Oct 2019, Volume 21 Issue 5
    

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  • Orginal Article
    Jikun Huang, Jimin Wang, Wei Xie, Xiaobing Wang, Lingling Hou, Hui Zhou, Yu Sheng, Xu Liu

    This study aims to clarify the direction for agricultural transformation, the transformation path of production, and the trend of food supply and demand in China, and to propose development strategies and policy suggestions for China’s agriculture transformation. Facing six major challenges in agricultural development, China should further promote supply-side structural reform for its agriculture, optimize production structure, improve the supply and demand of agricultural products, and upgrade the quality of these products. After analyzing the panel data of farmer surveys, we propose to promote China’s modern agricultural transformation by improving the land transfer market and the socialized service system. Our projection analyses indicate that the imbalance between supply and demand of many agricultural products in China will be prominent by 2035. China’s feed self-sufficiency rate will continue to decline, and the demand gap for sugar and edible oil will gradually expand. The production of livestock products and the gap between supply and demand will largely depend on the feed grain trade policy and the grassland development policy, while vegetables and fruits still maintain a certain export comparative advantage.

  • Orginal Article
    Yan Yan, Dongyang Wang, Jimin Wang, Xiudong Wang, Xu Liu

    To grasp the major contradictions of China’s regional food security in the new era is the precondition for ensuring national food security. This paper introduces the current situation and the major challenges of China’s regional food security, analyzes the change trend of supply and demand and development potentials for regional food security, and presents corresponding strategic visions for future development. Furthermore, it proposed several policy suggestions for ensuring China’s regional food security, including implementing the dual responsibilities of food security assurance and environment protection by governments at all levels, rationally planning major special funds for regions, fostering novel business entities, and promoting modern agriculture by improving its quality.

  • Orginal Article
    Liang Tang, Dongli Wu, Wei Miao, Hongxia Pu, Linlin Jiang, Shaobin Wang, Wentian Zhong, Wenfu Chen

    Grain is a commodity of strategic significance. The general self-sufficiency of cereal grains is vital to people’s livelihood and national security of China, a country with a population approaching 1.4 billion. Northeast China is endowed with the most abundant agricultural resources in China. Its grain industry is growing faster than any other part of China; it has the greatest potentials for development, and makes the maximum contribution to national food security. Northeast China is now an important commodity grain and livestock production base. In this paper, the food security situation in this region is elaborated against the backdrop of internationalization and greenization, the trend of food supply and demand in this region is analyzed, problems concerning food security are classified, and strategic suggestions are proposed, including accelerating the supply-side structural reform for agriculture, promoting the combination of agriculture and animal husbandry, and developing benefit-oriented agriculture. This study is hoped to provide a reference for implementation of decisions involving regional food security and sustainable development.

  • Orginal Article
    Feng Huang, Taisheng Du, Sufen Wang, Xurong Mei, Daozhi Gong, Yuanquan Chen, Shaozhong Kang

    North China is one of the major breadbaskets in China and is critical in ensuring food security of the nation. It sustained 18% of national total arable land, and 23% of national total grain crop output using only 6% of national total water resources. However, such impressive accomplishments were achieved at huge costs incurred in resources, environment, and ecosystem. We first presented accomplishments, current situations, and main challenges facing agriculture and water use in North China. Then, using an integrated framework in agricultural water management widely adopted by international water research communities, we reviewed the trajectory of agricultural development and its associated water withdrawal, water use efficiencies, and productivities in North China from 1998 to 2015, from which some major experiences and lessons were derived. We then tentatively proposed policy and strategy pathways to ensure food security in North China in the future.

  • Orginal Article
    Yubao Wang, Xian Liu, Lijie Shi, Zhouping Shangguan, Pute Wu, Lun Shan, Xining Zhao

    Northwest China has abundant light, heat, and land resources, but limited water resources which has restricted the sustainable development of food security in this region. Water-use efficiency in crop production, water resources stress, and virtual water output of crops in Northwest China are evaluated using water footprint and virtual water as analysis tools. Grain production and agricultural water use in Northwest China are predicted. Furthermore, policy suggestions are proposed to guarantee the sustainable development of water resources and food security in Northwest China, including gradually reducing the scale of agricultural water use in this region, optimizing the crop planting structure, and implementing a virtual water project along the Silk Road Economic Belt. This study is hoped to provide a reference for the rational utilization of regional water resources and the formulation of food security strategies.

