V. Promotion of Infrastructure Modernization

In accordance with the principles of integrated planning, reasonable distribution, adequate anticipation, and safety and reliability, and decisively seizing the current strategic opportunities provided by the expansion of domestic demand, the region will speed up the construction of the infrastructures for transportation, energy, water conservancy, and information, promote the coordinated regional development of infrastructure, uplift the security levels, and realize the modernization of infrastructure.

1. Construct Open, Modern and Integrated Transportation System

The Pearl River Delta will make great efforts to push forward the construction of transportation infrastructure, form a coordinated and integrated transportation system with a complete and sound network, reasonable distribution, and operational efficiency and closely linked with Hong Kong, Macao, and the peripheral areas, and develop itself into the most open, convenient, efficient, and secure hub for both passenger and cargo flows in the Asian-Pacific region. The intercity rail transit network in the region will be constructed as quickly as possible, the railway, expressway, and intra-region express trunkline networks will be improved, and the transport connection between the two sides of the Pearl River estuary will be strengthened. The construction will focus on the major projects, including the loop expressway of the Pearl River Delta, the Zhongshan-Shenzhen passage across the estuary of the Pearl River, the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge, the eastern passage between Shenzhen and Hong Kong, the express railway from Guangzhou via Shenzhen to Hong Kong, the coastal railway, the Guizhou-Guangzhou railway, the Nanning-Guangzhou railway, and the urban rail transit systems of Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Foshan, and Donggguan. The construction of urban public transport infrastructure and the transport hubs of Guangzhou, Shenzhen, and Zhuhai will be intensified, and the intra-regional public transport network will be improved. The Pearl River Delta region will elevate the modernization level of its high-grade waterway network, effectively consolidate the port resources of the Pearl River estuary, improve the modern functions of the ports of Guangzhou, Shenzhen, and Zhuhai, and shape a cluster of ports, which play different roles with the harbor of Hong Kong, complement with each other, and realize common development. The expansion of the Baiyun Airport of Guangzhou will be quickened to reinforce its pivotal status and strengthen its international competitiveness, and the Bao'an Airport of Shenzhen will be expanded and renovated to raise its service level and develop it into a large-scale backbone airport. The cooperation between the civil airports in the Pearl River Delta and the airports of Hong Kong and Macao will be enhanced to form an airport system for mutual enhancement and common development. By 2012, in the Pearl River Delta, the mileage of expressways will reach 3,000 kilometers; that of rail transit operation, 1,100 kilometers; the cargo handling capacity of the ports, 900 million tons; the container handling capacity, 47 million standard containers; and the capacity of the civil airports, 80 million person-times. By 2020, the mileage of rail transit operation will reach 2,200 kilometers; the cargo handling capacity of the ports, 1.4 billion tons; the container handling capacity, 72 million standard containers; and the capacity of the civil airports, 150 million person-times.

2. Build Clean, Safe and Reliable Energy Security System

The energy infrastructure construction inside and outside the region will be integrated, and, with electric power construction at the center, an open, diversified, clean, safe, and economic energy security system will be built in order to meet the needs of the economic and social development of the Pearl River Delta. The preliminary work will be quickened, and the nuclear power industry will attain a proper scale, with the chain of the nuclear power industry extended, and the nuclear power self-reliance work will be promoted. Guangdong will be developed into an important base for nuclear power and nuclear power equipment of the country. The coal-fired power generation industry will be optimized. A group of environmentally friendly backbone power plants will be built along the rivers and sea coast, supporting power sources will be established at the power load center within the Pearl River Delta, and, in a coordinated way, the demonstration projects of integrated generation of heat, power and cool and those of clean power generation will be promoted in the region. The power supply from within Guangdong Province and that from outside via the "West to East Power Transmission" project will be rationally configured to ensure the safety and stability of the power grid. The power grid of the Pearl River Delta and the interregional power transmission passages will be further improved, the electric safety system and the emergency response system will be established, and the disaster-resisting, disaster-mitigating, and emergency response capacity of the power grid will be enhanced. In compliance with the strategic planning and distribution of national key petroleum and natural gas projects, the construction of oil and gas infrastructure as well as LNG terminals will be accelerated, the construction of oil and gas pipelines will be carried out in a coordinated manner, and a regional center for petroleum distribution and trading will be established. The energy reserve programs will be executed steadily, and petroleum reserve bases and large-scale coal transit bases will be developed. More cooperation in the energy sector will be conducted home and abroad to open multiple channels for supply of resources and energy. New energy and renewable energy will be actively developed, with the focus placed on the construction of wind power plants and solar energy utilization projects. By 2020, a modern energy security system with a strong supply capacity, an optimal structure, and high efficiency will be formed.

