Opinions on Strengthening Mine Water Protection and Utilization by the National Development and Reform Commission, etc.

NDRC and MEE [2024] No. 226

Development and Reform Commissions of all provinces, autonomous regions, and municipalities directly under the Central Government; Water Conservancy (Water Affairs) Departments (Bureaus); Competent authorities for natural resources; Ecological and Environmental Protection Departments (Bureaus); Emergency Management Departments (Bureaus); Market Regulation Bureaus (Departments, Commissions); Energy Bureaus; Mine Safety Supervision Departments:

In recent years, while China's capacity for the conservation and utilization of mine well water has been continuously improving, and the utilization rate has grown steadily, many problems still exist, such as unbalanced regional development, unclear baseline statistics, incomplete policy and standards, unfinished technical equipment, and inadequate protection and utilization. These guidelines are hereby formulated to further promote the conservation and utilization of mine well water, alleviate water resources shortages, protect the ecological environment, and support high-quality development of the energy resource industry. These guidelines mainly target coal mine well water; non-coal mine well water conservation and utilization should be implemented on a reference basis.

1. Overall requirements

(1) Guiding ideology

Guided by Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, we will fully implement the spirit of the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, thoroughly implement Xi Jinping Thought on Ecological Civilization, implement General Secretary Xi Jinping's important expositions on water control, and implement "priority to water conservation, balanced space, and systematic governance"., we will work hard with both hands to control water, implement the new development concept completely, accurately and comprehensively, implement the comprehensive conservation strategy, use technological innovation as the driving force, and improve processing capabilities and strengthen pipe network construction as the basis. Supported by improving policy standards, we will promote the protection, classified treatment, and comprehensive utilization of mine water sources, strengthen overall coordination, strengthen constraints and incentives, effectively alleviate coal-water conflicts in Kuangqu mining areas, promote high-quality development, and accelerate the construction of a beautiful China.

(ii) Primary Objective

By 2025, the utilization rate of mine water nationwide will continue to improve, with the Yellow River Basin striving to reach over 68%. The policy system and market mechanism for mine water protection and utilization will be basically established. By 2030, the system of mine water management, market regulation mechanism, and technical support capabilities will be continuously enhanced, and the efficiency and benefit of mine water utilization will be further improved.

Strengthen the protection of water sources in mines

(3) Implement source control. The overall planning of mining areas and environmental impact assessment of the planning should clearly specify the aquifers that need to be protected in the region, fully demonstrate the degree of impact of coal mining on groundwater, and rationally plan mining areas. For areas that may cause significant adverse effects on groundwater recharge, runoff, and drainage, construction units should formulate measures and plans to prevent adverse effects on groundwater. The design of new coal mines should select water resource protection measures tailored to local conditions based on mining conditions. Existing and future coal mines should strictly implement the requirements of mining area planning and environmental impact assessment and should not arbitrarily exploit areas that may cause serious damage to groundwater resources. For areas that have been approved for exploitation, construction units should, based on the hydrogeological conditions of the mining area, scientifically formulate feasible water resource protection and comprehensive utilization of mine water plans, optimize the layout of mining and extraction of the well field, rationally select water-saving mining technology, minimize the impact of coal mining on water resources, promote the reduction of mine water inflow, and effectively protect groundwater. Promote the construction of coal and mine water dual-resource mines and coordinate exploitation and protection of the ecological environment.

(4) Reasonable selection of management process. Carry out in-depth feasibility analysis and environmental impact assessment. On the basis of ensuring scientific, effective, safe and reliable technical process and controllable environmental impact and emission up to standard, consider technical economy and select management process according to local conditions. For the Hu Bei type coal field coal seam floor aquifer influence area, promote the adoption of ultra-regional management, structural area local grouting reinforcement and plugging, etc. technology, and prevent and control the floor confined water from entering the mine. For the northwest, northeast, etc. coal seam roof sandstone aquifer influence area, encourage the adoption of special mining process, promote aquifer lateral curtain cut-off, water permeable skylight and water-isolating weak area restoration management, etc., and reduce the underground water loss of the main aquifer. For the southwest karst aquifer influence area, promote the adoption of comprehensive exploration and karst channel local grouting curtain, ground sinkhole backfilling, etc., to change the replenishment conditions of the karst water system in the local area of the mining area, encourage the construction of surface vegetation ecosystem in the karst exposed area of the mining area, and reduce the direct replenishment of karst water system by atmospheric precipitation. For the water hazard control where it is necessary to adopt the aquifer drainage method, promote the adoption of controlled drainage technology, formulate special safety technical measures, and scientifically control the drainage water volume on the premise of ensuring safety, meeting the requirements of groundwater resources protection and ecological environmental protection. Mines that are about to be closed down should carry out pre-closure prevention and control, assess and predict the mine water inflow, and prevent and control the acid mine water inflow by adopting measures such as reducing replenishment and mine backfilling.