  • Orginal Article
    Yurong Zeng, Qiong Du, Jianping Chen

    This paper is based on the results of two featured projects—Forest Food Security and Marine Fishery Resources Strategy, and studies food security and sustainable development in the southeast coastal region of China that includes Shanghai, Zhejiang, Fujian, Guangdong, and Hainan. It first analyzes the agricultural natural resources endowment, the changes of food supply and demand, the food security assurance ability, and the main challenges that affect the food security in this region, using field investigation, statistical analysis, econometric model prediction, and other methods, and then explores strategies for assuring food security against the backdrop of resource scarcity, internationalization, and greenization. Moreover, it proposes to develop an overall food view, promote the integration of the three industries, and implement strategies that benefit the ecology and encourage globalization. Based on the technological needs and policy objectives of the southeast coastal region, ten engineering measures are proposed, including germplasm resources and modern breeding engineering, high-quality agricultural products and ecological agriculture engineering, big-data refined management engineering for farm equipment, etc.

  • Orginal Article
    Shibin Gao, Song Yang, Kaixian Wu, Bing Yu, Zhuo Chen, Daiwen Chen, Tingzhao Rong

    Sustainable development of food security in Southwest China is critical in ensuring national food security, and concerns ecological civilization construction, ethnic unity, and poverty alleviation in China. A green- and ecological-oriented development approach is an important prerequisite for ensuring the sustainable development of food security in this region. In this paper, we first investigated the food production situation in this region, and then analyzed the challenges from the aspects of ecological environment features, agricultural inputs, and agricultural structure. Furthermore, according to the production conditions and resource endowment of Southwest China, we proposed a strategic vision comprising overall thinking, strategic positioning, general goal, and development path, as well as several policy suggestions focusing on policy modification and project implementation, aiming to provide references for the formulation of regional food security strategies.

  • Orginal Article
    Jing Zhou, Ping Qing

    Improving the quality of domestic agricultural machinery is crucial for China’s agricultural machinery manufacturing to become stronger. This study summarizes the status quo and existing problems of agricultural machinery manufacturing in China and focuses on empirical study. Based on the data collected from farmer surveys in Central China, farmers’ subjective evaluation on the quality of domestic agricultural machinery is investigated from the aspects of hardware quality, applicability and operation convenience, as well as operation effect of the machinery. The results suggest that farmers’ satisfaction with steel quality, engine quality, fuel consumption, and failure frequency of domestic large- and medium-sized agricultural machinery is significantly lower than that of non-domestic agricultural machinery. Less than half of these farmers are satisfied with the machine–land matching degree, machine–driver matching degree, and shading and rainproof effect of both domestic and non-domestic machinery. Moreover, their satisfaction with the operating speed, operating coverage, and factor (i.e., water, fertilizer, pesticide, and seed) saving effect of domestic agricultural machinery is low. To this end, countermeasures are proposed to improve the quality of domestic agricultural machinery, including building a national team to overcome technical difficulties in key components, establishing a long-term and enterprisecentered innovation system, optimizing the research and development of intellectualized and eco-friendly agricultural machinery, and reconstructing the discipline system for agricultural machinery in universities.

  • Orginal Article
    Jizhou Ren, Fadi Li, Jianmin Cao, Binglong Li, Gang Xu, Zeng Tang

    The beef and mutton industry plays a strategic role in China in utilizing agricultural resources, improving dietary structure, prosper rural economy, and maintaining national stability. China’s beef and mutton industry has made some achievements and is developing from subsidiary production to specialized production. However, it still faces multiple challenges, such as the enlarging demand-supply gap, an unreasonable structure of coarse fodder resources, underdevelopment of cattle and sheep breeds, and increased external competition. This paper proposes several strategic recommendations based on comparative analysis and trend judgment between China and abroad, including integrating the grassland industry and animal husbandry, initiating national key programs to develop key technical links for the beef and mutton industry, improving the reproduction and breeding system, strengthening the slaughtering and processing industry, and providing support for the beef and mutton industry in Southeast China.

  • Orginal Article
    Jianhua Zhou, Junping Chen, Jingyu Zhang

    To solve problems in globalization of the BeiDou Navigation Satellite System (BDS), this paper first analyzes the service performance and application status of the BDS, based on the overall application and development trend of satellite navigation worldwide. Major problems in the application and promotion of the BDS are analyzed from three aspects, including system service, characteristic service, and application industries; and promoting differentiated competitive powers is proved to be effective in assisting the BDS to “go global”. Based on the above analyses, preliminary technical approaches and schemes are designed to promote and apply the satellite-based augmentation and short-message services, two characteristic services of the BDS, along the Belt and Road. By establishing over a dozen of monitoring stations in countries along the Belt and Road, demands of most of these countries for precise positioning can be satisfied. By developing an oversea short-message service system, a short-message communication service, with better performance and experience, can be provided for massive BDS users along the Belt and Road. Promotion ideas for the BDS characteristic services and their demonstration application are also presented. Additionally, some policy suggestions are proposed to accelerate the application of the BDS services in countries along the Belt and Road.

