On May 22, the natural resources departments of Sichuan and Chongqing signed the Cooperation Agreement on Deepening Cooperation in Planning and Natural Resources to Promote the Construction of Chengdu-Chongqing Economic Circle in Chongqing. The two sides will deepen cooperation in nine areas, including territorial space planning, regional economic layout, strengthening important ecological barriers in the upper reaches of the Yangtze River, pilot reforms in the field of natural resources, and capacity building for comprehensive disaster prevention and mitigation, so as to provide strong natural resources support and basic guarantee for the building of Chengdu-Chongqing economic circle.

According to the agreement, the natural resources departments of Sichuan and Chongqing will undertake the task of planning the territorial spaces of the economic circle and make overall arrangements for territorial space protection, development, utilization, and restoration.

According to the agreement, the natural resources departments of Sichuan and Chongqing will, following the requirements of the Ministry of Natural Resources and in combination with the development orientation of Chengdu-Chongqing economic circle, undertake the task of planning the territorial spaces of the economic circle, and make overall arrangements for territorial space protection, development, utilization, and restoration. The two sides will also further strengthen cooperation between neighboring regions, coordinate the formulation of territorial space plans at all government levels, and put the guidance and control requirements for the territorial space plans of the economic circle in place.

In addition, the planning and natural resources departments of Sichuan and Chongqing will give priority to ecology, pursue green development, and strengthen the coordination and cooperation in ecological protection and restoration along the Yangtze River Economic Belt, as well as explore the establishment of a unified regulation system in the Yangtze River basin, so as to jointly build an important ecological barrier in the upper reaches of the Yangtze River.

The agreement also proposed the establishment of a joint meeting system and a joint meeting office, so as to address the difficulties and problems in the natural resources field in the process of building the Chengdu-Chongqing economic circle promptly and ensure and supervise the smooth implementation of relevant work.

In addition, the forestry and grassland departments of Sichuan and Chongqing also signed the Cooperation Agreement on Strengthening the Important Ecological Barriers in the Upper Reaches of the Yangtze River to Promote the Construction of Chengdu-Chongqing Economic Circle on the same day. The two sides will jointly carry out comprehensive ecological management, establish a cooperative protection mechanism for wildlife, and carry out regular joint law enforcement.

The head of Sichuan Provincial Department of Natural Resources said Sichuan hoped to strengthen cooperation with Chongqing and speed up the connectivity of transportation facilities, the joint preservation and governance of the ecological environment, and the joint construction and sharing of public services between the two regions. The head of Chongqing Municipal Planning and Natural Resources Bureau revealed that the two regions had joined hands to carry out a background survey. In the next step, the two sides will continue in-depth cooperation in planning territorial spaces and optimizing spatial layout, to make joint efforts for the compilation of high-quality territorial space planning of Chengdu-Chongqing economic circle.