China's water is
managed by a complex web of ministries, and national, sub-national and cross-jurisdictional agencies. Click on
the circles to see
how the different bureaucracies overlap and share power with one another.
Manage the irrigation water deliveries for all surface systems and some groundwater systems.
Share some responsibilities with the Ministry of Agriculture.
Administers the pricing of state-owned resources such as water. The national bureau sets guidelines for provincial-level bureaus to use in
setting prices that take local supply and demand into account.
Shares its power
primarily with the Ministry of
Water Resources.
Runs most aspects of water management in China. It plans and manages all national-level water-related projects, implements national price and allocation policy, and oversees water conservancy investments.
WRBs under the Ministry of Water Resources operate at all levels of the formal administrative bureaucracy. They carry out plans from levels above them, and administer irrigation districts and water resource systems that are entirely within their administrative district.
The seven NRBCs under the Ministry of Water Resources implement policies that cross provincial boundaries, primarily approving and enforcing provincial water withdrawal plans
Supervises groundwater, land, mineral and marine resources, and protects the geological environment.
Mainly shares power with the
Ministry of Housing
and Urban-Rural
Development, the Ministry of
Environmental
Protection and the
Ministry of Water
Resources.
Enforces environmental laws and protects the water resources.
Mostly shares power with the
Ministry of Land and
Resources and the
Ministry of Water
Resources.
Formulates and implements national economic and social development strategies, annual plans, and medium and long-term development goals. It plans and oversees all major infrastructure projects.
Among others, it oversees the use of underground urban water, and manages urban industrial and domestic water deliveries.
Primarily shares responsibilities with the Ministry of Land and Resources and the Ministry of Water Resources.
Through its central and local-level offices, it develops and implements policies to guide water use once it is delivered to the field.
Mainly shares power with the Ministry of Water Resources.
