The River Chief System and River Pollution Control in China: A Case Study of Foshan

Abstract

The river chief system (RCS) has been innovatively implemented in Wuxi, China since 2007 for the eutrophication control of Tai Lake. In 2016, RCS was eventually promoted throughout China to reinforce river and lake protection. The success of this new river management system is generally attributed to collaboration, accountability, and differentiation effects. This research takes Foshan in the Pearl River Delta region as a case study to examine the feasibility and weaknesses in the implementation of the RCS. Prior to the formal adoption of RCS, a coordinating organization for river improvement undertaking was established in Foshan to overcome fragmentation in water management. Compared with this practice, the new RCS can strengthen the collaboration of administrative authorities and establish a considerably sophisticated and effective management structure. Emphasis on evaluation and accountability mechanisms guarantees that management goals can be achieved. However, similar to the previous one, the new system remains a temporary management practice and its outcomes depend partially on the commitment and capability of each river chief. The imperfect evaluation and accountability mechanism also weaken its long-term effectiveness in improving river water quality. Therefore, some corresponding policy instruments are needed to ensure that RCS can be implemented smoothly.

Determining Diasporic Chinese Identities from a Legal Perspective in China

“…Under these latest political reforms, more and more provinces have taken action to reconstruct the environmental governance and resource conservation policies, e.g. the implementation of the River Chief System in 2016 (see also Liu et al 2019).…”

“…Due to the ineffective governance aimed at controlling illegal river-sand mining via the license system, the central government furthered the political reform of river health, as well as riversand governance, on December 10, 2016. This meeting reviewed and approved the Opinions on the Full Implementation of the River Chief System(河长制) (Liao, et al, 2018) The River Chief System is a political reform based on the principle the top governmental leaders, from provincial level to township level, are the "chiefs of the river", who are in charge of and responsible for the river (see also Liu et al, 2019;Huang & Xu, 2019). The government planned to build an administrative system as well as an assessment system to evaluate the effectiveness of river management of these river chiefs.…”

“…Chief System across the county is to solve the environmental crises of rivers and to realize the sustainable use of water, sand, and fish species in the rivers (see also Liu et al, 2019;Huang & Xu, 2019). One of the major targets of this system is to "[r]esolutely crack down on illegal activities involving rivers and lakes and to resolutely clean up illegal sand mining activities"…”

Public Participation of the River Chief System in China: Current Trends, Problems, and Perspectives

“…The success of RCS is rooted in China's national conditions [2]. The river chief is held by the main leaders of the party and government, solving the predicament of multi-governance [3] and linking with the performance appraisal [4], which is conducive to the coordination and integration of resources from all parties, thereby maximizing the cohesion of water governance [5]. government has been facing three challenges of modern supervision, ecological protection, and spatial planning.…”

Assessment of Water Quality Evolution in the Pearl River Estuary (South Guangzhou) from 2008 to 2017

“…The public and the government first started to be concerned about the pollution problem in the PRD in the 1980s [19]. In particular, a series of pollution abatement measures to control water pollution have been implemented in Guangzhou (the capital city of Guangdong Province).…”