  • Orginal Article
    The Comprehensive Research Group for Research on Several Strategic Issues on Ecological Civilization Construction

    Based on comprehensive research results of the major consulting project of the Chinese Academy of Engineering “Research on Several Issues on Ecological Civilization Construction (Phase III)”, we evaluated the development level and dynamic changes of China’s ecological civilization progress in 2017. Focusing on regional imbalance of ecological civilization development in China, we selected several typical areas as the research objects, including Eastern China, Central China, ecological fragile region in Western China, and the Beijing–Tianjin–Hebei region. We then summarized and analyzed the regional differences and prominent problems in the development of ecological civilization in China from the aspects of integrated and comprehensive improvement of urban agglomeration environment, ecological protection and green development of key zones for development, coordinated development of ecological resources and assets in ecological fragile regions, and value realization of ecological products in developed regions. Furthermore, relevant countermeasures and strategy for the coordinated development of ecological civilization in China is proposed, thus to provide strategic suggestions for the macro decision-making of the development of ecological civilization in China in the new era.

  • Orginal Article
    Zehong Li, Yongqing Bai, Jiulin Sun, Suocheng Dong, Jingnan Li

    Ecological civilization construction is an inevitable course for the sustainable development of ecologically fragile povertystricken areas where the ecological environment is seriously damaged and poverty is concentrated. In this paper, the future ecological civilization construction in Western China is studied; the development path for simultaneous growth of ecological assets and per capita net income of farmers and herdsmen is demonstrated; and a corresponding strategic road map for the ecological civilization construction is proposed. Holding the two baselines of development and ecology, promoting the harmonious coexistence of mankind and nature, and achieving green modernization in an all-round way are proposed as the overall strategic goals for the ecological civilization construction in the ecologically fragile poverty-stricken areas in Western China. Meanwhile, the phased tasks for ecological civilization construction in the middle and long term (from now to 2050) are described. It is predicated that by 2020, relative poverty in Western China will be basically eliminated and the ecological asserts will show a restorative growth; by 2035, relative poverty in Western China will be eradicated, the damaged natural ecological environment will be completely restored, and an overall ecological recovery will be achieved; and by 2050, green modernization featuring resource conservation, environmental friendliness, and comprehensive socio-economic development will be achieved in Western China.

  • Orginal Article
    Minsong Lin, Lili Liu, Xianlai Zeng, Jinhui Li

    Ecological protection is critical for the harmonious development of humanity and nature, and ecological civilization construction is fundamental for the sustainable development of China. Wuyuan County in Jiangxi Province, a typical county in central China, has its own characteristics and advantages in ecological civilization construction. This study constructs a “five-dimensional analysis method” for analyzing the ecological civilization construction in counties. The five dimensions include economic construction, political construction, cultural and social construction, ecological service values, and the index system for ecological civilization construction. This method is adopted to summarize the achievements in ecological civilization construction in Wuyuan as well as its successful mode. Corresponding development directions and related policy suggestions are also proposed to promote ecological civilization development. Wuyuan’s experience in ecological civilization construction can provide guidance for counties in the whole country.

  • Orginal Article
    Ganjurjav Hasbagan, Guozheng Hu, Qingzhu Gao, Wangzha Jiangcun, Luobu Danjiu, Muyou Can, Wangdui Basang, Fuyu Yang, Xuehong Wei, Yongping Yang

    Northern Tibet Plateau is an important ecological security shelter for China and a base of animal husbandry with plateau characteristics. However, grassland degradation is threatening the functioning of alpine grasslands and brings great challenges to ecological protection and animal husbandry development. In this study, we analyzed the current situation of ecological protection and animal husbandry development in the Northern Tibet Plateau, summarized the factors affecting the functions of alpine grasslands in this region, and introduced a synergistic mode for grassland ecological protection and animal husbandry development. A series of measures were also proposed to enhance the ecological functions of the alpine grasslands and upgrade the grassland-based animal husbandry, including ecological restoration of degraded grasslands, optimizing grazing management, artificial forage cultivation, developing a “low grass and high grazing” mode (i.e., planting grass in farming areas of low altitude and raising livestock in pastoral areas of high altitude), and half barn-feeding in winter. This study is hoped to provide scientific and technological support in ensuring national ecological security and increasing income of herdsmen.

