Recently, the Office of the People's Government of Pinghu City issued the "Management Measures for the Utilization of Reclaimed Water in Pinghu City (Trial)", which applies to the planning, construction, use, operation, maintenance, and management of reclaimed water utilization within the administrative area of Pinghu City. It will come into effect on December 29, 2024, and is valid for three years.

Management Measures for the Utilization of Reclaimed Water in Pinghu City (Trial)

1、 General Provisions

（1） In order to strengthen the utilization and management of recycled water, improve the level of urban sewage resource utilization, promote water conservation, and achieve sustainable use of water resources, this method is formulated in accordance with relevant regulations such as the Water Law of the People's Republic of China, the Regulations on Urban Drainage and Sewage Treatment, and the Water Resources Regulations of Zhejiang Province, combined with the actual situation of this city.

（2） These measures apply to the planning, construction, use, operation, maintenance, and management of recycled water use within the administrative area of this city.

（3） The recycled water referred to in these measures refers to the water that meets the water quality standards or requirements of specific water use pathways after being purified and treated by the recycling process of urban sewage and wastewater, and can be directly or indirectly used for beneficial purposes within a certain range.

The centralized utilization of recycled water referred to in the method refers to the utilization of recycled water using the effluent from sewage treatment plants as raw water.

The decentralized utilization of recycled water referred to in these measures refers to the utilization of recycled water in forms other than centralized utilization.

The recycled water utilization facilities referred to in these measures include sewage collection, purification treatment facilities, booster pump stations, water supply pipelines, metering and testing facilities, and other related facilities.

The users who use recycled water referred to in these measures refer to the units and individuals who draw water from recycled water utilization facilities.

（4） The utilization of recycled water should follow the principles of regional coordination, market promotion, standardized management, and ensuring safety.

（5） The municipal people's government should strengthen its leadership over the use of recycled water, incorporate the use of recycled water into the national economic and social development plan, include the use of recycled water in the special chapter for sewage planning, and include funds for the construction and maintenance of public recycled water facilities in the fiscal budget; Develop incentive policies to guide social capital and recycled water users to participate in the construction and operation of the recycled water utilization system.

（6） The water administrative department should include recycled water in the unified allocation of water resources and carry out supervision and management of the use of recycled water; The administrative department in charge of urban and rural construction is responsible for the construction, operation, supervision, and management of centralized recycled water facilities.

The departments of development and reform, economy and information technology, science and technology, finance, natural resources and planning, ecological environment, agriculture and rural areas, emergency response, market supervision, comprehensive law enforcement, etc. shall jointly do a good job in the management of recycled water use according to their respective responsibilities.

（7） Encourage and support scientific research and technological development of recycled water, accelerate the transformation and industrialization of technological achievements, introduce and promote new technologies, processes, and equipment, and continuously improve the utilization and resource utilization level of recycled water.

2、 Planning and Construction

（8） The special plan for the use of recycled water needs to be connected with the national economy and society, national spatial planning, water resources planning, ecological environment protection planning, urban and rural water supply special planning, and urban and rural sewage special planning. Following the principle of adapting measures to local conditions, focusing on centralized utilization, and supplemented by decentralized utilization, a plan for the construction of recycled water facilities is formulated to achieve a reasonable layout and optimized configuration of recycled water treatment facilities and pipelines.

（9） Newly built, renovated (expanded) urban sewage treatment plants and industrial parks shall, in accordance with the special planning and construction standards for the use of recycled water, construct supporting facilities for the use of recycled water, and support the construction of wastewater treatment and utilization facilities for projects of steel, paper, thermal power generation, textile, petrochemical, chemical and other enterprises.

（10） When formulating urban planning or carrying out urban construction, land for the construction of reclaimed water facilities shall be reserved in accordance with the special plan for the use of reclaimed water. The construction funds for the supporting construction of recycled water utilization facilities should be included in the total investment of the construction project, organized and constructed by the construction unit according to the planning requirements, and designed, constructed, and put into use simultaneously with the main project.

（11） The construction of reclaimed water utilization facilities shall comply with the reclaimed water utilization planning and relevant standards, and the design, construction, and supervision of reclaimed water utilization facilities shall be undertaken by units with corresponding qualifications.

（12） The construction project of supporting recycled water utilization facilities can only be put into use after passing the completion acceptance.

（13） The recycled water supply system is strictly prohibited from being directly connected to water supply systems such as tap water and self provided water. The facilities and pipelines for the use of recycled water should be clearly marked, and the water intake should have protective measures and be labeled with the words "non potable water" to ensure water safety.

