Recently, the Municipal Planning and Natural Resources Bureau officially released the “2023 Guangzhou Municipal Planning Development Annual Report” (hereinafter referred to as the “Annual Report”). A series of municipal data demonstrate that Guangzhou has fully leveraged the coordinating and guiding role of its municipal planning, strengthened the provision of municipal infrastructure, and steadily advanced the realization of its vision for a “high-quality municipal system.”

      Urban planning coordination has become more comprehensive.

      Further Strengthening the Safety of Underground Utilities

Detailed underground utility planning has been completed for the five districts of Tianhe, Baiyun, Haizhu, Liwan, and Panyu, covering a total area of approximately 1,471 square kilometers. This comprehensive plan integrates underground infrastructure into a unified network, thereby strengthening the safety and resilience of the city’s critical infrastructure.

The city has taken the lead nationwide in achieving anonymization and online sharing of underground pipeline information across its entire urban area, with approximately 86,000 kilometers of pipeline data made publicly available. Over 200 organizations have accessed and utilized this shared data, which has garnered more than one million views. As a result, the incidence of pipeline damage decreased by 50% year over year. China Natural Resources News commended this initiative, stating that it “marks a breakthrough in addressing the long‑standing challenge of anonymizing underground pipeline information.”

It is the first city nationwide to achieve anonymization of underground pipeline information across the entire municipal area and enable its online sharing.

     

      Accelerating the implementation of land for facilities

The Guangzhou Municipal Bureau of Planning and Natural Resources has issued the “Guidance on Municipal Yellow-Line Management (Trial),” pioneering a nationwide integrated management framework that combines municipal yellow lines, dynamic updates, and operational guidelines. This approach has established a scalable, unified map of municipal yellow lines, under which 3,549 municipal facilities were planned and implemented in 2023.

 

Substation rendering

　　

      Strong Leadership in Enhancing Facility Quality

The “Guangzhou Municipal Public Facilities Urban Design Guidelines” have been formulated, proactively establishing high‑quality, top‑level normative guidance for the construction of municipal infrastructure, addressing public concerns related to safety, NIMBYism, aesthetics, and shared use. The guidelines cover three major urban‑scape zones—North, Central, and South—and four key design districts—Modern Axis, Pearl River Scenery, Historical and Cultural Areas, and Public Gateways—while encompassing nine specialized sectors, including water supply and drainage, and power systems. Additionally, the “Nansha District Municipal Public Facilities Urban Design Guidelines” have been issued, integrating planning, project approval, and construction across the entire lifecycle to support Nansha District in becoming a benchmark for high‑quality development and a new core area of Guangzhou.

 

Xindanyong Sluice Gate, Huangpu District

　　

      Comprehensive coordination of vertical three-dimensional space

The “Guangzhou Vertical Master Plan (2023–2035)” has been prepared, dividing the city’s land area into four vertical zoning categories: built-up areas, incremental development zones, agricultural areas, and ecological zones. It proposes three urban landscape typologies—mountain‑water cityscape, metropolitan landscape, and diversified coastal urban landscape—while establishing an overall urban framework that harmoniously echoes the city’s natural topography and water systems, thereby shaping a Lingnan‑style urban character characterized by “one city with multiple facets, connecting mountains to water.”

 

The northern region shapes an orderly, undulating urban landscape that harmoniously integrates mountains and water.

　　

      Municipal infrastructure support has been strengthened.

      More reliable resource assurance

The structure of drinking water sources has been further improved. In 2023, Guangzhou’s water supply capacity reached 8.503 million cubic meters per day, ranking third nationwide. Meanwhile, the Pearl River Delta Water Resources Allocation Project (Nansha Section) has been completed and entered trial operation; the Bei Jiang Water Diversion Project has achieved full tunnel breakthrough along its entire route; and the Niulu Reservoir emergency backup water source project has reached an overall progress of 96%.

 

Pearl River Delta Water Resources Allocation Project

     

Energy security has been further strengthened. In 2023, Guangzhou’s electricity consumption reached 120.5 billion kilowatt-hours, up 4.0% year on year; the first unit of the second phase of the Zhujiang LNG Power Plant, a key power source, was commissioned; and the Guangzhou LNG Emergency Peak-Shaving Gas Supply Station was completed, establishing an emergency gas storage capacity sufficient to meet the city’s needs for at least 15 days.

 

Guangzhou LNG Emergency Peak-Shaving Gas Supply Station

　　

      Enhanced resilience in security protection

Drainage and flood‑prevention capabilities have been consolidated and enhanced. In 2023, Guangzhou’s river and sea embankments totaled 1,683.3 kilometers, with a compliance rate of 91.1%; the central urban area achieved flood‑and‑tidal‑surge protection capacity corresponding to a 200‑year return period. Additionally, 1,509 kilometers of new stormwater pipelines were constructed, bringing the cumulative total to 10,771 kilometers.

