A landmark local technical standard for the restoration of macrophytes in degraded urban lakes has been officially approved and will take effect on February 28, 2026. The document, titled Technical Specification for Macrophytes Restoration in Degenerated Urban Lake, was developed under the leadership of the Institute of Hydrobiology (IHB) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and ratified by the Hubei Provincial Administration for Market Regulation.

The standard represents the first specialized technical guideline nationwide dedicated to macrophytes restoration in urban lake ecosystems. It signals the transition of Hubei Province’s water ecological restoration efforts toward a standardized, systematic, and replicable framework. Key contributors from IHB include Prof. LIU Biyun, Prof. WU Zhenbin, Prof. ZHOU Qiaohong, and Prof. ZHANG Yi, among others.

Urban lakes function as critical interfaces between wetland ecosystems and urban living environments, delivering essential services such as flood control, climate regulation, biodiversity maintenance, landscape enhancement, and cultural ecosystem services. Hubei, famously known as the "Province of Thousand Lakes," faces mounting ecological pressure on its urban water bodies. Climate change and intensive human activity have led to widespread vegetation degradation, impaired ecological functions, and destabilized aquatic communities in numerous urban lakes.

Promoting macrophytes restoration, particularly the reestablishment of submerged macrophytes, has become central to implementing China’s national wetland conservation strategy and building modern cities where humans and nature coexist in harmony. However, the absence of unified technical guidance has long resulted in ambiguous restoration pathways, inconsistent outcomes, and limited transferability of engineering experience. The newly issued standard is designed to close this gap by providing a scientifically robust, systematic, and actionable technical framework applicable across the province.

The standard comprehensively outlines technical principles, diagnostic assessment protocols, restoration methodologies, implementation procedures, post-restoration management, performance evaluation, and archival documentation. It is expected to significantly improve the success rate and ecological efficacy of aquatic vegetation restoration projects, helping urban lakes shift from ecological degradation toward functional rehabilitation.

Development of the standard began in June 2023, led by IHB in collaboration with the Hubei Academy of Forestry and the Changjiang River Scientific Research Institute under the Changjiang Water Resources Commission. It was officially incorporated into Hubei’s local standard formulation and revision plan in November of the same year. The drafting team conducted extensive field investigations, synthesized lessons from past restoration cases, and undertook multiple rounds of public consultation and revision before passing expert technical review in November 2025.

The standard integrates proven restoration practices from representative urban lakes, including Hangzhou’s West Lake and Wuhan’s East Lake. It also incorporates outcomes from key provincial research and development programs, exemplifying a virtuous cycle in which scientific research underpins standard setting and standards guide practical application.

The release of this standard represents a significant institutional advancement in Hubei’s water ecological conservation efforts. It also offers a replicable "Hubei model" for lake restoration initiatives in comparable regions across China. As the standard is progressively implemented throughout the province, it is expected to systematically enhance the ecological functions of urban lakes, support the formation of scalable and transferable demonstration models for water environment governance, and contribute scientific and technological momentum to both habitat improvement and the broader advancement of ecological civilization.