On April 28th, 2018, as a part of the celebration of the 2018 May Day (International Worker’s Day) a promotion conference for labor and skill competition was held in the Great Hall of the People, Beijing.  The theme was "Mastery and Contributing to the New Era".  During the conference,  as part of the "Decision of the All-China Federation of Trade Unions on the 2018 National Labor Award and the National Pioneer Worker" HIT's State Key Laboratory of Urban Water Resources and Environment won the honorable title of National Pioneer Worker.

The State Key Laboratory of Urban Water Resources and Environment currently has 75 researchers, including 4 academicians of the Chinese Academy of Engineering, 6 recipients of the National Science Fund for Distinguished Young Scholars, 9 distinguished professors of the Yangtze River Scholars, and nearly 600 graduate students. The laboratory has an innovation group which is part of the National Natural Science Foundation of China.  It also has an innovation team in key areas of the Ministry of Science and Technology. It adheres to and promotes China's cultural spirit of "the pursuit for truth and knowledge; unity of knowing and doing; tolerance for differences". It strives to be a leader in international academic frontiers and solve major challenges in economic and social development. The laboratory has achieved many theoretical breakthroughs and technological innovations and engineering practices in major research fields such as urban water ecological security, urban water quality assurance, and healthy circulation of urban water. The laboratory has received three second prizes from the State Technological Innovation Award, and five second prizes from the National Science & Technology Progress Award.  It has also received the title of national environmental education base for elementary and middle school students, the Heilongjiang provincial pioneer worker, and the Heilongjiang provincial environmental education demonstration base.