Scientifically and Rationally Promote the Value Realization of Ecological Products

Establishing and improving the value realization mechanism for ecological products is an important part of Xi Jinping Thought on Ecological Civilization, a key path for putting into practice the concept that "lucid waters and lush mountains are invaluable assets," [1]1 "Lucid waters and lush mountains are invaluable assets" is a well-known slogan and guiding principle of China's ecological civilization construction, originating from Xi Jinping's remarks emphasizing the economic value of a good environment. and an inevitable requirement for modernizing the ecological environment governance system and governance capacity. It is of great significance for promoting a comprehensive green transformation of economic and social development. In Volume I of *Selected Works of Xi Jinping on Ecological Civilization*, the article "Systematically Carrying Out Ecological and Environmental Protection and Restoration, Building a Green Development Demonstration Belt" provides a profound elaboration on this, pointing out that "we must accelerate the establishment of a value realization mechanism for ecological products so that those who protect and restore the ecological environment receive reasonable returns and those who damage the ecological environment pay the corresponding price." The *Decision* of the Third Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee of the CPC [2]2 The Third Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee of the CPC, held in July 2024, is a key meeting of the Party Central Committee that usually focuses on major reforms; its *Decision* outlines comprehensive reform measures. has made important arrangements for improving the value realization mechanism of ecological products. We must deeply understand the great significance of establishing and improving the value realization mechanism for ecological products, actively explore effective ways to realize the transformation of ecological value, let ecological products fully manifest their worth, and provide strong institutional support for turning lucid waters and lush mountains into invaluable assets.

建立健全生态产品价值实现机制是习近平生态文明思想的重要内容，是践行绿水青山就是金山银山理念的关键路径，是推动生态环境治理体系和治理能力现代化的必然要求，对推动经济社会发展全面绿色转型具有重要意义。在《习近平生态文明文选》第一卷中，《系统开展生态环境保护修复，建设绿色发展示范带》对此作出深刻阐释，指出“要加快建立生态产品价值实现机制，让保护修复生态环境获得合理回报，让破坏生态环境付出相应代价”。党的二十届三中全会《决定》对健全生态产品价值实现机制作出重要部署。我们要深刻认识建立健全生态产品价值实现机制的重大意义，积极探索实现生态价值转换的有效途径，让生态产品尽显其值，为把绿水青山变成金山银山提供有力制度支撑。

Grasp the connotation of value. Ecological product is a unique concept in China's ecological civilization construction. It is a necessity for sustaining human survival and development and for meeting the people's growing needs for a beautiful ecological environment. It mainly refers to the goods and services provided by natural elements such as fresh air, clean water sources, and pleasant climate for economic activities and other human activities, such as maintaining ecological security, ensuring ecological regulation functions, and providing a good living environment. Specifically, it can be divided into categories such as material supply, regulating services, and cultural services. Its connotation and extension are constantly enriched, expanded, and extended with economic and social development. Specifically, material-supply ecological products mainly refer to material products provided by ecosystems for humans, such as aquatic products and Chinese herbal medicines; regulating-service ecological products mainly refer to the benefits provided by ecosystems to maintain or improve the human living environment, such as carbon sequestration, local climate regulation, and noise reduction; cultural-service ecological products mainly refer to non-material benefits provided by ecosystems to improve the quality of human life, such as spiritual enjoyment, leisure and entertainment, and aesthetic experiences.

把握价值内涵。生态产品是我国生态文明建设的一个独特概念，是维系人类生存发展、满足人民日益增长的优美生态环境需要的必需品，主要指清新的空气、清洁的水源、宜人的气候等自然要素为经济活动和其他人类活动提供货物和服务，如维系生态安全、保障生态调节功能、提供良好人居环境等。具体可分为物质供给、调节服务和文化服务等类别，其内涵外延随着经济社会发展而不断丰富拓展延伸。具体来看，物质供给类生态产品主要是指生态系统为人类提供的物质产品，如水产品、中草药等；调节服务类生态产品主要是指生态系统为维持或改善人类生存环境所提供的惠益，如固碳、局部气候调节、噪声消减等；文化服务类生态产品主要是指生态系统为提升人类生活品质所提供的非物质惠益，如精神享受、休闲娱乐和美学体验等。

