Natural resources merit better management

Since the launch of reform and opening-up 40 years ago, the management of natural resources and ecological environment has overlapped among various departments, leading to conflicts of interests and dysfunction. For instance, a piece of land could be regarded as farmland by the land department, while the department of forest, water or transport could see it as forest land, water conservation area or land for developing transportation.

To give another example, a mountain could be divided into two parts: the one described as scenic spot run by the housing and construction department while the other described as forest park or natural reserve zone managed by the forest department. Such overlapping of duties creates obstacles to building an ecological civilization.

But now these problems can be solved, as the plan to deepen the institutional reform of the Party and country approved by Third Plenary Session of the 19th Communist Party of China Central Committee on Feb 28 also includes the reform of the natural resource and ecological environment management system.