Recently, at the construction site of the Yuanwan Reservoir Project located in Guangshan County, Xinyang City, the concrete dam has already taken shape and the upper structure is under construction; the civil works for the hydropower station powerhouse, the water release sluice, and the regulating sluice have all been completed, and building construction is now underway; the fishway outlet pool channel section is undergoing construction of metal structures and the service bridge...

The Yuanwan Reservoir Project is one of the 150 major national water conservancy projects and is also a ***** major water conservancy project launched by Henan Province during the 14th Five-Year Plan period. As of June 30, the Yuanwan Reservoir Project had completed an investment of 696 million yuan in 2024, accounting for 51.6% of the annual investment plan of 1.35 billion yuan, achieving a "double over half" in both annual investment and construction tasks.

"This is also the third important goal achieved this year after the project successfully achieved a strong first-quarter start and the pre-flood-season milestone targets, laying a solid foundation for exceeding the annual targets and tasks and for the second river closure," said Yan Shipo, chairman of Henan Water Investment Yuanwan Reservoir Engineering Co., Ltd.

The Xixiayuan Water Conservancy Hub water conveyance and irrigation district project also achieved a "double over half" in annual investment and construction tasks, completing an investment of 441.3 million yuan in the first half of the year, accounting for 50.48% of the annual investment plan.

Some major water conservancy projects have already begun to deliver benefits during construction. At the end of last year, the Xiaolangdi North Bank Irrigation District Project, one of the 172 national water-saving and water-supply major water conservancy projects and one of the province's top ten water conservancy projects, began trial water conveyance. At the end of May this year, affected by persistent drought and low rainfall, the water storage of Quyang Lake and Yuyang Lake, supporting storage projects of the Xiaolangdi North Bank Irrigation District, decreased, facing problems such as insufficient water sources and difficulties in diverting and transferring water, which affected urban domestic and industrial water use in the Jiyuan Demonstration Zone. To alleviate the water shortage, the Xiaolangdi North Bank Irrigation District quickly launched emergency water supply work in early June, transferring a total of 1.2 million cubic meters of water.

Major water conservancy projects play an obvious role in stabilizing investment, benefiting people's livelihoods, and promoting employment, laying a solid foundation for water security support for high-quality economic and social development. Water conveyance, acceptance, commencement... In the first half of this year, good news has been frequent in the construction of major water conservancy projects in Henan Province.

The second phase of the Zhaokou Yellow River Diversion Irrigation District Project was officially put into water conveyance, and the Zhaokou Irrigation District—the ** largest irrigation district in Henan Province with a planned design irrigation area of 5.87 million mu—was officially completed.

The Yangtze-to-Huaihe Water Diversion Project (Henan Section), one of the 172 national water-saving and water-supply major water conservancy projects and one of the province's top ten water conservancy projects, successfully passed the acceptance for water conveyance and pump station unit startup and is about to enter the operation and management stage, benefiting 8.7 million people in eastern Henan.

The reconstruction project of the Yellow River diversion culvert gates on the lower reaches of the Yellow River, one of the 150 major national water conservancy projects, has made new progress. The five culvert gates whose construction began in 2023 passed water conveyance acceptance. Since then, all 15 culvert gates in the Henan section of the Yellow River have completed water conveyance acceptance, involving 14 Yellow River diversion irrigation districts including Dagong Irrigation District and People's Victory Canal, with the total designed irrigation area of each Yellow River diversion irrigation district exceeding 10 million mu.

While major water conservancy projects have been completed and put into use to deliver benefits, new major water conservancy projects have also been approved and started. The feasibility study report for the Zhaopingtai Reservoir expansion project, included in the national 14th Five-Year Plan for Water Security, was approved by the National Development and Reform Commission, raising and expanding the existing Zhaopingtai Reservoir dam into a large (1) type reservoir; at the end of June, the Chushandian Reservoir Irrigation District Project and the Qianping Reservoir Irrigation District Project—major water conservancy projects of the state and Henan Province—started construction successively. The two irrigation districts will add a total irrigation area of 1.035 million mu, involving 9 counties (cities and districts) in 4 provincial-level municipalities.

It is learned from the Provincial Department of Water Resources that the major water conservancy projects implemented in Henan Province this year include 454 projects in 7 categories, including flood control and disaster reduction, irrigation district renovation, water ecological governance, urban and rural water supply, water system connectivity, water environment improvement, and digital twins, with a total investment of 51.724 billion yuan, which is of great and far-reaching significance to building Henan's modern water network and promoting the high-quality development of water conservancy in Henan.