The 2026 natural resources survey and monitoring work will be carried out in an integrated manner, according to a joint notice issued by the General Office of the Ministry of Natural Resources and the Office of the National Forestry and Grassland Administration.
The notice sets out requirements for natural resources and forestry authorities at provincial, autonomous region, municipality, and Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps levels. The main objective is to support the monitoring and evaluation of territorial spatial plan implementation, ascertain the status of natural resources and land use changes, and focus on the implementation of spatial control lines such as "three zones and three lines," as well as major national strategies like the main functional zoning strategy.
Survey and monitoring methods will be optimized, shifting to routine daily operations instead of centralized campaigns. Content emphasis includes changes among agricultural, construction, and unused land, changes in cultivated land, and changes in residential, commercial, industrial, and other land types, as well as changes in forest, grassland, wetland, and desert resources. Localities may refine indicators according to their specific conditions.
All types of survey and monitoring will be coordinated under an integrated framework. Forest, grassland, wetland, and desert survey and monitoring will be linked with the land change survey, with data updated on a unified platform, avoiding duplication, and a unified database will be built.
A linkage mechanism between central and local levels is reinforced. The Ministry and National Administration will conduct quarterly natural resources monitoring and forestry early warning monitoring, sharing results with localities. Provincial authorities may conduct supplementary monitoring and coordinate city and county surveys. Localities may also carry out forest resource inventory and detailed surveys of grasslands and wetlands as needed.
Specific tasks include natural resources monitoring, land change survey, and forest-grassland-wetland-desert survey and monitoring. Natural resources monitoring covers the entire land area, focusing on protection redlines for cultivated land, permanent basic farmland, ecological conservation, and urban development boundaries, along with special monitoring. Land change survey is conducted at county level to dynamically update land use data, with synchronized black soil surveys. Forest-grassland-wetland-desert survey focuses on changes in resources and ecological conditions.
Survey results will be used to support monitoring and evaluation of territorial spatial plan implementation, with national-level reports on "three zones and three lines" and plan implementation, while provincial, city, and county levels conduct targeted assessments. Results will also be integrated and analyzed.
The notice calls for increased technological and financial support, advancing the use of AI and other technologies. Quality control covers the entire process to prevent data falsification. Safety in production must be ensured, and data confidentiality strengthened. Timeliness is emphasized with routine updates throughout the year; a milestone summary is set for October 31, 2026, with year-end data as of December 31, 2026.