On 2 July 2019, PGI-NRI hosted a delegation of authorities from the geological administration of the Chinese province of Hunan (湖南), south of Dongting Hu Lake, in the catchment area of the middle Yangtze River (South Central China). 

The delegation was led by Mr. Wang Yiou, Director General of the Department of Natural Resources, who was accompanied by three representatives of the department's top management and three directors of the regional mineral resources and planning offices for the Changsha City Council, the provincial capital, and two major cities, Hengyang and Changde.

Director Wang Yiou presents members of the Hunan delegation. Left to right: translator Marcin Psiurski, Director Wang Yiou, Division Chief of Department General Office Wuyi Liu and Director of Changsha Municipal Bureau of Natural Resources and Planning Feng Yigang

The purpose of the visit, organised at the request of the Chinese side, was to become acquainted with PGI-NRI experience and achievements in matters most important to authorities and residents of the Hunan province. PGI-NRI was represented at that meeting by Małgorzata Woźnicka, coordinator of the Polish Hydrogeological Survey (PHS), Michał Wyszomierski, head of the PHS environmental sampling team, and Wojciech Wołkowicz, expert in environmental geology, as well as Beata Wołczuk, head of the international cooperation team, together with Wojciech Brochwicz-Lewiński and Piotr Kowalik from the above.

PGI-NRI participants of the meeting: Małgorzata Woźnicka, Michał Wyszomierski, Beata Wołczuk, Wojciech Brochwicz-Lewiński and Piotr Kowalik

The meeting began with a greeting of the guests and presentation of the PGI-NRI and its representatives by Beata Wołczuk. Director Wang Yiou introduced members of the delegation and presented the role and tasks of the Department of Natural Resources of the Hunan province. After the 2018 reform, this department became responsible for spatial planning, resource management, cartography and geology on a provincial scale, and also for overseeing and supporting the work of municipal offices and other administrative units responsible for resource policy and spatial planning. Tasks facing this department are a real challenge due to the scale of the problems it faces. This mainly concerns the risk of geohazards, in particular, landslides. With a population about two times larger than Poland (68.452 million) and surface area almost 1/3 smaller than our country (211 800 km²), this province is exposed to a very high risk of landslides and rockfalls as the share of young mountain areas is about 70%. On the other hand, the Hunan Province for centuries played the role of one of a main ”bread baskets”, a main food producer for the central provinces. Hence, protection of soil and waters against contamination from industrial sources and improper waste management is becoming extremely important. Issues of sustainable water management as well as monitoring and protection of groundwater resources have become a key issue for provincial authorities.

Worth noting here is the impressive number (about 20,000!) of professional geologists who work in the province of Hunan, as well as activities of the already widely acclaimed "geological university" - the School of Geosciences and Info-Physics of Central South University, represented in the delegation by Wuyi Liu of the Gneral Office of the Department of Natural Resources.

Discussions during the meeting. Representatives of the PGI-NRI (from the bottom up): Wojciech Wołkowicz, Małgorzata Woźnicka, Michał Wyszomierski, Beata Wołczuk, Wojciech Brochwicz-Lewiński and Piotr Kowalik. Chinese side (left to right): Director of Hengyang Municipal Bureau of Natural Resources Liao Yizhi, Head of Controlling Office of Department of National Resources of Hunan Province Hunan Xie Guanghui, translator Marcin Psiurski, Director General Wang Yiou, Division Chief of General Office Wuyi Liu and Director of Changsha Municipal Bureau of Natural Resources and Planning Feng Yigang

Director General Wang Yiou added that the unique status of Hunan Province relates to the fact that it situates the celebrated birthplace of Mao Zedong.

As an input to the discussion and in response to a request of the guests, PGI-NRI representatives presented a block of four papers. Dr Małgorzata Woźnicka as coordinator of the Polish Hydrogeological Survey (PSH) presented experience and best practices in the field of sustainable groundwater management. In connection with numerous questions from the Chinese side about experience in implementing EU legislation, her speech was expanded and supplemented by Beata Wołczuk's observations from work on EU directives at the European Commission. PGI-NRI experience in the organisation and operation of groundwater monitoring networks, including an automatic measurement system, also met with great interest of our guests. In turn, Michał Wyszomierski presented PSH experience in conducting groundwater monitoring, including groundwater sampling procedures, legal requirements and monitoring guidelines introduced by Water Directive 2006/118 / EC. PGI-NRI experience in the field of anthropopressure databases and preparation and application of geoenvironmental maps was presented by Dr Wojciech Wołkowicz on behalf of himself and the team of Dr. Olimpia Kozłowska. According to wishes of the Chinese side, Dr. Wojciech Wołkowicz also comprehensively discussed practices and experience of our teams in preventing the spread of pollution from municipal and industrial waste landfills. Systems of securing groundwater against surface contamination as well as issues of integrated permits and obligations of perpetrators to remediate contaminated land were also discussed.

Some further issues of deep interest in the Chinese emerged in the course of the meeting, especially those related to identification, monitoring and risk assessment of landslides and other geohazards. The Chinese side proved to be very interested in the experience of PGI-NRI teams in implementation of the SOPO landslide program in Poland, as well as participation in projects conducted in China (Dragon projects implemented since 2003 in the region of the Three Gorges Dam) and cooperation with experts from Italy and the United States.

The meeting showed that a number of topics are most relevant to both parties, which may become the basis for further mutually beneficial contacts and possibly cooperation. 

”Family” photo at the end of the meeting. First row (left to right): Director of Changde Natural Resources and Planning Bureau of Hunan Province Chen Aixi Head of Controlling Office of Department of National Resources of Hunan Province Xie Guanghui, Beata Wołczuk (PGI-NRI), Director General Wang Yiou and Wojciech Brochwicz-Lewiński and Piotr Kowalik (PGI-NRI). Second row: Director of Hengyang Municipal Bureau of Natural Resources Liao Yizhi, Małgorzata Woźnicka, Wojciech Wołkowicz and Michał Wyszomierski (PGI-NRI), Director of Changsha Municipal Bureau of Natural Resources and Planning Feng Yigang, Division Chief of General Office Wuyi Liu. 

Issues of deep interest to the Chinese side in the field of identification, monitoring and risk assessment of landslides and other geohazards only emerged during the meeting. The Chinese side proved to be especially interested in the experience of PGI-NRI teams in implementing the SOPO program in Poland, as well as in China (international Dragon Projects implemented since 2003 in the region of the Three Gorges Dam) and cooperation with experts from Italy and the United States.

Farewell at the main entrance to the PGI-NRI Geological Museum. Left to right: Beata Wołczuk, Wojciech Brochwicz-Lewiński i Piotr Kowalik (PGI-NRI), Director of Changde Natural Resources and Planning Bureau of Hunan Province Feng Yigang and Director General Wang Yiou

The meeting made it possible to specify several topics relevant to both parties that may become the basis for further mutually beneficial contacts and possible cooperation.

Photos: Courtesy of the Hunan Natural Resources Department
Translation: Wojciech Brochwicz-Lewiński