The 19th National Congress of the Communist Party of China pointed out that the principal contradiction Chinese society faces is between unbalanced and inadequate development and the people's ever-growing needs for a better life. This is a precise judgment made by the Party congress based on China's conditions and will become the basis on which the formulation of guidance for all work related to China's social development builds. The South-to-North Water Diversion Project should better position itself to seek development and help solve the contradiction.
Currently, water shortages in China's north have constrained socio-economic development, especially the regional coordinated development, largely hampering the realization of the people's aspiration for a better life. Under these new circumstances, how to better meet the needs for a better life and to fulfill the needs for the regional coordinated development and ecological progress has become the new task and the important mission for the project managers in the new era.
As the water diversion project has played an increasingly important role and become the main source of water supply in areas such as Beijing and Tianjin, ensuring sufficient water supply becomes essential. The project should make sure the smooth operation and sufficient water supply as well. With the development of society and economy, there is an increasing need for water supply from the project. Ratcheting up water diversion to meet the basic needs of local recipients comes as a key task for the project. Yet, ensuing engineering construction task is a great challenge due to the constraints on the project's scope and capacities.
Water quality is key to the success of the project, as it constitutes the people's basic needs for a better life. In recent years, the central government has created new demands for pollution treatment and environmental protection, but the zoning of protection areas along the routes has lagged behind, the building of economical belts has proceeded slowly, the risks jeopardizing operation safety remain, and the foundation to ensure that water quality meets the standards in the long run needs consolidation.
The water diversion project has contributed positively to the advancement of China's ecologic protection. However, as the construction of supporting projects are behind schedule and the plan of curbing exploitation of underground water still awaits implementation, the project has not functioned to its full potential, and ecological construction in provinces and cities along the routes still has a lot of room for development.
People dislocated by the project continue to see gaps between themselves and local residents in areas where they are settled, and poverty alleviation for these specific groups continue to be a great challenge. Moreover, pushing the comprehensive development and industrial upgrading of the water source areas entails support from all walks of life.
The contradiction and problems existing in the water diversion reflect the principal contradiction facing the society, and there is still a long way to go before the new demands are met.
The task of solving the principal contradiction has brought new demands for the project, as the project enters a new phase. The work conference of the project has set forth the underlying principle of "pursing progress while maintaining stability, seeking improvement both in quality and effect" for this year. We should update our thinking, transform our mindset, make decisions in line with the new circumstances, study new ideas and solve new problems to help the project realize its full potential, and create new prospects for the project.