(5) Implement safety supervision. Strengthen the supervision measures of "one mine, one plan" for coal mine water, carry out special inspection of water hazard prevention and control, and focus on the construction of monitoring facilities for mine water inflow, drainage facilities, and water-proof and sealing facilities. Strengthen the construction of emergency response capabilities for coal mines, establish a coal mine safety emergency response mechanism, build a coal mine safety production risk monitoring and early warning platform, and organize and carry out emergency drills on a regular basis.

3. Promote the graded treatment of mine water compartments

(6) Intelligent and scaled treatment of mine water containing suspended matter. For the mine with large water yield, on the premise of taking effective treatment measures of the mine water source, it is encouraged to construct sewage and sludge separation and distribution devices, carry out hierarchical treatment at the source, and use it in different qualities under the condition that the technology and economy are reasonable. Mine water containing suspended matter is pumped to the ground for large-scale centralized treatment. Mines with favourable conditions can adopt underground treatment methods such as void area filtration, backwashing filtration, high-density clarification, and heavy medium rapid sedimentation to achieve the goal of water entering the bin and being reused directly underground. It is encouraged to use automated control systems such as informatization monitoring, automatic medication, mud discharging, and early warning to improve the intelligent level of water treatment in the mines. Enterprises are encouraged to establish and improve emergency treatment plans for mine water, and construct and utilize surface and underground emergency water pools (bins) or emergency treatment facilities for water quality buffering and regulation.

(7) Graded green treatment of water in high-mineralization mines. For water in high-mineralization mines, pretreatment and desalination processes should be reasonably selected based on the type of salt content, the amount of salt content and the total amount of solids. Near-zero emission treatment can be explored and implemented in Ningdong and Mengdong. Encourage the application of seawater desalination technology to the treatment of mine water, and promote the use of desalination processes such as membrane concentration and reverse osmosis. For mines with conditions, the surrounding waste heat and waste energy can be utilized, or new energy sources such as geothermal energy and solar energy can be developed to adopt thermal desalination methods such as photothermal evaporation and low-temperature multi-effect evaporation to achieve green and energy-saving desalination. The high-salt wastewater after treatment should be strictly standardized and disposed of. It can be disposed of by constructing and operating ground evaporation ponds in accordance with relevant specifications to avoid environmental pollution risks. Encourage the resource utilization of crystallized salt as chemical raw materials. Crystallized salt that is temporarily not used or cannot be used should be stored in accordance with relevant regulations.

(VIII) Efficient targeted treatment of acidic and special component mine water. For acidic mine water, it is promoted to adopt wellhead pretreatment and ground deep treatment processes to reduce the corrosion of pipelines and equipment during long-distance transportation. For mine water containing special components, select the corresponding treatment process according to the type of components contained, and promote the targeted and efficient treatment of high-fluoride mine water. Adsorption, precipitation, membrane and other defluorination technologies are adopted, and distributed targeted treatment equipment is promoted. Focus on the centralized closure of mining areas and strengthen the treatment of acidic mine water. For the acidic mine water generated after the closure of remote mining areas, it is encouraged to explore natural restoration methods for treatment under the premise of ensuring that it does not affect the production and living water of the masses.

4. Promote the Comprehensive Utilization of Mine Water

(9) Strengthen mine water allocation. Incorporate mine water into regional water resources planning and unified allocation of water resources, prefecture-level cities where coal mines are located formulate mine water treatment and comprehensive utilization plans and annual plans, and build mine water utilization projects. Accelerate the construction of mine water transmission pipe networks, scientifically allocate water volume, and optimize the allocation of ecological water sources for domestic production. Focusing on the main water gushing Kuangqu areas with relatively stable water volume and concentrated distribution, we will support the construction of large-scale mine water treatment facilities and supporting pipe network projects such as centralized water supply pipe networks, joint debugging and joint supply pipe networks. Strict water intake permits. Enterprises that have the conditions to utilize mine water but have not fully utilized it are not allowed to mine and use other surface water and groundwater for production water and domestic miscellaneous water. When building water projects in key coal-producing areas such as eastern Gansu, Ningdong, western Mongolia, northern Shaanxi, and western Shanxi, mine water should be fully utilized instead of surface water.

