On September 22nd, the State Council Information Office hosted a press conference under the "Starting the 15th Five-Year Plan" series, detailing efforts to promote the safe, efficient, and sustainable use of natural resources. The conference addressed how land for over 2,800 major projects will be reserved to support key national construction initiatives.
Liu Guohong, Party Secretary of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Chief Inspector of Natural Resources, stated that efficient allocation of space and factors is being used to support high-quality development. He emphasised the joint construction and use of the "One Map" for territorial spatial planning, which reserves space for more than 2,800 major projects, serving key infrastructure networks. From January to August, the transaction value of exploration rights nationwide increased by 133.5% year-on-year, while investment in non-oil and gas mineral exploration rose by 8.1% in the first half of the year. New orders for marine vessels and marine engineering equipment grew by 83.7% and 160.8%, respectively, during the same period.
Regarding territorial spatial planning, Vice Minister Zhuang Shaoqin noted that during the "15th Five-Year Plan" period, the overall supply of new construction land resources will be sufficient. The key challenge lies in how to allocate and utilise these resources effectively. He outlined two approaches to enhance spatial coordination: first, strengthening alignment with national strategic spatial plans by implementing optimisation plans for functional zones, thereby reinforcing the combined effects of major strategic spaces and the guiding role of territorial planning over special plans. Second, following the principle that "projects follow planning and factors follow projects," a sound spatial access mechanism will be established, including a fast-track approval channel for major projects included in the "One Map," simplifying procedures to facilitate earlier commencement and implementation.
During the "15th Five-Year Plan" period, the Ministry will adapt to new urban development trends by shifting from an over-reliance on incremental land to revitalising existing land reserves, moving from simple resource transfer to resource management, and balancing immediate land transfer revenue with long-term value generation. Vice Minister Zhang Wentong stressed the importance of maintaining planning leadership, enforcing urban development control lines, and safeguarding public interests.
Liu Guohong added that spatial governance will be improved through the accelerated application of the "One Map" system. Resource allocation efficiency will be enhanced by implementing the special reporting system for natural resource assets, based on a unified asset ledger to reasonably allocate resources. The goal is to increase the national forest coverage rate to 25.8% by 2030.
Progress in protected area management was highlighted, with flagship species in national parks recovering. The population of Hainan gibbons has grown to 44 individuals, and wild Siberian tigers to 72. Last November, footage captured in the Northeast China Tiger and Leopard National Park showed a female tiger with five cubs, indicating improved habitat quality. New batches of integrated ecological restoration projects have been launched, and the "Three-North" Shelterbelt Program has completed 265 million mu of various tasks over three years, enhancing ecosystem quality and stability.
The National Forestry and Grassland Administration has drafted a plan for the "15th Five-Year Plan" period aiming for a forest coverage rate of 25.8%, a forest stock volume of 22.4 billion cubic meters, a grassland vegetation coverage of 51%, and stable protected areas covering 18% of the land area by 2030. The total output value of the forestry and grassland industry is targeted to reach 14 trillion yuan. Yan Zhen, Deputy Director of the Administration, mentioned plans to build national reserve forests in the south and modern pasture farms in the north to boost domestic supply of quality timber and forage, while utilising public welfare posts for ecological management to increase employment and income in these sectors.
To support sustainable resource use through systematic ecological protection and restoration, the Ministry will focus on improving ecosystem quality. This involves integrated conservation of mountains, rivers, forests, farmlands, grasslands, and deserts, completing the consolidation of protected areas, and promoting ecological industry models that benefit the public, expanding the pathways for converting ecological value into economic value.
The first dedicated legislation for farmland protection, the Farmland Protection and Quality Improvement Law, will take effect on January 1st next year. Food security remains a national priority, with farmland serving as the foundation for grain production. Liu Guohong stated that the Ministry will implement supporting policies around the law, focusing on stabilising quantity, optimising structure, and strengthening supervision.
Progress in mineral exploration has been significant. From January to August, new recoverable reserves of nearly 70 million tons of oil and 610 billion cubic meters of natural gas were added. The Chating copper-gold mine in Anhui and the Zhugongtang lead-zinc mine in Guizhou saw additions of ultra-large scale. In terms of disaster prevention, 38 Level 4 or higher geological disaster responses were initiated nationally, and 176 storm surge and wave warnings were issued. All 69 forest and grassland fires were detected and handled promptly.
Spokesperson Zhou Xing, also Vice Minister, reported plans to deploy key exploration and mining projects targeting scarce minerals like iron, copper, and aluminium, as well as advantageous minerals like rare earths, aiming to discover new medium-to-large ore deposits and oil and gas fields. The goal is to significantly enhance the self-sufficiency rate of strategic minerals and strengthen national energy security.
Concluding remarks emphasised enhancing safety assurance capabilities by coordinating exploration, production, supply, storage, and sales of strategic mineral resources, accelerating the new round of prospecting initiatives, conducting comprehensive geological disaster risk surveys and monitoring, improving marine disaster forecasting accuracy, and strengthening forest and grassland fire and pest prevention to bolster resilience under extreme weather conditions.
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