 

Zhengguo Check Dam

     

The construction of sponge cities is steadily advancing. In 2023, Guangzhou achieved a cumulative compliance area of 464.0 square kilometers within its built-up zones, with an on-site rainwater retention and infiltration rate of 35.0%. A total of 7,123 stormwater storage and regulation facilities have been implemented, providing a combined storage capacity of approximately 14.05 million cubic meters and covering a total area of about 17.5 million square meters, thereby promoting the development of a citywide sponge‑city framework.

Firefighting and rescue capabilities continue to improve. In 2023, Guangzhou deployed 112 operational fire and rescue stations; “high‑end, sophisticated, and cutting‑edge” firefighting and rescue equipment has evolved from scratch to robustness, with equipment configurations progressively advancing toward greater versatility, intelligence, speed, and efficiency.

 

Haixinsha Fire Station

 

      A more beautiful ecological environment

Guangzhou ranks first nationwide in municipal solid waste harmless treatment capacity. In 2023, the city operated 24 end-of‑line waste treatment facilities and had a total of 354 waste transfer stations in operation; the city processed 7.916 million tonnes of municipal solid waste for the year, maintaining a 100% harmless treatment rate.

 

Garden-style waste transfer station

　　

The city ranks second nationwide in wastewater treatment capacity. In 2023, Guangzhou’s wastewater treatment capacity reached 8.14 million cubic meters per day; a total of 32,668 kilometers of sewage pipelines have been constructed; and the centralized collection rate for urban domestic wastewater stands at 93.5%, effectively eliminating areas within built-up zones that lacked wastewater treatment facilities.

The initiative to build a green and beautiful Guangzhou has yielded significant results. In 2023, Guangzhou added one new forest park covering 258.3 hectares; it also completed 3,874 kilometers of greenways, 308 kilometers of forest trails, and 1,242 kilometers of waterfront greenways.

 

Shan Cha Plant-Themed Pocket Park in Zengcheng District

　

      Smarter urban development

Guangzhou ranks first in the province in the number of 5G base stations. In 2023, the city added 15,000 new 5G base stations, bringing the total to 92,000 and achieving continuous coverage in areas at or above the town‑center level.

Guangzhou leads the nation in smart streetlight pole applications. By the end of 2023, the city had installed a total of 4,254 smart streetlight poles, integrating 15 categories of smart services—including 5G base stations, roadside parking, vehicle–infrastructure coordination, smart Party building, intelligent meteorology, public safety, civil defense, and emergency broadcasting—onto these poles, placing Guangzhou at the forefront of such applications nationwide.

      The “Beautiful Municipal Governance” system is accelerating its development.

      Comprehensive, sector-wide transformation is making solid progress.

The utilization rate of reclaimed water continues to rise. In 2023, Guangzhou’s reclaimed water usage reached 940 million cubic meters, with a utilization rate of 36.3%; the city was awarded the title of “Guangdong Province Water Efficiency Leader City”; and Huangpu District was selected as one of 23 national pilot areas recognized for outstanding practices in the allocation and utilization of reclaimed water.

 

Huangpu District Reclaimed Water Social Practice and Public Awareness Education Base

　　

Solar photovoltaic applications are growing rapidly. By the end of 2023, Guangzhou had a cumulative installed capacity of 1.6 million kilowatts for photovoltaic power projects, accounting for 12% of the city’s total installed power generation capacity.

      Comprehensive enhancement with sustained efforts.

The “Three Consistencies and Five Modernizations” upgrade is progressing steadily. By the end of 2023, Guangzhou had completed the “Three Consistencies and Five Modernizations” transformation for a total of 289 administrative villages’ water supply systems.

The construction of rural domestic wastewater treatment facilities continues to improve. In 2023, the coverage rate of domestic wastewater treatment in Guangzhou’s administrative villages reached 94.8%, and some rural wastewater is gradually being integrated into urban sewage systems.

The “Gas Delivery to Rural Areas” project continues to advance. In Huadu District, 5,893 households are now served, with 1,930 new installations in 2023; in Conghua District, 906 households are covered, with 146 new installations added in 2023.

 

Wastewater Treatment Facility in Chatian Community, Lianxing Village, Zhucun Street, Zengcheng District

　　

      More distinctive promotion across the entire city.

Underground wastewater treatment plants boast nationally leading processing capacity. By the end of 2023, Guangzhou had completed a total of 20 underground (and semi-underground) wastewater treatment plants, with a combined treatment capacity of 2.31 million cubic meters per day.

 

Twenty garden-style water treatment plants across the city, featuring “underground facilities with above-ground parks”

　　

      Society as a whole is taking more proactive action.

Fushan Circular Economy Industrial Park, Liewqiao Substation, Lijiao Water Treatment Plant, Shijing Water Treatment Plant, Liede Water Treatment Plant, and other municipal facilities have opened up to the public through an appointment system, fostering space sharing and experiential education. This approach seeks to reshape the public’s traditional perception of municipal infrastructure, encourage citizen participation in the construction and operation of such facilities, and contribute “neighborly strength” to mitigating the NIMBY effect. By the end of 2023, Fushan Circular Economy Industrial Park had welcomed over 63,000 visitors, Liewqiao Substation more than 50,000, and Lijiao Water Treatment Plant over 12,000.

 

Source: Guangzhou Municipal Bureau of Planning and Natural Resources