Recently, the China Association of Asset Appraisers organized a kickoff seminar for the research project titled “Technical Specifications for Water Resource Asset Valuation.” During the seminar, participants discussed key and challenging issues such as the project’s macro background, research approach, scope definition, and methodology selection. The project is commissioned by the Ministry of Water Resources, and experts from various sectors—including the Ministry of Water Resources, the Ministry of Finance, and appraisal industry organizations—as well as members of the project team attended the discussion.

The Third Plenary Session of the 18th CPC Central Committee explicitly proposed “improving the property rights system for natural resource assets and the national management system for natural resource assets,” “exploring the preparation of balance sheets for natural resource assets,” and required “unified registration and confirmation of property rights over natural ecological spaces such as water flows.” It also called for the implementation of “reforms to the water rights trading system.” All these efforts must be based on determining the prices and values of water resource assets.

The assessment of water resource assets is an emerging field of appraisal that is highly distinctive, specialized, and innovative. Building on the input from various stakeholders, the China Appraisal Society has established a research team, with Secretary-General Zhang Guochun serving as the team leader. At the request of Secretary-General Zhang, Deputy Secretary-General Han Liying chaired the meeting. Deputy Secretary-General Han expressed gratitude to the Ministry of Water Resources for its emphasis on leveraging the professional expertise of asset appraisers in collaborative research efforts, as well as to departments such as the Water Resources Division of the Agricultural Department of the Ministry of Finance for their active promotion of this collaborative project. She pointed out that the asset appraisal industry already possesses relatively mature experience in areas including appraisal theory, practice, and the development of appraisal standards. With regard to this particular research project, the focus should be on exploring how to effectively integrate established appraisal theories and methods with the unique characteristics of water resource assets.

Director Lü Hengxin from the Water Resources Division of the Agricultural Department of the Ministry of Finance introduced the current status of water resource utilization in China and related fiscal policies, noting that the assessment of water resource assets is a highly significant and fundamental research endeavor. At the same time, determining the monetary value of water resources proves challenging in practical implementation. Therefore, it is recommended to start with typical, representative, and operable cases, identify universal methods for reflecting value and general asset valuation approaches, and gradually expand these to broader application areas and more complex scenarios.

Chen Yuqiu, Director of the Asset Division of the Financial Department of the Ministry of Water Resources, explained that due to the unique characteristics of water resources—such as their fluidity and susceptibility to pollution—differing from other natural resources, China’s foundational work on assessing the value of water resource assets remains weak and poses significant operational challenges. In the practice of water rights trading, determining the value of water resource assets has also encountered issues such as lack of uniform standards and unscientific methodologies. Therefore, under the leadership of the Financial Department of the Ministry of Water Resources, the Research Center for Water Resources Development of the Ministry has organized and carried out research aimed at formulating methods and technical specifications for the assessment of water resource assets. The China Appraisal Society has achieved substantial results in research ranging from physical quantity-based to value-based accounting, giving it a distinct advantage in the study of valuing natural resource assets.

Xiao Li, Chairman of Zhongshui Zhiyuan Asset Appraisal Co., Ltd., on behalf of the research team, presented the study’s conceptual framework and provided a detailed introduction to the research design. Dr. Chen Jinmu from the Development Research Center of the Ministry of Water Resources, representing the commissioning party, introduced the specific policies and previous relevant research findings related to water rights reform. He advised the research team to draw upon and learn from the existing achievements within the water resources system and put forward specific requirements for the study.
The participating experts, the commissioning party of the project, and the project team members engaged in an in-depth discussion based on the project’s research framework and reached a consensus. As the next step, the project team will, in accordance with the requirements set forth by the Ministry of Water Resources and the Water Research Center, expedite the research work while ensuring high quality. The project is expected to be completed by mid-December.