China reinforces protection of nature reserve boundaries

By Wu Jin
0 Comment(s)Print E-mail China.org.cn, November 13, 2018
Adjust font size:

The Chinese government, concerned about the deteriorating environment surrounding some of the country's key nature reserves, is adopting stronger measures to halt the trend.

Sanjiangyuan National Natural Reserve of Qinghai province.[Photo/China.org.cn]

The Ministry of Ecology and Environment (MEE) recently called in 11 officials representing eight local authorities and forestry administrations from Anhui province, Chongqing municipality and Yunnan province, to instruct them to be more alert about the deteriorating environmental conditions around seven important nature reserves under their jurisdiction, zqb.cyol.com reported on Nov. 6.

According to the ministry, these local entities were found to be turning a blind eye to illegitimate developments, providing false information and making a fool of supervisory organs with fake promises.

The aim of the ministry move was to demonstrate that such derelictions of duty and fabrications could hardly escape the supervisory radar. From March onwards, the ministry, along six other authorities, has been working on a joint action called "Green Shield," calibrating at 469 national-level and 847 provincial or equivalent-level nature reserves located in 31 provinces, prefectures and municipalities.

The problems that have been detected by inspectors include ambiguous boundaries between habitable and non-habitable areas enabling people to go in and out freely, growing rubbish mountains, continued construction of tourist facilities that the local authorities had promised to halt, and illegal projects under the name of "improving people's livelihoods."

"We face lots of historic problems while protecting nature reserves. Therefore, we don't hold you accountable for the past, but each of you must be responsible from now on," Liu Changgen, deputy director of the national environmental inspection office of MEE, told the 11 officials.

In line with the Regulations on Nature Reserves amended last year, actions, such as lumbering, herding, hunting, fishing, herb collection, land reclamation, grass burning, mining and dredging, are prohibited in the protected areas.

However, many local residents living near nature reserves have made use of land, especially the buffer zones protecting the core areas, to make a living. For instance, between April and October each year, local residents in proximity to Mt. Qomolangma have been making a lucrative living providing tents, food and drinks for a host of tourists. The accommodation fee is usually in the range of 30 (US$4.34) to 50 yuan (US$7.23) per person per night, which a local man said was a considerable income for plateau herders.

Last May, the Nianbaoyuze State Park in Jiuzhi county, Guoluo Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, Qinghai province, closed and its facilities, including, the boardwalks and camps, were dismantled. The closure of the park, a major source of income for the local economy, has caused a considerable loss.

With investment totaling 12.16 million yuan, the park was graded in 2000 as a national 4A scenic spot, only one level lower than the supreme 5A. In 2008, the county started to receive many more visitors. According to a local government report, the park received 157,000 visits last year, with tourist revenue hitting 114 million yuan, equivalent to a quarter of Jiuzhi county's annual Gross Domestic Product (GDP).

However, the increasingly frequent visits of human beings disturbed the eco-environment inside the park, exemplified by accelerated thawing of the snow-capped mountains. Besides, the ubiquitous rubbish piles and the jaywalkers leaving the designated walkways to tramp on the preserved prairies indicated a loosening of the local monitoring system.

The park is one of the country's key nature reserves, where people should have been prevented from walking around indiscriminately. To protect their natural assets, many other parks, like Nianbaoyuze, are starting denying access to tourists.

In addition to tourism, the extant micro and small hydropower stations, established three or four decades ago to provide power to sparsely-populated rural villages, have had a side effect of jeopardizing the ecological systems important in shaping the reserves.

The hydropower stations working with a capacity below 25,000 kW each are categorized as small-scale power generators in China. Nowadays, more than 47,000 power stations of this type continue to rumble across the country, among which, some are still operated in buffer zones or inner parts of nature reserves, running counter to the law prohibiting and productive activities in any form in those areas.

At the end of last year, police at Sanjiangyuan National Natural Reserve of Qinghai province, imposed penalties on two small hydropower stations for their illegal operations spread over 10 years. However, in fact, the stations were fined no more than 10,000 yuan.

"The cost of law-breaking is so light it doesn't discourage violators," said Cui Shuhong, an official of the Ministry of Ecology and Environment.

China plans to establish stringent controls over the red lines mapped out to protect the natural reserves to eventually cover the equivalent of around a quarter of national territory.

Follow China.org.cn on Twitter and Facebook to join the conversation.
ChinaNews App Download
Print E-mail Bookmark and Share

Go to Forum >>0 Comment(s)

No comments.

Add your comments...

  • User Name Required
  • Your Comment
  • Enter the words you see:    
    Racist, abusive and off-topic comments may be removed by the moderator.
Send your storiesGet more from China.org.cnMobileRSSNewsletter