The value realization mechanism of ecological products is the institutional mechanism that manifests and realizes the ecological value, economic value, and social value of ecological products through methods such as ecological protection compensation and market operation and development, thereby forming a benefit orientation in which ecological protectors benefit, users pay, and destroyers compensate through institutional incentives. Ecological products and their value realization mechanism have matured along with the gradual deepening of China's ecological civilization construction. To scientifically and rationally promote the value realization of ecological products and better expand the ways to realize the value of ecological products, it is necessary to firmly grasp the connotation of value, deeply understand that the concept of ecological products and its realization mechanism connect "lucid waters and lush mountains" with "invaluable assets," solving the problem of negative externalities in the ecological environment; and deeply understand that this concept and its realization mechanism have been transformed from an idea into an actionable operation, becoming a systematic project involving economic, political, social, and other related fields, with significant strategic and practical significance.

生态产品价值实现机制就是将生态产品所具有的生态价值、经济价值和社会价值通过生态保护补偿、市场经营开发等方式体现出来、加以实现的制度机制，以制度激励形成生态环境保护者受益、使用者付费、破坏者赔偿的利益导向。生态产品及其价值实现机制是随着我国生态文明建设逐步深入而走向成熟的。科学合理推动生态产品价值实现，更好拓展生态产品价值实现方式，需要牢牢把握其价值内涵，深刻认识生态产品这一概念及其实现机制连接了“绿水青山”与“金山银山”，解决了生态环境的外部不经济问题；深刻认识这一概念及其实现机制已经由一个理念转化为可实施操作的行动，成为一个涉及经济、政治、社会等相关领域的系统工程，具有重大的战略作用和现实意义。

Follow the institutional logic. The basic process of realizing the value of ecological products is to transform natural resources into ecological products, and then transform ecological products into economic benefits. After generating economic benefits, the natural resources themselves, as means of production, will also receive attention and protection. Although the basic process of realizing the value of ecological products is relatively clear, implementing it in practice and reflecting it in institutional arrangements is a very complex systematic project. Realizing the value of ecological products involves institutional innovation in various aspects such as the confirmation and registration of natural resource rights, government performance assessment, ecological protection compensation, market operation and development, and green financial services. If deep-seated institutional and mechanism obstacles and institutional barriers cannot be effectively resolved, it will be difficult to stimulate vitality, form synergy, and promote the efficient realization of the value of ecological products.

遵循制度逻辑。实现生态产品价值的基本过程，就是将自然资源转化为生态产品，再将生态产品转化为经济效益。在产生经济效益之后，作为生产资料的自然资源本身也会得到重视和保护。尽管实现生态产品价值的基本过程相对清晰，但落实到实践上、体现到制度安排中，却是一项非常复杂的系统工程。实现生态产品价值涉及自然资源确权登记、政府绩效考核、生态保护补偿、市场经营开发、绿色金融服务等方方面面的制度创新。如果不能有效破解深层次体制机制障碍和制度藩篱，就难以激发活力、形成合力，难以促进生态产品价值高效实现。

For example, land is a natural resource and does not inherently have a commodity value that can be exchanged; however, through institutional arrangements such as land transfer and use, the value of land can be realized, and it may generate a premium due to differences in external conditions such as geographical location and ecological environment. The institutional logic of realizing the value of ecological products is to break through the bottleneck constraints under the current institutional framework through institutional innovation, build an institutional system that transforms lucid waters and lush mountains into invaluable assets, promote ecological industrialization and industrial ecology, so that the value inherent in the good ecological environment itself is effectively realized, and combine the allocation of other non-ecological factors and different economic forms to achieve the maximum premium, forming a new model of coordinated advancement of ecological environmental protection and economic development. In 2021, the General Office of the Central Committee of the CPC and the General Office of the State Council issued the *Opinions on Establishing and Improving the Value Realization Mechanism for Ecological Products*, proposing the establishment of an ecological product survey and monitoring mechanism, an ecological product value evaluation mechanism, an ecological product operation and development mechanism, an ecological product protection and compensation mechanism, an ecological product value realization guarantee mechanism, and an ecological product value realization promotion mechanism. These cover the entire institutional chain of ecological product value realization and consolidate the institutional foundation for transforming ecological advantages into development advantages.

