Integrated water resources management for sustainable development of in western rural China

Management in water resources development of Jinghe watershed of western rural China is examined with Participatory Rural Appraisal method--a rare applied method in China and questionnaire survey of stakeholders. Combination of these two survey methods derives good results as it could avoid personal bias in identifying and ranking the issues on a concrete basis in following up households’ survey. Statistic Package for Social Sciences （SPSS） was used for data analysis. Results indicate that since the early 1980s, issues of water scarcity, river pollution, soil erosion, insufficient participation of stakeholders in water resources use and management, as well as centralized water planning and management system have created difficulties for sustainable development of the watershed. The stakeholders and local governments are fully aware of the challenges and are committed to achieving a solution through integrated water resource management （IWRD）. The concept and the application of IWRD for rural China are reviewed and analyzed, and a framework for implementation of IWRD in China is developed. It is concluded that the keys to successful implementation of the approach will depend on optimal arrangement of institutions, policy reforms, community involvement and capacity building in water sector, which need to fully integrate various management functions within the watershed.