National Ecology Day | Xinhua News Agency: China Water Environment Group Reshaps Urban Water Ecology with Technological Innovation

Recently, as the third National Ecological Day approaches, a picture of the integration and mutual promotion of ecological protection and economic development is extending from Nanming River in Guiyang to the shore of Erhai Lake. China Water Environment Group has quietly reshaped the urban water network in 22 provinces across the country with innovative distributed sinking regenerated water ecosystem technology, transforming traditional "neighbor avoidance" sewage treatment plants into urban new infrastructure cores that integrate water supply, energy recovery, and ecological services, vividly practicing the concept of "protecting ecology is developing productivity".

Avoiding neighbors becomes benefiting neighbors, underground factories reshape urban space

The dilemma of "avoiding neighbors" in sewage treatment plants that once plagued cities is now being solved by technology. China Water Environment Group uses distributed sinking recycled water technology to hide sewage plants underground and release precious ground space. At the Bishui Reclaimed Water Plant in Tongzhou, Beijing, the previously 323 acre above ground factory area has been transformed into a sunken reclaimed water plant with a capacity of 180000 tons, saving 330 acres of land. This land has now become an ecological park shared by citizens, and the sewage treatment plant has been completely transformed into a 'neighborhood benefit facility'. The main indicators of its effluent reach the Class IV standard for surface water, and continue to deliver high-quality recycled water for the urban green center and Universal Studios.

Wastewater becomes a resource, closed-loop utilization activates urban metabolism

Urban sewage should be a stable water resource, "said Hou Feng, Chairman of China Water Environment Group, emphasizing the innovation of concepts. Faced with an annual discharge of 75 billion cubic meters of urban sewage nationwide, the group has explored a new path for resource utilization. The Nanxiang project in Jiading, Shanghai will send the dried sludge (with a moisture content of 30% and a calorific value of 1500-2000 kcal/kg) to incineration for power generation; Waste heat from tailwater is used to provide heating for surrounding buildings, saving 15% of electricity consumption; The natural light lighting system saves 50% of power in the main channel and builds a resource recycling chain.

Karst model, the rebirth of Nanming River s the ecological value

In the extremely difficult karst area of Guiyang, the Nanming River "Guiyang Model" created by China Water Environment Group has become a benchmark for realizing ecological value. Through the distributed governance of "moderate concentration, on-site treatment, and nearby reuse", the sewage treatment capacity of millions of tons in the basin is integrated. Significant achievements: The black and odorous water bodies in the entire basin have disappeared, the coverage rate of submerged plants has jumped from 15% to 80%, and biodiversity has returned to prosperity.

Innovation Going Global, Chinese Technology Leads Green Future

At the 2025 Guiyang International Forum on Ecological Civilization, the "Efficient and Land saving Composite Biofilm (HBR) Wastewater Treatment Technology" independently developed by China Water Environment Group became the focus. This technology addresses the pain points of "tight land use, high standards, and high carbon emissions" in urban sewage treatment through three major breakthroughs in structure, materials, and control.

The children running in Tongzhou Park, the elderly fishing on the banks of Nanming River, and the graceful white egrets in Jiading Ecological Lake - these vibrant scenes are the silent witness of China Water Environment Group's decade long deep cultivation underground, using technological innovation to turn sewage into clear flow and the factory area into an oasis. The pain points of the city in the past have finally become the source of green development momentum.

News source: Xinhua News Agency