With the promulgation of the Regulations on Ecological Protection and Compensation, how to explore a new pattern of river basin governance?
"The ecological environment is the foundation of our human survival and development, and it is also a major issue related to society and economy. The promulgation of the "Regulations on Ecological Protection and Compensation" and the establishment of a sound system of long-term investment in ecosystem protection are conducive to reassuring the main body of ecological protection and making every effort to protect the green mountains and clear waters, and is also conducive to improving the implementation of all aspectspracticeNear-flatThe consciousness of understanding and action of the idea of ecological civilization. Guo Lanfeng, a member of the party group of the National Development and Reform Commission, said.
Recently, the Regulations on Ecological Compensation (hereinafter referred to as the "Regulations") were promulgated, which is the first law in China specifically aimed at ecological protection compensation. On the afternoon of May 17, the State Council Information Office held a regular briefing on the policies of the State Council to introduce the relevant situation of the "Regulations".
The compensation mechanism for ecological protection has entered a new stage of rule of law
"The "Regulations" take compensation as a link and incentives as a means, adhere to the principle of ecological enrichment, ecological benefit, and ecology for the people, and build a benefit-sharing mechanism between ecological beneficiaries and protectors, so that local people can benefit from protecting the ecology, stimulate the endogenous power of the whole society to care for the ecological environment, and transform the protection of the ecological environment into the common action of all the people." Guo Lanfeng said.
The ecological environment is closely related to the people, and ecological products are the common wealth of all mankind. In the new era, the main contradiction in China's society has been transformed into a contradiction between the people's growing needs for a better life and unbalanced and inadequate development.
Hu Qingmei, head of the Second Legislative Bureau of the Ministry of Justice, said that before this, there are still some problems that need to be solved urgently in the work of ecological protection compensation, and it is urgent to formulate a basic and comprehensive administrative regulation to give play to the role of the rule of law in consolidating the foundation, stabilizing expectations and benefiting the long-term. It is against this background that the Regulations were promulgated.
China's ecological protection compensation mechanism started from the beginning of the 20th century, after years of exploration and practice, the promulgation of the "Regulations" is a breakthrough progress, marking the rise of some past work experience and good practices to the level of laws and regulations.
"The Regulations adhere to the problem-oriented, focus on the current outstanding problems, improve the system and measures, focus on establishing the basic system rules of ecological protection compensation, maintain the continuity and stability of the existing policies and systems, and at the same time leave the necessary institutional space for all regions and departments to continue to explore and innovate in the future in combination with the actual situation." Hu Qingmei said.
In recent years, the relevant departments have intensively introduced a series of ecological protection compensation policies and measures, and the formulation of the "Regulations" is to stabilize the good system and stabilize the expectations of the participating ecological protection subjects.
At the same time, it is conducive to promoting positive incentives for ecological protection subjects. The "Regulations" improve and improve the long-term compensation mechanism for key areas and protection entities, adhere to the principle of positive incentives, and support relevant entities to better fulfill their obligations to maintain ecological security and improve ecological quality. Guo Lanfeng said.
Promote inter-regional cooperation and mobilize the participation of social entities
In recent years, the Chinese government has increased its support for ecological protection subjects and key ecological protection areas through various means. The promulgation of the "Regulations" further clarifies the investment responsibilities of the central and local governments from the legislative level.
In particular, in terms of encouraging local governments to increase investment, some local governments have made active explorations in practice in combination with local conditions, forming an important supplement to ecological protection compensation. On the one hand, the "Regulations" make it clear that the relevant local people's governments can establish a categorical compensation mechanism based on the actual situation of the region, and increase investment in ecological protection. On the other hand, it also provides a legal basis for horizontal ecological protection compensation between different regions, which is conducive to the formation of a pattern of joint investment by governments at all levels and joint protection by the upstream and downstream of the river basin.
"Interregional cooperation is easier said than done. The "Regulations" explore and form a new pattern of river basin governance of 'cost sharing, benefit sharing, and cooperation and co-governance'. We also hope that the local governments involved in the river basin will move from 'administrative autonomy' to 'consultation, cooperation and co-governance'. The promulgation of the "Regulations" is conducive to improving the main functions of various regions, which is equivalent to making a start in regional cooperation. Guo Lanfeng said.
At the same time, the "Regulations" also emphasize the principle of combining government leadership, social participation and market regulation, in addition to the usual financial compensation, but also give a variety of ecological protection compensation methods such as counterpart cooperation, industrial transfer, talent training, joint construction of parks, and purchase of ecological products and services. In terms of mobilizing the enthusiasm of social entities to participate, the "Regulations" put forward a variety of ways for social entities to participate in ecological protection compensation, including the establishment and improvement of carbon emission rights, pollutant discharge rights, water rights, carbon sink rights and other trading mechanisms, to promote the construction of trading markets, as well as the development of ecological industries, the establishment of sustainable development benefit-sharing mechanisms, as well as the establishment of ecological protection compensation funds, the implementation of market-oriented operations, etc.
This fully reflects that the "Regulations" are a guarantee for the interests of ecological protectors, can better motivate people to perform ecological protection duties, so that social entities can benefit from the protection of lucid waters and lush mountains, and promote the construction of ecological civilization to a new and higher level. That is to say, effectively mobilize all sectors of society to participate in ecological protection. Wang Xintong, head of the Regional Revitalization Department of the National Development and Reform Commission, said.
