On October 9, the Hunan Institute of Water Resources and Hydropower Science announced a major milestone in environmental management with the completion of the “Mawang County Water Ecological Product Value Assessment Report.” This comprehensive report identified 18 distinct water ecological products, estimating their total value at an impressive 19.82 billion yuan.
During a press conference in Mawang County, officials presented the report’s findings and signed several agreements aimed at valuing these ecological products. Eight companies from sectors including power generation, water-saving irrigation, water supply, and aquaculture secured loan agreements and strategic partnerships with six financial institutions, amounting to a total of 725.2 million yuan.
But what exactly are water ecological products? They encompass the goods and services provided by aquatic ecosystems that have value for human consumption or potential utility. These products not only demonstrate the intrinsic worth of water as a fundamental resource but also highlight the value of hydraulic infrastructure and the sociocultural significance of water to communities.
Mawang County is notably rich in water resources, with a total capacity of 1.075 billion cubic meters and a distributed supply of 108.68 million cubic meters, resulting in a utilization rate of 11.5%. Earlier this year, the county entered into a strategic cooperation agreement with the Hunan Institute of Water Resources focusing on advancing high-quality water conservancy development. This partnership aims to integrate the realization of water ecological product values into broader initiatives like water resource management and smart water technology planning.
The assessment report also shed light on unique local products, such as high-quality citrus fruits, Chinese medicinal materials, geothermal water, and mineral water, incorporating them within the water ecological product framework. The institute adopted a systematic approach to evaluation, beginning with product classification before moving on to a thorough value assessment, tackling the often-challenging task of quantifying these ecological products into measurable metrics.
Mawang County is paving the way in creating innovative mechanisms to realize the value of these ecological products. It was the first in Hunan Province to undertake such valuations, developing new pledge systems and pathways for transforming these values into actionable initiatives. Programs like “water withdrawal loans” and “water-saving loans” are crucial efforts aimed at promoting ecological and industrial integration, setting the stage for diverse models of water ecological product value realization across various sectors, including hydropower, reservoir irrigation, urban-rural water supply, riverbed sand extraction, geothermal applications, and bottled spring water.
Looking ahead, Mawang County is dedicated to refining its assessment framework for water ecological product values and driving forward innovations in pledge systems and transformation pathways. The goal is to implement high-standard, efficient initiatives for realizing these values, ultimately positioning Mawang County as a benchmark for water ecological product valuation mechanisms, not just in Hunan Province, but throughout the nation.