3、 Utilization and Configuration

（14） The quality of recycled water should meet the relevant standards and requirements in the field of recycled water applications.

When recycled water is used for multiple purposes simultaneously, its water quality should meet the corresponding water quality standards, and the water quality indicators of the same project should meet the highest standard requirements of the project.

（15） Water users within the coverage area of the recycled water pipeline network shall use recycled water if they meet one of the following conditions:

1. Urban greening (including irrigation of greenery within residential areas), road cleaning, vehicle washing, construction, public toilet washing, and other municipal facility water usage;

2. Industrial production water for cooling, washing, boilers, processes, products, etc;

3. Environmental water use such as landscape water bodies, wetland water bodies, and ecological replenishment of rivers and lakes;

4. Other suitable uses of recycled water.

（16） When the supply of recycled water is sufficient, the water administrative department may restrict the approval of new water intake permits for construction project units that have the conditions to use recycled water but have not fully utilized it, and announce the relevant situation to the society; The department issuing the water usage plan (quota) shall reduce its planned (quota) water usage accordingly based on the available quantity.

（17） The system of paid use of recycled water is implemented, and the price is independently negotiated and determined by the recycled water supply enterprise and the user based on the principle of high quality and good price, and agreed upon in the form of a contract. The amount of recycled water used shall be measured by the settlement water meter.

4、 Operation and maintenance

（18） The operating unit of centralized recycled water utilization facilities needs to obtain a sewage treatment franchise, while the investment unit is responsible for the production and operation of decentralized recycled water utilization facilities.

（19） The operation (operation) management unit of recycled water utilization facilities shall do a good job in operation management according to the following requirements:

1. Establish and improve various operational (business) management systems to ensure the normal operation of facilities; Regularly inspect, maintain, and repair facilities.

2. Implement safety management systems, safety operating procedures, and effective safety protection measures.

3. Establish and improve the operation management ledger, and keep original records and statistical reports in a timely, accurate, complete, and truthful manner.

4. Equip with water quality testing equipment, carry out daily water quality testing work, and ensure that the supplied water quality meets the water quality standards of the recycled water application field or industry; Entrust qualified units to regularly test the main water quality indicators of recycled water and disclose the water quality situation to water users.

5. Install water metering facilities that comply with relevant national quality standards and specifications, and conduct regular calibration as required; The information on recycled water usage shall be shared on the government's public data platform in accordance with regulations.

6. Develop emergency plans for the use of recycled water facilities and conduct drills in accordance with regulations. once an accident occurs in the recycled water facility, the emergency plan should be immediately activated and on-site repairs should be carried out; Those that may affect public safety should be promptly informed to the affected units and the public, and reported to relevant departments.

（20） No unit or individual shall engage in the following behaviors that endanger the safety of recycled water use:

1. Connect the recycled water to the tap water and self provided water supply network;

2. Damage, destruction, or occupation of public reclaimed water facilities;

3. Unauthorized modification or operation of public recycled water utilization facilities;

4. Changing the nature and use of recycled water without authorization, or transferring recycled water to other units or individuals without authorization;

5. Take water directly from the public recycled water pipeline network without authorization, or bypass the metering device to take water directly;

6. Borrowing soil, blasting, burying poles, and stacking materials within the scope of reclaimed water utilization facilities;

7. Other behaviors that endanger the safety of using recycled water.

5、 Supervision and guarantee

（21） The water administrative department shall establish an online monitoring system in conjunction with the construction, ecological environment and other departments, and use information technology to supervise and inspect the use of recycled water.

（22） The administrative department in charge of urban and rural construction shall conduct regular supervision and inspection of the operation and use of centralized recycled water facilities to ensure the safety and efficiency of the use of recycled water.

（23） The financial department should strengthen the funding guarantee for the use of recycled water, and arrange annual budgets according to actual work and needs. It should also supervise and inspect the use of funds according to its responsibilities, and study and implement subsidy and tax reduction policies.

（24） Reclaimed water users should strictly use reclaimed water in accordance with relevant agreements such as the reclaimed water supply and use contract. If the use of reclaimed water is changed in violation of the contract, the user shall be held liable for breach of contract in accordance with the law.

（25） For acts that violate the provisions of these Measures, if there are already legal liability provisions in laws and administrative regulations, those provisions shall prevail.

6、 Supplementary Provisions

（26） These measures shall come into effect on December 29, 2024 and shall be valid for three years.