The security and sustainable development of water resources is crucial for the green and circular development of the Qinba Mountain Area, and is of great signifcance in seeking paths for regional green and circular development. This paper summarizes the current status in the Qinba Mountain Area from the aspects of water-conserving society construction, drinking water security in rural areas, water resource fee-to-tax reform, and pilot water-right construction; it also analyzes the problems in terms of water source use, water use awareness, pollution control, and resource reforms. Based on national government plans, an overall development strategy is proposed as placing a high priority on saving water resources, improving the policies on water resource economy, and focusing on science and technology support. The corresponding strategic countermeasures for the sustainable development of water resource economy are listed as: implementing the policies for water saving and increasing the utilization of unconventional water sources;  improving  the construction of sewage  treatment facilities and strengthening  the security of drinking water  in rural areas; comprehensively promoting the reform of water fee system and expediting the construction of water rights system; establishing novel development models for the water resource economy by relying on the resource advantages. The sustainable development of the water resource economy in the Qinba Mountain Area will be supported by coordinated management of water resources, water environment, water ecology, water industry, and water culture.

The Qinba Mountain area is an important area for biodiversity protection and water conservation in China, and also an important water source for the South-to-North Water Transfer Project. Mountains and rivers are intertwined in this region, and the hydrological process is closely related to the mountainous environment, showing a typical trend of basin development. This study analyzed the current situation and existing problems in the urban and rural space development in this region, and elaborated the necessity of basin development. Meanwhile, we defined the basin order framework and five-level basin division in the Qinba Mountain Area, from the perspective of basin analysis and based on the delineation of multi-scale basin basement. The urban and rural space development strategy in the Qinba Mountain Area is proposed, namely an urban and rural structure based on basin ecology management and control, an urban and rural pattern guided by green transformation of basins, and collaborative management and control centering on interactive development of basins. The results show that basin is a typical ecological unit in the Qinba Mountain Area and is highly coupled with the urban and rural space development. Urban and rural space planning and institutional control based on basins is conductive to the green development of the Qinba Mountain Area.