China Daily Global Edition (USA)
Tackling the challenges of sponge cities
From the staggering population migration to the multi-lane traffic jams, China’s rapid urbanization has captured global attention. But much of what threatens the sustainability of China’s urbanization is not above ground but under it.
In particular, the over-extraction of groundwater, the degradation of water bodies and wetlands, and urban flooding are forcing Chinese cities to address a complex puzzle: The surface development in cities leaves little opportunity for natural systems to mitigate rainwater runoff and replenish groundwater. The result is a vicious circle of investment in rainwater infrastructure and new land development that exacerbates the runoff problem.
China’s sponge city initiative aims to arrest this cycle through permeable surfaces and “green infrastructure”. But the initiative faces three challenges: already polluted groundwater, a focus on spot-level solutions, and the constrained fiscal capacity of local governments. The sponge city initiative, a joint effort of three ministries — housing and rural-urban development, finance, and water resources — has ambitious goals: by 2020, 80 percent of urban areas should absorb and reuse at least 70 percent of rainwater.
First mentioned by President Xi Jinping in 2013 and officially launched in 2015 in 16 cities, the initiative approaches urban water sustainability from two angles: it reduces the intensity of rainwater runoff and distributes absorption more evenly; and the resulting groundwater replenishment increases the supply of reusable water feeding into existing systems (channeled runoff is often treated then discharged, removing it from usage circulation).
A series of concurrent legislative directives accompanies China’s initiative, addressing a range of issues, including wastewater infrastructure and urban waterway pollution remediation.
The pilot case of Lingang, a new town project on the coast near Pudong, Shanghai, illustrates typical sponge city measures: rooftops covered with plants, scenic pools and wetlands for rainwater storage, and permeable pavement that stores runoff water and allows evaporation for temperature moderation. Runoff water is also stored in a large underground reservoir and purified through natural vegetation. With ambitions to be China’s largest sponge city project, the Lingang local government has invested $119 million in retrofits and innovations that are a model for the majority of Chinese cities lacking modern water infrastructure.
Other cities have made notable efforts as well. Sponge city projects in Xiamen and Wuhan have performed effectively in heavy rainstorms. Such cases reflect the progress of the sponge city initiative.
But despite these gains, China faces three challenges. First, groundwater pollution is reaching alarming levels, with more than half of China’s shallow and deep groundwater deemed non-potable.
Rainwater — responsible for more than 50 percent of the pollution flowing into natural bodies of water — has also become an increasingly visible public concern in China.
The second challenge is related to the first. Enabling the sponge city initiative to reach its full potential involves a whole-ofsystem approach to managing pollution. Many projects are spotlevel solutions at particular sites. Given the broad geographic spread of watersheds, sponge city initiatives will need to be significantly scaled up and an optimum infrastructure coverage share determined.
The recent Water Pollution Prevention and Control Action Plan has already been used to shut down 50,000 polluting companies, but concerns persist about weak and selective enforcement by local authorities focused on “easier aspects of the legislation”. Thus, the problem is not only technical but institutional: China must plug regulatory loopholes and enforce compliance locally.
Finally, funding is a persistent constraint. To date, more than $12 billion has been spent on sponge city projects. Systems required for such projects can be expensive. The central government funds 15 percent to 20 percent of the costs, with the remainder split between local governments and the private sector.
Unfortunately, the initiative coincides with a burgeoning local government debt crisis. Chinese cities may soon find borrowing costs even higher and avenues for deleveraging narrower. As such, sponge city initiatives will compete for the scarcer resources against infrastructure seen as more important amid population growth.
The private sector is another source of gap funding, and publicprivate partnerships may be a solution. In early 2017, Frenchbased utility company Suez Envi- ronment was awarded a $4.7 million contract to help an ecodistrict in Chongqing improve its wastewater system through integration of digital monitoring technologies.
However, investment in sponge city initiatives is still difficult, with only tepid interest from domestic investors. The government should explore supply-side vehicles for incentivizing investment, including tax credits, deductions, and time- or performance-based exemptions.
China has the opportunity to showcase how prudent planning and regulatory discipline can transform urban flood management and improve water quality. The government has acknowledged this growing challenge and now provides resources and guidance, while enterprising localities compete to fund innovative proposals with ambitious targets.
To complement sponge city investment, the central government should now take additional measures to improve groundwater quality, adopt a whole-of-system approach for pollution control and incentivize private investment. Asit K. Biswas is a distinguished visiting professor at the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, National University of Singapore and Kris Hartley is a research affiliate at the Center for New Structural Economics at Peking University and a nonresident fellow at the Chicago Council on Global Affairs.
And they have been turbulent years, with some even saying that the West experienced a “lost decade” because of the financial and debt crises that originated in the United States and the prolonged economic woes that stemmed from them. In recent years, the rise of right wing parties, terrorism and immigration have also been grave challenges for Western leaders.
Simply put, the West has suffered from both economic and political upheavals during the past decade.
Fortunately, Europe has basically survived its lost decade and now seems to be emerging from it. Its economy is on a growth track, and this year, the elections in the Netherlands, France, the United Kingdom and Germany have managed to avoid any rise to power of the far right, although the political landscape has changed rapidly.
For example, the far-right party National Front in France and the nationalist party AfD in Germany both showed they have strong support.
But Merkel, a physicist-turned-politician, has showcased her prudence and political skills in dealing with the multiple crises her country and Europe have had to deal with over the years.
For her forthcoming four-year term, Merkel will hope she has less reason to display her crisis-management abilities and instead she and her team will be able to show that Germany can work with France to be the anchors and leaders of European integration and expand the country’s role on the global stage.
Apart from their domestic agenda, Merkel and her team will have to engage in the ongoing debate on the future of Europe. Among the many questions that need answering, an important one is about the role of the European Union institutions, which need to become a driving force of European integration, instead of being manipulated by pressure groups in devising policies.
Merkel will also have to deal with Germany’s relations with the United States, Turkey and Russia and her approach can help the European Union to re-engage with these powers. The world is filled with many geopolitical challenges, and global security is threatened by terrorism and escalating tensions in various parts of the world. Europe must play its due role in contributing to peace and stability.
Another pressing task Merkel faces is how she will further realize the historic opportunity to help connect Europe with Asia by deepening cooperation with China under the framework of the Belt and Road Initiative. China in Asia and Germany in Europe, are two of the world’s leading economic engines.
If Germany looks eastward and China westward, Merkel will be able to turn her next four years into a legacy of peace and common prosperity for the two continents.