The State Council Information Office held a press conference on September 10 titled “Completing the 14th Five-Year Plan with High Quality,” highlighting the achievements in natural resources management during the 14th Five-Year Plan period.
According to the conference, China has consistently carried out survey and monitoring efforts, leading to a clearer and richer inventory of natural resources. Key statistics as of the end of 2024 include:
-
The total cultivated land area nationwide has reached 1.94 billion mu (approximately 129 million hectares), an increase of 28 million mu compared with 2020, firmly securing the red line for farmland protection.
-
A comprehensive survey has been completed for 163 types of mineral resources with identified reserves, detailing their quantity, distribution, and development status. In addition, 534 new large and medium-sized oil and gas fields and mineral sites have been discovered, marking major breakthroughs in the exploration and development of strategic resources such as oil, natural gas, copper, and lithium.
-
The retention rate of natural coastline on the mainland remains above 35%. Strategic emerging industries, including marine energy, marine pharmaceuticals and biologics, seawater desalination, and comprehensive seawater utilization, have shown strong growth momentum. The gross ocean production in 2024 reached 10.5 trillion yuan, an increase of 2.7 trillion yuan from 2020.
-
The total water resources amount to 3.11 trillion cubic meters, of which 867.92 billion cubic meters are groundwater resources.
-
The areas of forest land, grassland, wetlands, and desertified land stand at 4.253 billion mu, 3.912 billion mu, 834 million mu, and 2.509 billion mu, respectively. The forest coverage rate has reached 25.09%, an increase of about 2 percentage points since 2020, making China the country with the largest and fastest afforestation progress in the world. The forest stock volume has reached 20.988 billion cubic meters, achieving ahead of schedule the country’s 2030 climate response target pledged under the Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs).
-
The first batch of five national parks has been established, covering nearly 30% of the key terrestrial wild animal and plant species under national protection.
