462 / 2024-03-29 09:19:53

Case study on the comprehensive reform of agricultural water price, a key link in the benign construction and management of irrigation and drainage facilities in China

small-scale irrigation projects; comprehensive reform of agricultural water price; water users’ associations; water right; water measurement

Subtheme 2: Integrated Water Resources Management > Topic 1: Water Resources Management system, policy and regulation

There are many small-scale irrigation projects in China, which are difficult to implement operation and maintenance funds, imperfect operation management and protection organizations, and imperfect management and water fee collection system. As a result, the projects can not be maintained normally, which directly affects the long-term development of project benefits. The comprehensive reform of agricultural water price(CRAWP) includes the distribution of initial agricultural water rights, the construction of water users’ associations, the implementation of project property rights and management responsibility, the establishment of agricultural water price formation mechanism, agricultural water precise subsidy mechanism and water-saving incentive mechanism. The CRAWP can fundamentally solve the problems of "single advance" and "fragmentation" in the reform and development of farmland water conservancy in China, promote the organic integration of the improvement of irrigation facilities and the construction of management system, and establish and perfect a sound construction and management mechanism of farmland water conservancy facilities. The case in this paper is referred to Qianjiang city in China, which is located in the center of Jianghan Plain, and has many rivers and lakes and is rich in water resources. Qianjiang city agricultural water price comprehensive reform case includes water conservancy ancillary utilities construction, measuring facilities construction, agricultural water right distribution, terminal water management mode innovation, the system of property right of farmland water conservancy projects construction mode innovation, water price forming mechanism, precise compensation mechanism construction, the water saving incentive mechanism construction and so on. This case illustrates a complete CRAWP, which will provide a reference model for similar areas in China.