(10) Production and daily utilization. After mine water treatment meets the standard, it should be fully used for production and daily use in Kuangqu. Promote the underground treatment and on-site reuse of mine water with good water quality as water for underground dust prevention, cooling, and emulsion preparation. Promote underground water treatment and water supply and cascade utilization. After routine treatment, it can be used for dust reduction and coal washing on the ground at coal preparation plants, waste piles and other ground. If it meets greening water standards, it can be used for watering greening. After advanced treatment, mine water can be used as production water in coal chemical industry and other industries, and as circulating cooling water in thermal power, steel and other industries. In qualified Kuangqu, mine water that meets the requirements of water quality standards can be transported to industrial parks, enterprises or surrounding towns for production water and municipal miscellaneous use. Where conditions permit, mine water can be used to build water source heat pumps for district heating.

(eleven) Water for ecological and agricultural use. Through local measures, mine water can be processed to meet standards and used for ecological water, such as repairing and rectifying coal mining subsidence areas in resource-deficient and water-deficient areas in the north. In water-deficient areas with poor water quality in the south, on the premise of ensuring stable discharge meeting standards for mine water, it can be used to replenish nearby natural water bodies and river and lake wetlands, and strengthen the supervision of industrial and mining enterprises. In Loess gully mining areas, it is important to explore the use of processed mine water meeting standards to transfer to the top of the mountain for self-flowing irrigation of forests and grass. In the middle and lower reaches of the Yellow River mining areas, the ecological restoration model of mine water used for artificial wetlands in subsidence areas shall be promoted, to enhance the ecological barrier effect. In groundwater over-extraction areas, relevant enterprises shall bear the main responsibility and make full use of mine water; for any remaining mine water, they shall, after lawful and compliant scientific assessment of the impact on the safety of the mine and the regional water environment, explore the feasibility of recharging or storing the mine water in the groundwater after deep treatment and reaching the water quality standard, and they shall set up water volume, water level, and water quality metering and monitoring systems to transmit relevant monitoring data to the local government water resources monitoring platform in real time. It is necessary to encourage the use of mine water that has been processed to meet standards for afforestation, combined with the prevention and control of soil salinization. In severely water-deficient areas of the Yellow River Basin, the use of mine water that has been processed to meet standards in pasture areas is encouraged; the use of mine water that has been processed to meet standards for ecological water in the basin is permitted on the premise of meeting ecological and environmental protection requirements, as a substitute for groundwater and surface water.

V. Improve the system and mechanism of mine water utilization

(12) Improve statistical metering and assessment system. Establish a complete and sound statistics, metering and monitoring system for mine water. Provincial (district, municipal) governments involved in mining areas shall conduct a comprehensive investigation of mine water statistics with municipalities as the basic unit, and lay a solid foundation for data related to the generation, treatment and utilization of mine water. Improve the statistical system for the comprehensive utilization rate of mine water, and include the amount of water used for irrigating ecological restoration in mining areas after the water meets treatment standards in the statistics of comprehensive utilization of mine water. Improve metering facilities for mine water, promote full coverage of water discharge metering monitoring and drainage water quality monitoring of productive mines, accurately record the production volume, utilization volume, utilization method and discharge volume of mine water, and install groundwater level monitoring facilities as required. Strengthen regular inspection and maintenance of metering facilities, and replace damaged metering facilities in a timely manner. Factories and mines should transmit real-time data such as mine flooding volume and extraction volume, new water extraction volume, groundwater level and water quality to the local government's water resource monitoring platform, and fully connect with the groundwater monitoring system. Municipal governments where coal mines are located shall clarify the targets for mine water utilization volume and utilization rate, and assessment requirements. They shall decompose quantitative target tasks to coal mining enterprises, and establish a complete reward and punishment mechanism.

