People’s Republic of China: Songhua River Basin Water Quality and Pollution Control Management
Technical Assistance Consultants Reports
Water pollution has been identified as a major constraint to the sustainable development of the People's Republic of China (PRC's) economy. The Songhua River Basin (SRB) is one of the most polluted of the 47 major rivers in the PRC. While several ongoing initiatives to control pollution emissions and improve SRB water quality have had some success in recent years, it is uncertain how long it will remain excessively polluted. The goal of the technical assistance TA 4061 - PRC: Songhua River Water Quality and Pollution Control Management (TA) was to improve water quality in the SRB.
The technical assistance (TA) objectives were to develop synergies of SRB clean-up initiatives and to promote local action through assisting and facilitating the Government in
- addressing technical knowledge gaps
- strengthening Songliao River Basin Water Resources Protection Bureau's (WRPB), the TA's Executing Agency (EA), and other TA stakeholders capacity for policy analysis and pollution control management in the SRB
- assisting the WRPB and other TA stakeholders to develop a long-term vision for pollution control in SRB.
The TA was well designed through extensive consultation with PRC stakeholders to meet the Government's river basin pollution control objectives. The executing arrangements were carefully chosen, providing opportunity and synergies for their voices and inputs.
The quality of inputs was very high and they were productively and efficiently converted into outputs. The consultant exhibited a high level of commitment and initiative, and exercised professional integrity, expertise and experience. The EA exhibited highly satisfactory performance, displaying full commitment and responsibility, working in tandem with ADB and advising and guiding the consultant. The three provincial project implementation units and three provincial liaison groups, the latter created to fully tap the inputs from all provincial stakeholders; the central level Project Leading Group; academia, NGOs and external TA experts, all gainfully contributed. ADB efforts, guidance and performance were highly appreciated.
The work on the TA included intense data collection and analysis, rounds of surveys and discussions, focus group meetings, including consultant visits to 20 of the SRB cities in all three provinces allowing for the broadest possible consultation. Innovative methods such as the usage of the project web-site were initiated to sensitize stakeholders. As the TA was very challenging, work plans were jointly updated as needed by ADB and the EA. Each of the three ADB review missions discussed the TA findings through formal workshops both at central and interprovincial levels, as well as through informal working meetings with all stakeholders.
The TA was very efficient in studying the complex issues of SRB water quality and pollution control management in depth, and efficiently contributed to the Government goal to develop a suitable river basin approach for managing water quality. The TA developed the groundbreaking strategy that intertwined institutional, technical and investment planning issues, mapping short, mid and long term responses. The TA proposed an innovative approach to support sustainability by linking infrastructure investments to river basin management sector development, capacity building and improved governance. The SRB river basin institutional and regulatory mechanisms developed by the TA and accepted by the stakeholders provide the blueprint for rolling them over PRC-wide. The integrated water quality and pollution control plan developed by the TA is well developed and well targeted, with the horizon for the analysis extended from 2015 to 2020 in line with Government requests. The TA defined a strategic SRB investment plan with a total cost of about $3.5 billion. The follow-up investments from the TA are estimated to significantly and quickly clean up the river, providing a basis for further, faster and sustainable growth of the NE economy while providing safe water supplies to the basin's 62 million residents. The immediate action plan (2006-2010) is $2.0 billion including proposed ADB lending support of about $1 billion, divided into two phases. Phase 1 is assigned highest priority with implementation as soon as possible. ADB expressed its readiness to support the SRB investment plan through its complimentary project loans and catalyzing private sector involvement.
The TA reports were produced in an efficient manner and allowing for broadest possible consultation. The Final Report fully responded to the TA's terms of reference, all comments, additional outputs requested by the Government during the Inception Mission, and ongoing water sector PRC developments. The TA results have been widely disseminated and information campaigns initiated, such as at the international workshop on Revitalization of Northeast (NE) PRC in Harbin in January 2006, further dissemination is planned. The Jilin Water Supply and Sewerage Development Project that ADB processed in 2005, and the proposed Jilin Urban Infrastructure Project are the first outcomes of the TA, being part of the immediate action plan.
The TA is being hailed by PRC and the international community as a model TA. It is recognized as highly relevant to the Government needs and priorities, producing highly satisfactory results and practical and sustainable outputs, assisting in the development of the 11th five-year plan for 2006-2010. The participatory approach adopted, building on team efforts from all TA stakeholders, is proven to be highly successful. Appreciation is expressed to ADB for its concern for the SRB and for the immense efforts in TA guidance and supervision. By putting in a solid framework for further investment, policy and governance reforms, and capacity building, the TA developed a strategic portfolio management underpinning future potential ADB urban and rural work in NE PRC, as well as private sector investment, and becoming a practical reference for future ADB water sector operations. The SRB strategy developed by the TA will help to stimulate and sustain the economies of the important industrial belt of the NE PRC, and is replicable in river basins across the PRC and Asia-wide. The potential impact of this ADB technical assistance is beginning to register as a model multi-level framework among other international development agencies and governments.
- Volume 1 Summary Report
- Volume 2 Situational Analysis
- Volume 3 Institutional and Regulatory Mechanism
- Volume 4 Strategic Planning Report
- Maps and Plans 1 - 5
- Maps and Plans 6 - 10
- Maps and Plans 11 - 15
- Maps and Plans 16 - 19
- Maps and Plans 20.1 - 3
See also: Project Summary for Harbin Water Supply
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