaster affected Tianjin in the north and Jianghuai in the south. The Yellow River has less water and more sediment, and the relationship between water and sediment is not harmonious. The average water resources of the Yellow River for many years is less than one seventh of that of the Yangtze River, accounting for only 2% of the whole country. There is a shortage of water resources, but the Yellow River basin has raised 15% of cultivated land and 12% of the population. In view of these special problems of the Yellow River, with the river as the link, water as the core and the basin as the foundation, a set of legal systems in line with the water conditions and river conditions of the Yellow River Basin will be established to promote the ecological protection and high-quality development of the Yellow River Basin on the track of the rule of law. "

　　Problem-oriented, aiming at various outstanding problems in the Yellow River basin, special institutional measures are stipulated, which is the characteristic of the Yellow River Protection Law. For example, water shortage in the Yellow River basin is inevitable, so water conservation is imperative. Saving water is also an inevitable choice for the future high-quality development of the Yellow River Basin.

　　Binzhou is a serious water shortage area, and the Yellow River water is the main source of irrigation in Binzhou. How to maximize the benefits of the limited Yellow River water is the top priority of the Yellow River diversion work now. Farmland irrigation technology has been improved in the fields of several major irrigation areas in Binzhou. The water supply department should grasp the water demand in real time, monitor the water supply progress and implement accurate water distribution.

　　In September 2019, the General Secretary of the Supreme Leader pointed out at the symposium on ecological protection and high-quality development in the Yellow River Basin that it is necessary to adhere to the principle of water-based cities, land, people and production, and regard water resources as the greatest rigid constraint. Aiming at the biggest contradiction of water shortage, the Yellow River Protection Law makes comprehensive provisions on total water consumption control, compulsory water consumption quota and water resources allocation project construction.

　　Lin Zhao, Director of Rural Water Resources Department of Shandong Provincial Water Resources Department: "Do a good job ‘ Four waters and four determinations ’ We strictly supervise canal water and actively carry out water-saving renovation of the project. According to the development and utilization of water and soil resources and the matching of water and soil resources in the province, we set the goal of the development of irrigation area in the province by 2035. "

　　"Four waters and four settings" is a rigid constraint on the intensive use of water resources. The whole Yellow River basin should strengthen measures such as agricultural water saving and efficiency improvement, industrial water saving and emission reduction, and urban water saving and loss reduction. In the Yellow River Protection Law, there are 17 clauses of "explicit prohibition", 10 clauses of "forbidden behavior" and 16 clauses of "strict control and restriction", which are insurmountable red lines.

　　Li Xiaojing: "The Yellow River is short of water resources. The utilization rate of water resources in the Yellow River has reached 80%, and there are still extensive problems in water use. To this end, the General Secretary proposed to implement the maximum rigid constraint of water resources in the Yellow River Basin, and how many soups there are, which means that the water resources in a region are overloaded, which means that the water intake has exceeded the carrying capacity of this region, which is what we often say. The water resources are overdrawn, so in addition to the protection of domestic water, the new water intake permit may not be approved. "

　　The scope of application of the Yellow River Protection Law is not 795,000 square kilometers of the traditional natural basin, but according to the needs of ecological protection and high-quality development of the Yellow River basin, it covers 439 county-level administrative regions in 9 provinces, 72 cities and lakes, totaling 1.32 million square kilometers. The Yellow River Protection Law stipulates 82 responsibilities of local people’s governments at or above the county level, which is one of the laws that stipulate the responsibilities of all parties.

　　The Yellow River water flowing from Qinghai meanders in Linxia, Gansu, and then enters Lanzhou. In the past two years, after comprehensive and detailed investigation, there are 874 outlets on the main stream and tributaries of the Yellow River in Linxia, most of which are rainwater outlets or abandoned outlets, but 30 outlets are mixed with domestic sewage. All the sewage outlets have been traced by the environmental protection department, and they have been rectified one by one according to the source of sewage.

