In a move to strengthen the conservation of the Yangtze River Basin, 17 central government bodies released a joint action plan on Sept 19, vowing a series of measures to reduce the discharge of pollutants into the river.

The plan projects that by 2025, direct discharges will have been addressed and a complete garbage classification system will have been established in the basin of Asia's longest watercourse.

Controlling drainage is also emphasized in the action plan, which states that "through work on intercepting pollution and enhanced treatment, the plan endeavors to address the illegal discharge of sewage into the Yangtze River".

In 2019, the Ministry of Ecology and Environment located over 60,000 sewer exits emptying into the Yangtze, its nine major tributaries and Taihu Lake after authorities combed some 24,000 kilometers of shoreline. Local authorities are now being asked to devise tailored rectification plans for each of the exits to ensure they operate in a properly regulated manner.

The plan mandates that this rectification work is to be completed by the end of 2025, with a long-term management mechanism also to be established. The document also highlighted efforts to curb desertification and the spread of rocky desert.

Some 75,000 hectares of land in the basin that currently suffer from desertification are to be treated by 2025, in addition to 1 million hectares of rocky desert.

The document noted that safety levels for drinking water will be improved, while the water use of important rivers and lakes will be regulated to improve the quality of water and of the environment.

The plan mandates the treatment of 97 percent of domestic waste in counties in the Yangtze River Economic Belt, and the elimination of what it terms "black and odorous water bodies" in built-up areas of county-level cities.