我国水价的改革历程、问题与对策研究

Research on the courses, issues and countermeasures of water price in China

关键词:  水价  制度演变  政策实施  问题与对策

Key words:  water price  institution evolution  policy implementation  issues and countermeasures

摘要:

水价被认为是实现水管理目标的有效方法，准确识别我国水价制定和实施中的问题对推动水价改革和促进节水具有重要意义，然而鲜有文献对不同用水主体和不同用水类型进行全面分析。利用统计数据和文献调研相结合的方法，对我国城市与农村居民生活用水、农业用水、企业用水、生态用水、水运用水及水力发电用水的水价改革历程、实施情况、存在问题等进行系统梳理和分析。结果表明：整体上我国各类用水水价制度逐步建立和实施，经历了无偿供水、按供水成本核算计收水费、商品供水价格管理及水价全面深化改革四个阶段，但存在对用水户激励不足、征收水平较低、管理体系复杂、信息公开不足等问题。为实现水价对水资源供需的调节作用，需明确水价政策目标、体现水资源对用水主体的经济价值、完善对供水企业的供给侧管理、强化市级政府作用及加强信息披露和宣传教育。

Abstract:

Background, aim, and scope Rapid urbanization and economic expansion in China within the recent decades have drastically intensified the structural imbalance of water supply-demand, making water pricing a crucial tool for resource regulation. To address this issue, this study aims to conduct a systematic review of China’s water pricing mechanism, identifying its historical evolution, key issues, and institutional bottlenecks. In this way, it proposes targeted, actionable solutions to support ongoing pricing reforms, evaluate policy effectiveness, and ultimately promote water conservation and sustainable allocation. Materials and methods This research employs official statistical data and literature analysis to provide a summary of the evolution, challenges, and policy responses in China’s water pricing system. The analysis covers water use within urban and rural households, industrial and business corporations, rural agriculture, urban ecological protection, water-based transportation, and hydropower companies. This comprehensive coverage facilitates a holistic evaluation of the water pricing mechanism. Results China’s water pricing system has evolved through four distinct stages: free water supply, cost-based water charging, commodity-based price management, and comprehensive deepening reforms. Despite notable progress, several persistent problems remain unresolved. These include institutional and policy shortcomings, widespread underpricing and inconsistent price structures, a complicated management framework, and insufficient transparency in information disclosure. Such deficiencies continue to undermine the efficiency and fairness of the current water pricing regime. Discussion China is a large country with a vast population and water usage, where one of the most important issues is sustainable utilization of water resources and water environment security. To resolve the issues, China’s government has adopted a water price policy to incentivize water conservation. In 2016, the “fee-to-tax” reform accelerated these policies, and water price systems for different water uses have been gradually established and implemented. The total water use limit and ladder water price are crucial to establishing a reasonable water price formation mechanism and promoting water conservation. However, considerable challenges persist in both the formulation and implementation of these pricing mechanisms. The effectiveness of water pricing remains limited by underpricing, low public awareness, and insufficient differentiation across regions and user categories. In many areas, existing price levels fail to reflect the true scarcity value of water or account for environmental externalities, thereby weakening the price signal’s guiding role. In addition, the multi-level governance structure complicates timely and targeted price adjustments. In this context, policy attention should focus not only on supply-side reform but also on enhancing demand-side management to optimize resource allocation. Future efforts should focus on establishing a dynamic adjustment mechanism that more effectively reflects market supply-demand dynamics and resource scarcity, while designing targeted subsidy mechanisms to safeguard equitable public access. To this end, a more holistic and adaptive water pricing strategy is essential for navigating the complexities of water governance in China. Conclusions China’s water pricing systems for different users have gradually been established, with substantial improvements in residential, industrial, and agricultural water pricing during the last two decades. However, significant deficiencies still exist in water price system reform, incentive structures, collection efficiency, and information disclosure, collectively hindering optimal allocation and efficient use of water resources. Therefore, further strengthening the comprehensive water price reforms is necessary to improve sustainable and equitable management of water resources. Recommendations and perspectives Based on these results, a successful water price reform requires adopting policies with clearly-defined objectives, reflecting the economic values of different water users, improving the supply-side management by formulating optimal policies for price, tax, and subsidy, strengthening the role of municipal governments, enhancing information disclosure, and promoting public education. Together, these measures can establish a water pricing mechanism that is both efficient and equitable, securing long-term water sustainability and promoting balanced economic and environmental development in China.