Gradually expand the scope of compensation implementation and stabilize the basic structure of the ecological protection policy system
The implementation of classified compensation by the central government is the most important source of funds for ecological protection compensation at this stage. In order to consolidate and expand the existing achievements, the "Regulations" on the basis of the existing classification of compensation methods, the "Regulations" clarify that the state will increase the investment of compensation funds, gradually expand the scope of compensation implementation, reasonably improve the compensation standards, effectively guarantee the continuous investment of ecological protection compensation funds, and stabilize the basic plate of the ecological protection policy system.
"The central government plays an important role in ecological protection compensation, especially through transfer payments to carry out vertical compensation. Chapter II of the Regulations has clear provisions on vertical compensation. The Ministry of Finance has simultaneously promoted comprehensive compensation and categorical compensation, and continuously improved the compensation policy. Di Donghui, head of the Department of Natural Resources and Ecology and Environment of the Ministry of Finance, said at the press conference.
Di Donghui said that the comprehensive compensation is mainly through the establishment of transfer payments in key ecological function areas, to guide local governments to strengthen ecological environmental protection, and to support important areas of the ecological environment to improve the overall ability to provide basic public services. In terms of categorical compensation, it is mainly through a series of transfer payment funds from the central government, including forestry and grassland transfer payment funds, marine ecological restoration funds, water pollution prevention and control funds, key ecological protection and restoration funds, and related transfer payment funds in the agricultural field, to compensate units and individuals who protect ecological elements such as forests, grasslands, wetlands, deserts, oceans, water flows, and cultivated land.
According to the data, from 2013 to 2023, the transfer payment funds for key ecological function areas increased from 42.3 billion yuan to 109.1 billion yuan, with a cumulative investment of 790 billion yuan. There is also funding for water pollution prevention and control, which will increase from 13 billion yuan in 2015 to 25.7 billion yuan in 2023. In addition, the central government has also actively supported the compensation of forest ecological benefits and the management and protection of natural forest resources, gradually raising the compensation standard for state-owned state-level public welfare forests to the current 10 yuan per mu per year, and gradually raising the compensation standard for collective and individual national public welfare forests to 16 yuan per mu per year at present.
At the same time, according to the actual situation, the central government will improve the transfer payment method for key ecological function areas, strengthen support for key ecological counties and areas with important ecological functions, and give preference to areas including the water source of the middle route of the South-to-North Water Diversion Project, and include provinces along the Yangtze River Economic Belt and the eastern route of the South-to-North Water Diversion Project.
Di Donghui also said that the central government implements rewards and punishments according to the monitoring of ecological and environmental quality, and we will give incentives in transfer payments to areas where the evaluation results have improved, and we will appropriately deduct transfer payment funds for areas where the ecological environment has deteriorated, so as to guide local governments to abandon the development model that destroys the environment and mobilize local enthusiasm for protecting the ecological environment.
"In the next step, the central government will continue to improve the financial vertical compensation policy for ecological protection, promote the construction of a stable investment mechanism for ecological protection compensation funds, improve the level of basic public services in key areas of ecological protection, and continuously improve the overall benefits of ecological protection." Di Donghui said.
It is clearly proposed to establish a statistical system for ecological protection compensation
It is clearly proposed to establish a statistical system for ecological protection compensation, improve the standard system of ecological protection compensation, and provide technical support for ecological protection compensation. In this regard, Hu Hanzhou, director of the Department of Energy Statistics of the National Bureau of Statistics, said that the promulgation of the "Regulations" further clarifies the concept and definition of ecological protection compensation, compensation objects, compensation methods and the responsibilities of local governments and functional departments, and provides an important compliance and basis for establishing and improving the statistical system of ecological protection compensation.
"We have established a statistical indicator system, and the establishment of the statistical indicator system should not only consider scientificity and rationality, but also consider comparability and the availability of statistical data. To this end, we have gone deep into the grassroots to carry out special research on the construction of ecological protection compensation mechanism, and also organized research on some related topics, giving full play to the strength of universities and scientific research institutions. Hu Hanzhou said.
On the basis of the statistical indicator system, the National Bureau of Statistics has established a monitoring report system for ecological protection compensation statistics in the national statistical system, and through the issuance of the report system, the ecological protection compensation funds scattered in departments and regions have been included in the monitoring and statistical system, and a unified and standardized ecological protection compensation statistical system has been initially established.
According to the current indicator system, the National Bureau of Statistics has set up a total of 32 monitoring indicators in three aspects, focusing on the overall level of ecological protection compensation, as well as the scale and comprehensive effectiveness of various types of compensation. The first is the financial compensation investment for ecological protection, which focuses on the government-led financial vertical compensation and inter-regional horizontal compensation. The second is market-oriented and diversified ecological protection compensation, which mainly reflects the progress of market trading mechanisms and green financial support for social participation. The third is the ecological and environmental benefits, which mainly reflect the comprehensive effect of ecological protection compensation. At present, it includes five environmental indicators: forest, grassland, atmospheric environment, water environment, and soil and water conservation.
"In the next step, the National Bureau of Statistics will conscientiously implement the regulations on ecological protection compensation, actively carry out statistical monitoring of ecological protection compensation, timely reflect the progress and effectiveness of ecological protection compensation, and provide statistical support for promoting ecological protection compensation." Hu Hanzhou said.