3. Construct Harmonious Water Conservancy Projects

The construction of water conservancy infrastructure will be accelerated. The system of projects for preventing and mitigating water conservancy-related disasters will be improved. The configuration of water resources will be improved, and the preservation of water resources and the control of water pollution will be intensified, so as to ensure the safety of drinking water and ecology and the flood control and grain supply security and construct a modernized, secured support system for water conservancy. The region will concentrate on the construction of the key water control projects, including the Lechang Gorges Project on the Northern River (of the Pearl River), the Wantou Project, and the Dateng Gorges Project, carry out the solidification and compliance works for the major river and coastal embankments and dikes, including the Jingfeng United Embankment, the Jiangxin United Embankment, and the Zhongshan-Shunde Grand Embankment, and speed up consolidating the dilapidated reservoirs; and will continue the renovation project of the Pearl River estuary, coordinate the flood control engineering standards for the whole basin of the Pearl River, improve the command system for the effort to defend against flood, tide and drought, and make the emergency plan for dealing with supernormal floods. The center for the monitoring and early warning of small and medium meteorological disasters of the Pearl River Delta will be established through the province-ministry cooperation. The region will continue to intensify the control and management of the rivers and the construction of the infrastructure for protecting aquatic ecology, and accelerate the construction of the real-time monitoring systems for hydrology, water resources, and aquatic environment. The rational and efficient systems for configuring water sources and securing water supply will be established. The focus will be given to the construction of the water resource transfer and conservancy projects such as the project of transferring water from the Western River in Guangxi and the Zhuyin Water Source Project in Zhuhai. The coordinated management of the water resources in the Pearl River basin will be strengthened, and the backbone reservoirs on the upper reach of the Western River and the three major reservoirs of the Eastern River will be jointly managed. In this way, the water supply for the Pearl River Delta as well as Hong Kong and Macao can be secured. Water conservation will be promoted in agriculture, industries, and daily life and the efficiency of water resource utilization will be heightened. By 2020, the defense capabilities of the downtowns of Guangzhou and Shenzhen will be able to cope with the worst flood or tide that has ever occurred in the past 200 years; for the downtowns of other prefecture-level cities, 100 years; for the county cities, 50 years; and for the major embankments and dikes, 50 to 100 years. At that time, the water source assurance rate for water supply will reach 97% for large and medium cities and 90% for ordinary towns, and the quality of the water source will be complied with the quality standards specified for the relevant water function zone.

4. Build Convenient and Efficient Information Networks System

In line with the general requirement of constructing a "Digital Pearl River Delta", and breaking the boundaries of administrative divisions, departments, and industries and the systematic barriers, the Pearl River Delta region will intensify the construction of information infrastructure, speed up the deployment of the new generation of mobile communication networks, push forward the construction of the wireless broadband urban cities cluster by districts and steps, and build a "whenever, wherever, and whatever" information network for this region. The information networks will be planed, constructed, and managed in an integral way. The region will take the lead in the convergence of the three networks, namely, the telecom network, the Internet, and the broadcasting and television network, and facilitate the sharing of online resources and the interconnection and mutual access among the different networks. The region will build the public information platform for the modern logistics in South China, take the lead in developing the "Logistics Internet", and push forward the integration of the basic communications network, application networks, and radio-frequency induction network; and will construct the platforms for sharing government information resources, and forge a system for ensuring information safety. The basic geographic information resources of the Pearl River Delta will be developed and utilized in a coordinated way. By 2012, the popularization rates of the Internet and home broadband access will reach 90% and 65% respectively, and wireless broadband access will cover around 60% of the population. By 2020, the Pearl River Delta will become one of the global leaders of informatization.