(13) Improve policy standards. Further improve water resource argumentation, groundwater control and requirements for the management of unconventional water sources and mine water. Improve the framework of the fair competition system and policy implementation mechanism and continuously optimize a stable, fair, transparent, and predictable development environment. Formulate and revise series standards and technical specifications for the use of mine water in different fields and with different qualities and formulate, in due course, standards for the energy consumption of mine water treatment and mine area groundwater replenishment. Encourage the nine provinces (regions) in the Yellow River Basin and the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region to carry out pilot work to formulate discharge standards for high-mineralization mine water based on regional characteristics. Encourage social groups to issue group standards for innovative large-scale mine water treatment and utilization engineering equipment, core technical products, and evaluation methods. Actively participate in the formulation of international standards. Promote coal production enterprises to disclose environmental information in accordance with the law and build an environmental credit supervision system for the coal industry.

(14) Improve the price and taxation mechanism. Establish a user-pays system and encourage water supply and demand parties of mine water to independently negotiate pricing in accordance with the principle of better quality and higher price. Explore promoting the inclusion of mine water in water rights trading. Gradually advance the pilot reform of water resources tax and implement preferential tax policies such as immediate refund of value-added tax for enterprises using mine water to produce reclaimed water in accordance with current regulations.

(15) Improve fiscal and financial policies. The central government provides appropriate support to eligible projects through existing channels. Local governments are encouraged to design diversified mechanisms to ensure funding. Expand financing channels, guide and regulate the participation of social capital in project construction and operation, and encourage enterprises to adopt financing methods such as green finance and green bonds. Explore the implementation of the Eco-environment Oriented Development (EOD) model.

(XVI) Strengthen scientific and technological support. Promote breakthroughs in key technologies for mine water protection and utilization, deploy relevant tasks to carry out scientific and technological innovations such as desalination, multi-path disposal, and comprehensive utilization, and support the construction of scientific and technological innovation bases for mine water protection and utilization. Promote the construction of a number of key engineering projects for the application of advanced mine water treatment equipment in the coal industry. Carry out research on new technologies such as new reagents, intelligent monitoring, ecological desalination, renewable energy-coupled desalination, nanofiltration, and other new separation membranes to achieve high-efficiency and low-cost applications. Encourage enterprises to overcome the bottleneck of key core equipment manufacturing.

VI. Safeguard Measures

(XVII) Strengthen organizational coordination. In accordance with the principles of centralized planning by the Central Committee, overall responsibility by the provinces, and implementation by the cities and counties, ensure the implementation of the guiding opinions. The National Development and Reform Commission will strengthen comprehensive coordination; the Ministry of Water Resources will strengthen the management of water extraction permits, allocation, utilization, monitoring, and metering; the Ministry of Ecology and Environment will strengthen the supervision of emission standards and water quality; the Ministry of Emergency Management and the State Mine Safety Administration will strengthen safety management; the National Energy Administration will strengthen the management of the coal industry; and other departments such as the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, the Ministry of Natural Resources, and the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development will perform related work in accordance with their respective responsibilities, forming a concerted effort to promote the implementation of various measures. The municipal and county governments where the mining areas are located shall formulate work plans, clarify task targets, and ensure the completion of all tasks.

(Eighteen) Strengthening supervision and management. Strictly implementing the requirements of incorporating mine water into the unified allocation of water resources and incorporating it into the strictest water resources management system assessment. Strengthen the supervision of mine water treatment to meet emission standards, carry out long-time series dynamic monitoring of mine water, mine water discharge water quality, groundwater level, and water ecological environment characteristic indicators, improve the regular release mechanism of groundwater monitoring, and gradually establish a risk prevention and early warning system covering the whole process of protection, treatment, and utilization of mine water to ensure the safe treatment and utilization of mine water.

(19) Increase publicity efforts. Strengthen the education of national conditions and water conditions, and popularize the basic knowledge of mine water. Combine publicity activities with themes such as World Water Day and China Water Week, leverage the role of large coal bases, water-saving education social practice bases, and so on. Carry out publicity and practical activities in a wide and deep manner through various means to enhance the public's awareness and recognition of mine water utilization and strengthen their willingness to use it. Improve public participation mechanisms, give full play to social supervision and industry self-discipline, and create a good atmosphere for mine water protection and utilization.

National Development and Reform Commission, Ministry of Water Resources, Ministry of Ecology and Environment, Ministry of Emergency Management, Ministry of Market Supervision, General Administration of National Energy Administration

State Mine Safety Administration

February 23, 2024