By strengthening the safety management of reservoirs, the safety situation of reservoirs in China has continued to improve. From 2022 to 2024, for the first time, three consecutive years of reservoirs without dam failures have been achieved. "Recently, the relevant person in charge of the Ministry of Water Resources stated at a press conference on the effectiveness of reservoir safety management work. There are many reservoirs, high dams, and dangerous reservoirs in China, and safety management has always been an important task in reservoir management. How to strengthen the investigation, warning, and removal of hidden dangers, and improve the efficiency of reservoir management and operation? The reporter conducted an interview. Nearly 90000 small reservoirs now have "patrol officers". Jia Hongsheng, the person in charge of inspecting the Toudaolazi Reservoir in Fushun City, Liaoning Province, received video training on flood season inspections at the Xinbin Manchu Autonomous County Water Bureau before last year's flood season. Afterwards, he began to patrol the reservoir three times a day during the flood season. When conducting inspections, open the 'Handheld Liaoxun' app and follow the route specified above. Take photos, clock in, and upload at every point. If I see the water level rising rapidly, I will call the technical person in charge and he will tell me how to adjust the gate according to the incoming water volume. In addition, the technical and administrative responsible persons also frequently come to the reservoir to inspect Jia Hongsheng said, "We will continue to carry out such inspections during this year's flood season." Starting from March 15th, China officially entered the flood season. Vice Minister of Water Resources, Wang Bao'en, said, "We must take the 'first move' to ensure safe flood control. Before the flood season, we will fully implement the reservoir dam safety responsibility system and the administrative, technical, and inspection responsible persons for small-scale reservoir flood control, and carry out comprehensive training for responsible persons." It is reported that the Water Resources Department has implemented 174000 administrative, technical, and inspection responsible persons for small-scale reservoir flood control. Establish and improve the mechanism of "patrol personnel" for small reservoirs, and implement 114000 "patrol personnel" for each reservoir. By establishing a sound "patrol officer" mechanism, nearly 90000 small reservoirs have 1 to 2 "patrol officers" for potential risks. The improvement of disaster prevention capability mainly comes from the continuous improvement of the water and drought disaster prevention system. Yao Wenguang, Director of the Water and Drought Disaster Prevention Department of the Ministry of Water Resources, introduced that the Ministry of Water Resources has scientifically laid out the construction of flood control engineering systems such as reservoirs in river basins, and more than 94800 reservoirs of various types have been built nationwide. Accelerate the construction of the "three lines of defense" for rainfall monitoring and forecasting. In areas affected by reservoir flood control, coordinate the construction of water conservancy rain monitoring radar networks, the encryption of rainfall stations, the optimization of hydrological station network layout, and the modernization of hydrological station testing equipment and methods. Improve the monitoring capabilities for major and super standard floods, and enhance the testing and communication support capabilities under extreme conditions. Jiang Hong, the head of the Water Resources Department in Zhongce Town, Sishui County, Jining City, Shandong Province, opened the "Cloud Transportation Management" APP in front of reporters. Real time video images and water level information of 10 small reservoirs, including Wangfen Reservoir, Xiaozhangjia Reservoir, and Longmenshan Reservoir, were displayed. He said, "In the past, small reservoirs were in blind spots and would be anxious during the flood season. Now, all large, medium, and small reservoirs are included in the water conservancy map, which provides unified warning and scheduling. Once problems are discovered, management personnel will respond in a timely manner." Every day, Zhang Guangzhou, the manager of Wangfen Reservoir, inspects and observes water conditions on time, records data, and uploads it in a timely manner. The Sishui Sluice Service Station provides us with business guidance, formulates rules and regulations, and we manage them accordingly. If there are problems that cannot be solved, I report them to the service station as soon as possible, "said Zhang Guangzhou. Sishui County is located at the source of the Si River, with small and medium-sized rivers intertwined and numerous small and medium-sized reservoirs. How to manage it well? Sishui County explores the concept of 'big leading small'. Du Mingshun, Deputy Director of the Water Affairs Bureau of Sishui County, introduced: "The county relies on four large and medium-sized reservoirs and three water retention project management offices under the county, and sets up seven service stations. The 87 small reservoirs in the county are included in the management of each service station according to their distribution and watershed, and the management system and team of large reservoirs are 'transplanted' to small reservoirs. Small reservoirs are now not only managed by people, but also well managed." 