比如，土地是一种自然资源，并不天然具有可用于交换的商品价值；但通过土地出让、使用等方面的制度安排，就能使土地的价值得到实现，并可能因地理区位、生态环境等外部条件的差异而产生溢价。实现生态产品价值的制度逻辑，就是通过制度创新破除现行制度框架下的瓶颈制约，构建把绿水青山转化为金山银山的制度体系，推进生态产业化和产业生态化，使良好生态环境本身蕴含的价值得到有效实现，并结合配置其他非生态要素以及不同经济业态实现最大程度的溢价，形成生态环境保护和经济发展协同推进的新模式。2021年，中共中央办公厅、国务院办公厅印发《关于建立健全生态产品价值实现机制的意见》，提出建立生态产品调查监测机制、生态产品价值评价机制、生态产品经营开发机制、生态产品保护补偿机制、生态产品价值实现保障机制、生态产品价值实现推进机制，覆盖了生态产品价值实现的整个制度链条，夯实了把生态优势转化为发展优势的制度基石。

Adhere to multiple measures simultaneously. General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out: "Promote ecological industrialization and industrial ecology, cultivate a large number of ecological products to enter the market, and continuously transform ecological advantages into development advantages." On the new journey of the New Era, to continuously achieve new progress in the value realization of ecological products, multiple measures must be taken simultaneously and efforts must be aligned in the same direction. First, benchmark against the *Opinions on Establishing and Improving the Value Realization Mechanism for Ecological Products*, combine it with the actual development of the local region, optimize supporting policies in terms of ecological protection, planning and construction, and green development, base on the resource endowments of each region, explore effective paths for realizing the value of ecological products according to local conditions, systematically promote the standardized production, branding, and market-oriented operation of ecological products, and promote the value appreciation of ecological products. Second, optimize the ecological protection compensation mechanism, following the principle of "those who benefit compensate, those who protect benefit," scientifically define the rights and obligations of ecological protectors and beneficiaries of the good ecological environment; give play to the leading role of the government in ecological environmental protection, effectively link the improvement of the ecological protection compensation mechanism with public financial policies such as fiscal subsidies and transfer payments, and carry out pilot projects for cross-regional horizontal ecological protection compensation. Third, on the basis of strict protection of the ecological environment, explore diversified models for developing and operating ecological products. For example, refine eco-rural leisure tourism, with folk culture as a feature, combined with the construction of beautiful villages, build tourist attraction villages, and continuously improve the quality of rural tourism. By cultivating enterprises with market competitiveness, improve the operation and management level of ecological industrialization projects, effectively promote the value realization of ecological products, and continuously improve the quality of ecological product supply.

坚持多措并举。习近平总书记指出：“推进生态产业化和产业生态化，培育大量生态产品走向市场，让生态优势源源不断转化为发展优势。”新时代新征程，要推动生态产品价值实现工作不断取得新进展，必须多措并举、同向发力。一是对标《关于建立健全生态产品价值实现机制的意见》，结合本地区发展实际，从生态保护、规划建设、绿色发展等方面优化配套政策，立足各地区资源禀赋，因地制宜探索生态产品价值实现的有效路径，系统推进生态产品标准化生产、品牌化打造和市场化运作，推动生态产品价值增值。二是优化生态保护补偿机制，按照“谁受益、谁补偿，谁保护、谁受益”的原则，科学界定生态环境保护者、良好生态环境受益者的权利和义务；发挥政府对生态环境保护的主导作用，把健全生态保护补偿机制与财政补贴、转移支付等公共财政政策有效衔接起来，开展跨地区横向生态保护补偿试点。三是在严格保护生态环境基础上，探索多样化的生态产品开发和经营模式。比如，做精生态乡村休闲旅游，以民俗文化为特色，结合美丽乡村建设，打造旅游景区村，不断提高乡村旅游品质。通过培育有市场竞争力的企业，提升生态产业化项目运营管理水平，有力推动生态产品价值实现，不断提高生态产品供给质量。