Huangshui River restoration enters final phase

A major 5.51 billion yuan ($817 million) ecological restoration project in the Huangshui River Basin has entered its final phase, so far restoring over 157,200 hectares of land and significantly improving water quality across eastern Qinghai province, according to local authorities.

The project aims to strengthen the ecological security barrier of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau through integrated conservation covering mountains, rivers, forests, farmland, lakes, grasslands, and deserts. It belongs to the third batch of national key ecological conservation projects under China's 14th Five-Year Plan (2021–25).

As of June, 144 of the project's 153 subprojects have been completed, targeting 12 counties across Xining, Haidong, and the Haibei Tibetan autonomous prefecture.

Liu Guoxin, head of the territorial ecological restoration division of the Qinghai Provincial Department of Natural Resources, said that the project focuses on major ecological problems in the basin, including soil erosion, degradation of forest and grassland ecosystems, and declining water conservation capacity.

The basin has been divided into three major restoration units: the source area for water conservation and biodiversity protection, the tributary areas for water conservation and soil erosion control, and the main stream area for ecological corridor building and human settlement improvement, Liu said.

Based on these units, Qinghai has carried out three categories of work: improving forest and grassland ecological functions, maintaining the health of valley ecosystems and restoring river system functions.

The project has restored 69,300 hectares of forest, 42,400 hectares of degraded grassland, and 275.22 kilometers of riverbanks and embankments.

Liu said ecological restoration measures can be implemented quickly, but the stable functioning of restored ecosystems takes longer to fully emerge.

"Ecological improvement needs continuous monitoring and phased assessment," he said. "After the project is fully completed, we will carry out project acceptance and effectiveness assessment, while ecological and environmental authorities will continue long-term ecological monitoring and evaluation."

According to Qinghai's 2025 ecological and environmental bulletin, water quality at national and provincial monitoring sections of the Huangshui River reached Grade II or better, showing that the project has played a positive role in improving water conservation and water quality in the basin, Liu said.

To coordinate cross-regional and cross-department governance, Qinghai has established a three-level mechanism featuring provincial coordination, city and prefecture-level supervision, and county and district-level implementation.

A provincial leading group was set up at the beginning of the project, bringing together departments including development and reform, finance, ecology and environment, water resources, agriculture and rural affairs, and forestry and grassland to coordinate project implementation.

The project uses monthly reporting and digital supervision to track implementation, funding and performance. Reports are submitted to the leading group and shared with relevant departments and localities to identify problems and coordinate solutions in a timely manner.

Liu said the project also covers mine restoration, geological disaster control, river management, forest and grassland improvement, rodent control, farmland improvement, human settlement upgrading and soil erosion control, making multi-department cooperation essential.

Qinghai has issued rules on project management, fund management and completion acceptance, while also establishing systems for archives, project handover and long-term maintenance. A provincial expert pool provides technical support throughout project planning, review, acceptance and assessment.

According to the Ministry of Natural Resources, the Huangshui project ranks among the top national ecological restoration projects in terms of fund execution and completed restoration area.

The project has also generated social benefits. Construction units have been encouraged to employ local farmers and herders, helping increase incomes. Restoration work along the urban section of the Nanchuan River in Xining and the Baishui River in Huangyuan county has improved public activity spaces and living environments, giving residents a stronger sense of gain and well-being.

Liu said completed projects will be handed over to local governments and relevant sectoral departments for maintenance, with long-term management linked to existing mechanisms such as ecological rangers, river and lake chiefs, and forest and grassland chiefs.

"The Huangshui project is a comprehensive and systematic governance project, not a restoration of a single ecological element," Liu said. "It has helped Qinghai gain practical experience in cross-department, cross-regional and multi-element ecological conservation and systematic governance."