95% of China's reservoirs are small reservoirs with a wide range of sizes. For a long time, the grassroots management and maintenance forces have been insufficient, making it difficult to achieve standardized and professional management. In recent years, this situation has significantly improved. Zhang Wenjie, Director of the Operations Management Department of the Ministry of Water Resources, introduced: "In order to effectively avoid the 'loss of development disease' and 'long-term danger' of engineering projects, we have implemented specialized management and maintenance models such as regional centralized management, government procurement of management and maintenance services, and 'big leading small' according to local conditions, and implemented management and maintenance entities. Among them, 'big leading small' is to leverage the professional technical and human resource advantages of large and medium-sized water conservancy project management units to manage small reservoirs in modern times. At the same time, we encourage the exploration of other effective management and maintenance models such as' small joint 'and' engineering insurance '. Since the 14th Five Year Plan, 48226 small reservoirs managed by scattered townships and villages across the country have achieved full coverage of specialized management and maintenance." In response to the previous funding implementation problems, Zhang Wenjie said, "We actively coordinate with the Ministry of Finance to implement central subsidies for the maintenance and upkeep of small reservoirs, guide localities to formulate and improve quota standards for the operation, management, and upkeep of small reservoirs according to local conditions, and establish stable channels for investment in management and upkeep funds. During the 14th Five Year Plan period, a total of 12 billion yuan of central subsidies were implemented, achieving an increasing amount of management and upkeep funds year by year and providing strong financial support." A steel "inspector" - an intelligent robotic dog - is shuttling along the dam body of the Datongxia Water Conservancy Hub in the twilight of building a modern reservoir management matrix. This robotic dog is equipped with multispectral imaging and Beidou positioning system, which can capture millimeter level concrete cracks in real time. By comparing historical data with AI algorithms, it can accurately determine the type of defect and generate a three-dimensional model, and strive for a valuable window period for dam reinforcement. Currently, we are actively exploring the application of new equipment and technologies, and innovatively attempting the intelligent transformation of water conservancy project operation and management. In terms of engineering safety guarantee, Datongxia Company has initially built an integrated all factor all-weather monitoring and perception system for 'sky, earth, and water engineering'. Through meteorological satellites, 'Water Conservancy No.1' remote sensing satellites, Beidou satellites, etc., the latest rainfall information, reservoir area, and dam safety information are obtained. Three rain measuring radars are networked six months in advance, and the intelligent transformation of water conservancy project operation and management is applied. Drones regularly conduct inspections and patrols of the reservoir and dam areas. In the flood season of 2024, the project relied on the transportation management matrix and digital twin Da Teng Xia intelligent empowerment to overcome the largest flood at the dam site in 15 years Deng Xunfa, Chairman of Da Teng Xia Company, said. At present, although significant progress has been made in the safety management of reservoirs in China, there are still shortcomings in the level of refinement and informatization, and some reservoirs have the problem of "rebuilding and neglecting management". To achieve comprehensive management and precise scheduling of reservoir operations, the Ministry of Water Resources has deployed and constructed a modern reservoir operation management matrix based on the concept of matrix management and combined with the characteristics of reservoir management, "said Wang Baoen. The core elements of the modern reservoir operation and management matrix are "four comprehensive", "four systems (governance)", "four pre planning", and "four management". Among them, "four in one" refers to implementing full coverage, full element, all-weather, and full cycle management; The "four systems (governance)" refer to improving the system, mechanism, rule of law, and accountability system; The "four predictions" refer to strengthening forecasting, early warning, rehearsal, and contingency measures, enhancing the flood control and safety management capabilities of reservoirs through scientific and accurate forecasting, rapid and effective early warning, simulating real rehearsals, and improving feasible contingency plans; The "four management" refers to strengthening the work of risk elimination, physical examination, maintenance, and safety. In 2024, the Ministry of Water Resources will adhere to pilot projects, strengthen digital empowerment, and actively promote matrix construction. It is reported that 8246 reservoirs across the country have launched matrix construction, with 329 pilot reservoirs and 65 regional business completion rates reaching 78.4% and 73.3% respectively. Eleven provinces have established provincial-level matrix platforms, actively applying new technologies such as the Internet of Things, big data, artificial intelligence, and underwater robots. Innovative research on advanced technologies and equipment for detecting complex diseases and hidden dangers continues to advance, and the level of reservoir safety management has been comprehensively improved. Next, the Ministry of Water Resources will guide various regions to accelerate the construction of a modern reservoir operation and management matrix. (New Society)