  • Orginal Article
    Jian Wu, Jiayu Xu, Jiming Hao

    Within years of environmental governance, many comprehensive environmental control measures have been taken in Beijing–Tianjin–Hebei region to cope with air pollution, water pollution, solid waste pollution, and ecological damages. These measures could be summarized as industrial restructuring, energy structure adjustment, transportation structure adjustment, land use structure adjustment, and green transformation of agriculture and rural areas. A questionnaire survey was conducted to distinguish the comprehensive benefits of these measures, and the comprehensive benefits were evaluated using a cloud model evaluation method. Result shows that these comprehensive benefits are ranked from high to low as industrial restructuring, energy structure adjustment, transportation structure adjustment, land use structure adjustment, and green transformation of agriculture and rural areas. This method and the result can provide a scientific foundation for the selection of comprehensive control measures for treating multiple pollution media in Beijing–Tianjin–Hebei region.

  • Orginal Article
    Xiaolong Liu, Qin Ge, Lingling Jiang, Huhetaoli, Leilei Cui, Bin Li, Xiangwan Du

    The weak link of ecological civilization construction in China lies in rural areas. Rural energy revolution plays an important role in promoting ecological civilization construction in rural areas and implementing the strategy of rural revitalization. In this paper, the current situation of energy consumption and production in rural areas in China and the main problems facing it are summarized, and the vast rural areas in China are categorized into developed suburban rural areas, underdeveloped traditional rural areas, and remote rural areas, according to economic development levels, resource endowment, and energy consumption. Furthermore, typical paradigms and implementation paths for ecological construction based on rural energy revolution are proposed. Developed suburban rural areas is recommended to conduct overall planning, improve their facilities, and interact with urban areas to realize energy interconnecting. The underdeveloped traditional rural areas is recommended to take measures according to local conditions, employ multiple energies, and prioritize energy conservation while focusing on efficiency. The remote rural areas is recommended to exploit energy resources in a concentrated manner and focus on external delivery, thus to satisfy energy consumption and demand. This study is hoped to provide references for energy revolution and ecological civilization construction in the rural areas in China

  • Orginal Article
    Zongguo Wen, Jing Zhou, Kun Yue

    Excellent practices and experiences in industrial development, resource conservation, environmental governance, ecological protection, and watershed management mechanism are introduced from the urban (e.g., Hefei City in Anhui Province) and river basin (e.g., Chaohu Lake Basin) levels. A “three-water improvement” model for ecological civilization construction in urban and rural areas in Hefei, and a “three-ecological optimization” model for ecological civilization construction in Chaohu Basin are summarized through surveys. Meanwhile, development suggestions are proposed to solve problems existing in water ecological environment construction in Anhui Province, including promoting green economic development, strengthening environmental governance and ecological restoration, establishing a dynamic monitoring and early-warning mechanism, improving the watershed management mechanism, and establishing an ecological compensation mechanism and a marketization mechanism.

  • Orginal Article
    Gengyuan Liu, Junmei Hu, Zhifeng Yang

    An energy-water coupling model is established in this paper based on long-range energy alternatives planning (LEAP) and water evaluation and planning (WEAP), scenarios are then designed to explore the energy- and water-saving effects of different policies in Beijing in the future and their coupling effects, and sensitivity analysis of the results is also conducted. Results show that the total energy consumption in Beijing will grow gradually by year, while water shortage is unlikely to occur. During the 13th Five-Year Plan, the total energy-saving amount owing to water-saving policies is 1.003 million tonnes of standard coal, and the total water-saving amount owing to energy-saving policies has reached 276 million cubic meters. The energy demand and water demand by residents’ living, the service industry, the construction industry, and the traditional manufacturing industry are correlated, as they are critical energy-water coupling sectors. In terms of energy- and water-saving effects in different scenarios and periods, the industrial structure optimization policy shows great energy-saving potentials in the short term, while irrigation technology innovation and planting structure optimization in the agricultural sector have both good energy- and water-saving effects in the short term. A coordinated energy- and water-saving effect can be found in energy-saving scenarios in the service industry and the industrial sector. As for policies in the same sector, regulation on energy use intensity can achieve an obvious coordinated energy- and water-saving effect.