　　Sewage collected through the pipe network enters the sewage treatment plant for treatment. In order to improve the sewage treatment effect, sewage treatment plants in 8 counties and districts of Linxia Prefecture have been upgraded.

　　Han Zhenze, head of the Yanguoxia Sewage Treatment Plant in Linxia Prefecture, Gansu Province, said: "Our imported COD (chemical oxygen demand) is 95.28 mg per liter, ammonia nitrogen is 28.53 mg per liter, the effluent ammonia nitrogen can reach 0.14 mg per liter, and COD (chemical oxygen demand) can reach 13.31 mg per liter, which is the national first-class A treatment standard."

　　At the place where the Yellow River flows out of Linxia, there is also a water quality monitoring station, where the monitoring is automatic and manual intervention is not allowed.

　　In terms of sewage treatment, it is stipulated that the local people’s governments at or above the county level in the Yellow River Basin should organize the investigation and rectification of the sewage outlets of rivers and lakes in their administrative areas, clarify the responsible subjects, and implement classified management. This clarifies the boundaries of powers and responsibilities in legal form and strengthens the government’s supervisory responsibilities.

　　Li Shenggang, deputy director of the Bureau of Ecological Environment of Linxia Prefecture, Gansu Province: "Territorial management is to implement the responsibility and responsibility of defending the soil. The foothold is to ensure the environmental quality to give the people a better and more beautiful production and living environment, and we ensure to hand over better water quality to the downstream."

　　The Yellow River Basin is a unique, complete, complex and huge social ecosystem. A law on the river basin must strengthen the overall concept to ensure that "a blueprint is drawn to the end". Cross-regional and inter-provincial cooperation, ecological water replenishment, ecological protection compensation, etc., have become legal and inevitable actions.

　　Peng Cheng, deputy director of the Water Mediation Department of Shandong Yellow River Affairs Bureau, said: "The ecology of the Yellow River Delta has suffered serious damage, with shrinking rivers, degraded wetlands and seawater intrusion. Water is an important factor in ecological factors, and the improvement of the ecological environment is inseparable from the protection of boiled water resources. The Yellow River Water Conservancy Commission Shandong Yellow River Affairs Bureau will carry out ecological water replenishment for the Yellow River Delta every year. "

　　In the past, ecological water replenishment was relatively passive, mainly before the flood season. The Yellow River Protection Law clearly puts forward the overall requirements of ecological water replenishment and maintaining the ecological function of the estuary. Not long ago, according to the Yellow River Protection Law, Shandong Province formulated the local regulations "Regulations on Yellow River Protection in Shandong Province", which further refined and clarified the orientation, path and measures of ecological protection in the delta. The delta wetland is not only well restored, but also enlarged and widened by replenishing water as needed and scientifically dispatching.

　　The Yellow River is the birthplace of the Chinese nation and gave birth to Chinese civilization. The Law on the Protection of the Yellow River stipulates specific measures to protect, inherit and carry forward the Yellow River culture in the form of legal system. After the implementation of the Yellow River Protection Law, many areas along the Yellow River are taking actions according to law to protect and inherit the Yellow River culture.

　　There is a manor in Jiyang District, Jinan, Shandong Province, which was built in the Ming Dynasty, showing the ancient architecture culture and historical features of the Yellow River Basin. However, due to wind and rain erosion and inadequate management and protection, there are hidden dangers such as house damage and wall collapse in the manor. After receiving the clues, the Jiyang District Procuratorate filed a case for review according to law and issued pre-litigation procuratorial suggestions to relevant administrative organs.

　　The Yellow River Protection Law has been implemented for one year, and the results have already appeared. It is becoming the practice of hundreds of millions of people to rule by law and protect the mother river with the power of the rule of law. However, we must also see that problems such as water shortage, ecological fragility, flood threat and insufficient high-quality development still exist, and some places are still outstanding. Under the escort of the Yellow River Protection Law, the Yellow River will surely become a river of happiness for the benefit of the people.