The practice of water operation and groundwater protection in the middle route of South-to-North Water Transfer Project

The South-to-North Water Transfer Project plays an important role in guaranteeing the sustainable development of economy and society in North China. The first phase of the middle route of the South-to- North Water Transfer Project (m-SNWTP) has been running safely in the past three years, and the dispatched water amount is increasing. This paper mainly describes the water operation of the m-SNWTP and the groundwater protection in the water-receiving areas. Up to the end of June 2018, more than 1.4×1010 m3 water had been supplied to the m-SNWTP benefited regions, including 8.65×108 m3 environmental water. In addition, the m-SNWTP provides water source guarantee for the environment restoration. Over 1.326 ×109 m3 overexploited groundwater has been reduced in the urban areas of the water-receiving areas, and the continuous decline of groundwater level has been effectively curbed