  • Orginal Article
    Xiaofeng Cao, Chengzhi Hu, Weixiao Qi, Hua Zheng, Baoqing Shan, Yong Zhao, Jiuhui Qu

    Water resources shortage and water environment pollution have become the major obstacles for the coordinated development of Beijing–Tianjin–Hebei region. In this paper, the status quo of and challenges for water resources regulation and water environment protection in the Beijing–Tianjin–Hebei region are analyzed, and corresponding strategies are proposed, including building a water ecological system involving mountains, rivers, forest, farmland, lakes, and sea using technical approaches; establishing a healthy recycling and efficient utilization model for water resources; developing production and living modes adapting to the carrying capacity of the water ecology; improving water environment quality and ensuring the health of regional water ecosystems; establishing a coordinated management system for the regional water environment; strengthening industry cooperation and pollution reduction; and promoting peri-urbanization and pollution abatement in the rural areas. This study is hoped to provide decision support for comprehensive ecological environment control in the Beijing–Tianjin–Hebei region and ecological civilization construction in China.

  • Orginal Article
    Xiaoyan Yi, Xianlei Huang, Changbin Yin, Heng Wang

    The values of agricultural resources include the economic value from agricultural production and their ecological service value. This paper aims to assess the values of agricultural resources in Fujian Province by using relevant theoretical research models, clarify the process and path of realizing these values, and propose policy recommendations for further improvement. The research results show that the economic value of agriculture in Fujian Province in 2015 was 355.36 billion yuan, while the ecological service value was 1193.95 billion yuan. Within the ecological service value, values for rest service, temperature regulation, gas regulation, soil conservation, water conservation, and biodiversity service were 316.13, 111.92, 74.80, 132.11, 217.81, and 341.18 billion yuan, respectively. The paths for realizing these values in Fujian Province mainly include construction of agricultural product brands; integration of agricultural production, agricultural product processing, and agricultural market service; agro-ecological compensation; and green financial support. To further increase the values of agricultural resources in Fujian Province, financial support should be increased, pollution-free agricultural products and agricultural products with geographical indications should be promoted, agricultural industry integration should be advanced, the agricultural ecological compensation system should be improved, and ecological awareness education and publicity should be boosted.

  • Orginal Article
    Xiaolong Liu, Lingling Jiang, Qin Ge, Huhetaoli, Ying Chen, Leilei Cui, Bin Li, Xiangwan Du

    Solid waste reduction and resource utilization is a sign of national progress and modernization. The massive amount of solid wastes produced in industrial production and daily life in China has not been well treated, and the annual output of solid wastes is growing year by year. It is proposed in this paper that “no-waste society” is not a society without solid waste production, but a society where most of its solid wastes are properly reused as resources. “No-waste society” is guided by the new development concepts of innovation, coordination, green, openness, and sharing, and promotes green and recycling development and living modes, thus to achieve source reduction, resource utilization, and harmless treatment of solid wastes to the maximum extent. This paper further clarifies the boundary and scope for the “no-waste society”, depicts its characteristics, and proposes the general idea and direction of developing from “no-waste city” to “no-waste society”. Furthermore, policy measures are proposed including strengthening collaboration and supervision; advocating a diligent and thrifty life concept; and enhancing international exchange to actively participate in the construction of a global system for environment governance.

  • Orginal Article
    Yongjun Hu, Jian Wu, Ruishan Hu

    The “two mountain” theory (i.e., lucid waters and lush mountains are invaluable assets) is the core concept for ecological civilization construction in China, and it will guide the development of ecological civilization throughout the country for a long time. This paper aims to provide paths and models for ecological civilization construction and rural revitalization, thus to enrich the “two mountains” theory. The economic growth theory and the externality theory are applied to analyze the core logic for realizing the value of ecological products and the internal logic of green growth, and the basic routes for “two mountains” practices are proposed. The core logic for realizing the value of ecological products is to guide and standardize the ecologization of economic subjects in the micro level, and the main paths include collecting ecological tax and dues, building up eco-market, taking ecological compensation, and establishing a green financial market. The internal logic of regional green growth is a positive cycle of transformation, coordination, and feedback between the ecology and “space–industry–main body”, and the main paths include space planning, ecological construction, ecological beautification, ecological industry, ecologization of traditional industry, high-end industry, ecological culture, ecological system, and ecological technology. This study is hoped to provide a reference for the top-level framework and development models for national ecological civilization construction and rural revitalization.