Recently, at the construction site of the Tengfei Bridge for the emergency flood control project (Beitan Village to Xiaoying transverse dike section) in the Zhuozhou section of the North Juma River, over 30 dump trucks, 8 excavators, and 4 bulldozers are conducting earthwork to heighten and reinforce the right dike of the North Juma River.

　　The summer 2023 flood caused the river to overflow its channel, severely affecting parts of Zhuozhou City, Hebei Province, located 1.5 kilometers south of the right dike.

　　Zhuozhou City, adjacent to Beijing, has numerous rivers, including six major flood discharge channels: the North Juma River, Baigou River, Yongding River, Xiaoqing River, Liuli River, and Huliang River, as well as the Langouwa flood storage and detention area and the Xiaoqing River flood diversion area. Flood control tasks during the flood season have always been challenging. Last year's catastrophic flood made Zhuozhou one of the most severely affected areas in Hebei Province.

　　"During last year's flood, although the Xiaoqing River flood diversion area on the opposite bank was activated in time, the flooded area still reached 60% of Zhuozhou's urban area, with the deepest water reaching five to six meters. The North Juma River emergency flood control project—the Zhuozhou section emergency flood control project (Beitan Village to Xiaoying transverse dike section)—will be functional for flood control by the end of June this year," said Ma Zhenzhou, deputy director of the Water Conservancy Project Construction Management Section of the Zhuozhou Water Resources Bureau.

　　Dikes block water, and diversion gates are ancillary. At the Xingfu Canal diversion gate of the Zhuozhou section emergency flood control project, located 4.4 kilometers from Tengfei Bridge and about 800 meters north of Diaowo Town in Zhuozhou City. During last year's flood, this gate failed to function due to years of disrepair. Now, construction workers are demolishing and rebuilding it; excavation and foundation treatment for the new gate have been completed, and the main construction phase is about to begin.

　　"The Zhuozhou section emergency flood control project (Beitan Village to Xiaoying transverse dike section) is the first major water conservancy 'shortcoming remediation' project to start construction in Hebei Province after last year's catastrophic flood in the Haihe River Basin," said Bian Wenhui, deputy director of the Hebei Provincial Department of Water Resources. The project started in November last year, heightening and reinforcing or newly building the right dike of the North Juma River, constructing the east dike of the Xingfu Canal, and building four dike-crossing sluices and culverts. The treatment length is 18.3 kilometers. The main works will be completed by the end of June this year, providing flood control capability.

　　After the North Juma River, Xiaoqing River, and Liuli River converge, the river is renamed the Baigou River, a key flood discharge channel in the Daqing River Basin. At the left bank of the Baigou River at Dongci Village east of Zhuozhou City, this was a key flood-fighting area during last year's flood.

　　At the construction site of the Dongci Village critical section on the left dike of the Zhuozhou section of the Baigou River improvement project, 7 excavators, loaders, and 8 dump trucks are performing dike slope protection leveling and river channel dredging.

　　Li Jiang, a first-level principal staff member of the Zhuozhou Water Resources Bureau, explained that the Baigou River improvement project (Zhuozhou section) includes heightening and thickening the left and right dikes and hardening the dike crest roads for 19.93 kilometers and 19 kilometers respectively, dredging the main channel for 25.85 kilometers, and protecting 7 critical sections. Currently, all dike earthwork filling has been completed, 90% of the dike slope protection works are done, and all construction tasks are expected to be completed by the end of April this year.

　　"On the opposite bank (right bank of the Baigou River) is the Beigouwa flood storage and detention area, which was activated during last year's flood. After the flood diversion ended, we began repairing the diversion gate dike in September last year, and the main works are now basically complete," said Wang Dongwei, deputy mayor of Zhuozhou City in charge of water resources.

　　Wang Dongwei stated that in addition to the Baigou River improvement project, the Baigou River Zhuozhou section diversion gate emergency repair project, and the North Juma River Zhuozhou section emergency flood control project, Zhuozhou City has six other key water conservancy projects under construction or in preliminary preparation, including the Xiaoqing River flood diversion area construction project and the Langouwa flood storage and detention area construction project. They are all being accelerated to ensure construction and completion on schedule, to bring project benefits into play as soon as possible, and to safeguard people's lives and property.

　　In 2023, the central government issued an additional 1 trillion yuan in government bonds to support post-disaster recovery and reconstruction and projects to enhance disaster prevention, mitigation, and relief capabilities. All nine water conservancy projects in Zhuozhou City have actively applied for government bond funding support.

　　Zhang Xiangwei, director of the Planning and Program Department of the Ministry of Water Resources, introduced that the Ministry is guiding local governments to make full use of the additional 1 trillion yuan in central government bonds issued in 2023, focusing on post-disaster recovery and reconstruction in northern China, using funds where they are most needed, and promoting high-quality project construction.