In the first quarter of 2024, among the 361 cities (Including counties directly governed by provinces), there were 288 cities with excellent CWEI grades, accounting for 79.8%, 56 cities with average grades, accounting for 15.5%, and 16 cities with poor and very poor grades, accounting for 4.7%.

Compared to the same period last year, water quality in Q4 2023 remained largely stable. The proportion of cities with good water quality increased from 73.7% to 74.2%, while the percentage of cities with average quality decreased from 21.6% to 19.1%. The proportion of cities with poor quality rose from 3.0% to 5.0%, with cities rated very poor remaining at 1.7%.

Looking back at seven years of environmental protection facilities being open to the public, we see that this initiative has become an effective tool for resolving NIMBY (Not In My Backyard) conflicts and mitigating social risks. It fosters mutual understanding among various stakeholders through transparency, promotes collaborative governance, and ultimately achieves shared benefits.

In the third quarter of 2023, the national surface water quality remained largely unchanged compared to the previous year.

In the second quarter of 2023, among 361 cities (including provincial-level counties), 231 cities (64.0%) were rated as "good" on the water environment index, while 98 cities (27.1%) were rated as "average". The remaining 32 cities (8.9%) were rated as "poor" or "very poor". Compared to the same period in 2022, water quality slightly improved in the second quarter of 2023. However, when compared to the first quarter of 2023, there was a slight decline in water quality.

In the first quarter of 2023, among the 361 cities (including provincial counties), 268 cities, or 74.2%, had a water environment index rating of "good". 78 cities, or 21.6%, were rated "average"; while 15 cities, or 4.2%, were rated "poor" or "very poor".

The 2022 Garbage Sorting Index evaluation covered a total of 100 cities. The average score is only 15.07, with more than half of the cities scoring below 10, indicating that garbage sorting is still at a low level. The evaluation shows that the three key measures required by the 14th Five-Year Period Urban Domestic Waste Separation and Disposal Facilities Development Plan, namely "removing bins and building stations, regular drop-off, and supervision and guidance", have not yet been effectively implemented in most cities. There remains a lack of capability in food waste treatment yet at the same time, there is more capacity than the amount of food waste treatable. Garbage incineration capacity has shown signs of surplus in many regions.