[19th Cpc National Congress] Xi Jinping: Accelerate the Reform of the Ecological Civilization System and Build a Beautiful China

I. Achievements in Ecological Civilization Construction Over the Past Five Years

Significant progress has been made in ecological civilization construction. Vigorous efforts have been made to advance ecological civilization construction, significantly enhancing the awareness and initiative of the entire Party and the nation in implementing the green development concept, and markedly changing the situation of neglecting ecological and environmental protection. The ecological civilization system is rapidly taking shape, the functional zoning system is gradually being improved, and the national park system pilot program is being actively promoted. Comprehensive resource conservation has been effectively promoted, and energy and resource consumption intensity has decreased significantly. Major ecological protection and restoration projects are progressing smoothly, and forest coverage continues to increase. Ecological and environmental governance has been significantly strengthened, and the environmental situation has improved. China has guided international cooperation in addressing climate change, becoming an important participant, contributor, and leader in global ecological civilization construction.

II. Treating the Ecological Environment as We Treat Life

Xi Jinping emphasized in "Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era and its Basic Strategy": Adhere to the harmonious coexistence of humanity and nature. Building an ecological civilization is a long-term plan for the sustainable development of the Chinese nation. We must establish and practice the concept that "lucid waters and lush mountains are invaluable assets," adhere to the basic national policy of conserving resources and protecting the environment, treat the ecological environment as we would our own lives, coordinate the systematic governance of mountains, rivers, forests, fields, lakes, and grasslands, implement the strictest ecological and environmental protection system, form green development and lifestyle patterns, firmly follow the path of civilized development characterized by production growth, a prosperous life, and a sound ecology, build a beautiful China, create a good production and living environment for the people, and contribute to global ecological security.

III. Striving for Two "Fifteen-Year" Periods to Achieve Ecological Goals

In his speech "Securing a Decisive Victory in Building a Moderately Prosperous Society in All Respects and Embarking on a New Journey of Building a Modern Socialist Country in All Respects," Xi Jinping comprehensively analyzed the international and domestic situation and my country's development conditions, dividing the period from 2020 to the middle of this century into two stages.

The first stage, from 2020 to 2035, involves another fifteen years of striving on the basis of building a moderately prosperous society in all respects to basically realize socialist modernization. The ecological environment will fundamentally improve, and the goal of a beautiful China will be basically achieved.

The second stage, from 2035 to the middle of this century, will be a period of 15 years of hard work, building upon the foundation of basic modernization, to transform my country into a prosperous, strong, democratic, culturally advanced, harmonious, and beautiful socialist modern country. By then, my country's material, political, spiritual, social, and ecological civilization will be comprehensively enhanced, its national governance system and capacity will be modernized, and it will become a leading nation in comprehensive national strength and international influence. Common prosperity for all the people will be basically achieved, and the Chinese people will enjoy a happier and healthier life. The Chinese nation will stand tall among the nations of the world with a more vigorous posture.

IV. Accelerating the Reform of the Ecological Civilization System and Building a Beautiful China

Human beings and nature are a community of life; humanity must respect, adapt to, and protect nature.

Xi Jinping pointed out that the modernization we are building is a modernization of harmonious coexistence between humanity and nature. It requires creating more material and spiritual wealth to meet the people's growing needs for a better life, and also providing more high-quality ecological products to meet the people's growing needs for a beautiful ecological environment. We must adhere to the principles of prioritizing conservation, prioritizing protection, and prioritizing natural restoration, forming a spatial pattern, industrial structure, production mode, and lifestyle that conserves resources and protects the environment, restoring tranquility, harmony, and beauty to nature. 

First, we must promote green development. We must accelerate the establishment of legal systems and policy guidance for green production and consumption, and establish a sound economic system for green, low-carbon, and circular development. We must build a market-oriented green technology innovation system, develop green finance, and strengthen the energy conservation and environmental protection industry, clean production industry, and clean energy industry. We must promote a revolution in energy production and consumption, and build a clean, low-carbon, safe, and efficient energy system. We must promote comprehensive resource conservation and recycling, implement the national water conservation action, reduce energy and material consumption, and achieve circular linkages between production and living systems. We must advocate a simple, moderate, green, and low-carbon lifestyle, oppose extravagance, waste, and unreasonable consumption, and carry out actions such as creating resource-saving government agencies, green families, green schools, green communities, and green travel.

Second, we must focus on solving prominent environmental problems. We must adhere to the principle of joint governance by all and source control, continue to implement the air pollution prevention and control action, and win the battle for blue skies. We must accelerate water pollution prevention and control, and implement comprehensive management of river basin environments and nearshore sea areas. We must strengthen soil pollution control and remediation, strengthen the prevention and control of agricultural non-point source pollution, and carry out rural living environment improvement actions. We must strengthen the disposal of solid waste and garbage. Raise pollution emission standards, strengthen the responsibility of polluters, and improve systems such as environmental credit evaluation, mandatory information disclosure, and severe penalties. Build an environmental governance system led by the government, with enterprises as the main body, and with the joint participation of social organizations and the public. Actively participate in global environmental governance and fulfill emission reduction commitments.

Third, strengthen ecosystem protection. Implement major projects for the protection and restoration of important ecosystems, optimize the ecological security barrier system, build ecological corridors and biodiversity protection networks, and improve the quality and stability of ecosystems. Complete the delineation of the three control lines: ecological protection red lines, permanent basic farmland, and urban development boundaries. Carry out national greening actions, promote comprehensive management of desertification, rocky desertification, and soil erosion, strengthen wetland protection and restoration, and enhance geological disaster prevention and control. Improve the natural forest protection system and expand the conversion of farmland to forest and grassland. Strictly protect arable land, expand pilot projects for crop rotation and fallow, improve the system for the restoration and recuperation of arable land, grasslands, forests, rivers, and lakes, and establish a market-oriented and diversified ecological compensation mechanism.

Fourth, reform the ecological and environmental supervision system. Strengthen the overall design and organizational leadership of ecological civilization construction, establish state-owned natural resource asset management and natural ecological supervision agencies, improve the ecological environment management system, unify the exercise of the responsibilities of the owner of all state-owned natural resource assets, unify the exercise of all land use control and ecological protection and restoration responsibilities, and unify the exercise of supervision over various types of urban and rural pollution emissions and administrative law enforcement responsibilities. Construct a land space development and protection system, improve supporting policies for functional zoning, and establish a nature reserve system with national parks as the main body. Resolutely stop and punish acts that damage the ecological environment.

Xi Jinping emphasized that ecological civilization construction benefits the present and future generations. We must firmly establish a socialist ecological civilization perspective, promote the formation of a new pattern of modernization construction in which humans and nature develop harmoniously, and make our generation's efforts to protect the ecological environment.