Water networks, as a critical component of major infrastructure, serve as foundational safeguards for economic and social development. The Guangdong Provincial Party Committee and Provincial Government have issued the "Guangdong Province Water Network Construction Plan," planning and reserving backbone water network projects with a total investment of 1.3 trillion yuan. The Guangdong Provincial Water Resources Department is accelerating the construction of a water network overall layout with "five verticals, five horizontals, hundreds of rivers, and hundreds of hubs" as the framework, nodes, and ties, coordinating efforts in water resource allocation, flood control safety, green ecology, rural water conservancy, and digital twin water network construction, achieving phased results.

By the first half of 2026, the backbone water network projects are being rapidly constructed, with a cumulative investment of 49.15 billion yuan, continuously enhancing the province's water security capabilities. The support capability of the water resource allocation network is steadily strengthening. The construction of backbone water network projects is accelerating. For the Beibu Gulf Ring Guangdong Water Resource Allocation Project, pipeline construction completed 12.1 kilometers this year, accounting for 50.4% of the annual task, with a cumulative 193.4 kilometers completed, representing 84.5% of the total pipeline length. The subsequent optimization project for connecting the Hanjiang, Rongjiang, and Lianjiang rivers has reached full water supply conditions. Preliminary work for projects such as the eastern wing of the Guangdong coastal economic belt's water resource guarantee project (including the Longjing Reservoir expansion project) is progressing orderly. The construction of regional water resource allocation projects is also accelerating, with projects like the Shenshan Cooperation Zone water diversion and the Daxi Water Huaide Reservoir achieving significant phased progress, steadily enhancing the province's capacity for unified water resource allocation and dispatch.

The flood control safety network's guarantee capability is continuously improving. Construction of the Qingyuan Huangmaoxia Reservoir Project, a landmark major water conservancy project under the national "Two Priorities" initiative, is accelerating, with an annual investment of 602 million yuan completed. Key flood control reservoir projects such as the Guangzhou Dafengmen Reservoir are also being expedited. Focusing on weak links in flood control, the province is persistently advancing projects like reinforcement of embankments to meet standards, reinforcement of dangerous reservoirs and sluice gates, treatment of small and medium-sized rivers, and prevention of mountain torrent disasters. As of the end of June, the embankment reinforcement campaign had completed initial design approvals for 2,297 kilometers of embankments, reinforced 1,782 dangerous reservoirs, and treated over 1,500 kilometers of small and medium-sized rivers, continuously improving the province's flood control and disaster reduction engineering system.

The achievements of the green ecological network continue to expand. Three rivers, including the Wuhe River, have been newly added to the Ministry of Water Resources' list of Happy River and Lake Construction Projects. The first batch of 16 counties (cities, districts, and towns) has been deployed to carry out comprehensive Happy River and Lake construction, promoting 106 mother rivers and backbone rivers and lakes to become happy waterways. The province has cumulatively built 8,263.26 kilometers of the "Wanli Blueway," 414.88 kilometers of green and beautiful belts, and 498 happy rivers and lakes. A "four-pronged" approach is being implemented to clear silt from ponds, rivers, and channels during the winter and spring seasons, with 32.23 million cubic meters of silt cleared in the 2026 fiscal year. The construction and operation of over 300 green water economy projects are being orderly promoted, with an annual investment of 3.31 billion yuan completed. An additional 45 square kilometers of soil erosion control have been completed, and nine national key soil and water conservation projects are under construction, marking a new milestone in river and lake ecological protection and governance.

The universal service level of the rural water conservancy network is steadily improving. Provincial rural water supply project construction has completed an investment of 3.586 billion yuan. The construction of small-scale water diversion projects supported by central government funds is accelerating. The rural tap water penetration rate has stabilized at over 99.5%, with the proportion of the rural population served by large-scale water supply systems reaching 90.66%. All counties (cities, districts) in the province involved in rural water supply have basically established a county-wide unified management mechanism. Efforts are being made to advance the modernization and transformation of large and medium-sized irrigation districts. The feasibility study report for the Leizhou Peninsula Irrigation District Project has received project approval, with preparatory construction starting on March 8, 2026. As of the end of June, a cumulative investment of 193 million yuan has been completed. All four medium-sized irrigation district renovation and modernization projects included in the central government investment plan have commenced, with an investment of 55.82 million yuan completed.

Breakthroughs have been achieved in the construction of the digital twin water network. The digital twin water network for the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (Eastern Section) has achieved data sharing across four levels: ministry, province, city, and project. It has built an application scenario for "four previsions" (forecast, early warning, rehearsal, and plan) for cross-basin water resource allocation and flood defense, winning second prize in the Digital Twin Water Conservancy category of the 2026 Digital China Innovation Competition and the National Trustworthiness Model Award. The "major project + digital twin" three-synchronization mechanism is being deepened. Major projects like the Beibu Gulf Ring Guangdong Water Resource Allocation, Huangmaoxia Reservoir, and Leizhou Peninsula Irrigation District are simultaneously developing and constructing digital twins. The construction of the Ministry of Water Resources' Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area Perception and Intelligent Control Technology Innovation Center and the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area Water Science and Technology Innovation Center is being coordinated, rapidly forming a new pattern of digitally-enabled water development.

Reform and innovation are steadily progressing. The "Nanyue Dayu" water conservancy project construction management standard system is being actively established. The full lifecycle construction management model for the Huangmaoxia Reservoir Project and the Beibu Gulf Ring Guangdong Water Resource Allocation Project is being refined. Water conservancy investment and financing models are being innovated. The declaration and issuance of the Guangdong-Hongkong water infrastructure REITs project are being advanced in an unconventional manner, with asset restructuring for the Feilaixia Water Conservancy Hub and Chaozhou Water Supply Hub both completed. Quality and safety supervision of major projects is being strengthened. The "administrative + technical" station-based supervision model is being innovatively implemented, with regular supervision, inspection, research, and quality testing. The pass rate for random project entity quality tests has reached 99.4%, effectively ensuring the stable construction of provincial major water conservancy projects.