Guangming Daily reporter Yang Shu
April 22 this year is the 54th “World Earth Day”. The Ministry of Natural Resources and the People’s Government of Fujian Province jointly held a home event for Earth Day in Fuzhou around the theme of “Cherish the Earth, Harmonious Coexistence between Man and Nature”. Wang Hong, vice minister of the Ministry of Natural Resources and director of the State Oceanic Administration, said that my country’s ecological protection and restoration has achieved important results. The Chinese plan for the harmonious coexistence of man and nature.
From the mouth of the Minjiang River in Fujian to Chaohu Lake in Anhui, from the ecological barrier in the upper reaches of the Yangtze River in Chongqing to the southern Taihang area in Henan… Since 2016, my country has successively implemented 44 integrated protection and restoration projects of mountains, rivers, forests, fields, lakes, grass and sand in more than 20 provinces, referred to as “” Landscape Engineering”. Today, let’s get closer to it.
Complete ecological protection and restoration of an area exceeding 5 million hectares
In spring, at the mouth of the Minjiang River in Fujian, the swaying reeds and the sound of birdsong have attracted many bird-watching enthusiasts to check in.
“Look, there are endless tidal flats and reed marshes here when the tide is out, and there are groups of rare birds, many of which are national first-class protected wild animals.” Chen Chaoling, a bird-watching enthusiast, pointed at the flocks of flying birds in the distance. told reporters. “Wait until winter, there are more birds here, and it is the most suitable place to feel the beauty of harmonious coexistence between man and nature.”
However, as the largest and best estuary delta wetland in Fujian Province, this homeland for the survival of various animals and plants has encountered various “traumas” and faced various threats. Thanks to the implementation of landscape engineering, the vitality here can be preserved.
“This is just a microcosm of the 44 landscape projects.” Wang Lei, deputy director of the Land and Space Ecological Restoration Department of the Ministry of Natural Resources, said. He introduced that in order to implement the concept that mountains, rivers, forests, fields, lakes and grasses are a community of life, since 2016, my country has supported 5 batches of 44 landscape projects in key areas related to national ecological security, such as the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, the Yellow River Basin, and the Yangtze River Basin. Up to now, the central government has invested a total of nearly 80 billion yuan in rewards and subsidies, which has effectively stimulated local financial and social capital investment, and completed ecological protection and restoration of more than 5 million hectares, which has played an important role in improving the quality and stability of the regional ecosystem. .
In terms of specific practices, on the one hand, strengthen planning guidance and scientific layout. Relevant departments jointly compiled the “National Major Projects for the Protection and Restoration of Important Ecosystems (2021-2035)”, which clearly defined the ecological barrier area of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, the key ecological area of the Yangtze River, the key ecological area of the Yellow River, the northern sand control belt, and the northeast forest. The pattern of China’s ecological security barriers and the overall layout of major projects in the “three regions and four belts” such as the southern hilly and mountainous regions, and the coastal region, and the special construction plans for nine major projects have been compiled. In recent years, provincial, municipal, and county-level land and space ecological restoration plans have also been carried out in an orderly manner. “The basic layout of landscape engineering is in the key nodes of my country’s ecological security barrier or in key ecological areas with global significance.” Wang Lei said.
On the other hand, give full play to the guiding role of the central special award and subsidy funds to drive social capital investment. The central finance has set up a special reward and subsidy fund and established a management system. At the same time, mobilize the whole society to participate, establish a diversified investment incentive mechanism, clarify support policies for social capital’s participation in ecological protection and restoration, release policy dividends, and broaden capital investment channels. Formulate and issue a series of standards to provide technical guidance for integrated protection and restoration. Establish my country’s first norms that systematically guide the practice of ecological protection and restoration in accordance with the concept that mountains, rivers, forests, fields, lakes and grasses are a community of life, with a general nature. Special standards for mine ecological restoration and marine ecological protection and restoration have also been introduced one after another. At present, more than 20 technical standards of various types have been issued.
Explore the systematic experience of large-scale ecological restoration
In 2022, the United Nations Environment Program and FAO launched the selection of flagship projects for ecological restoration. China Shanshui Engineering stood out from more than 150 declared projects around the world and became one of the first batch of top ten ecological restoration flagship projects in the world. Evaluation of the United Nations Environment Program: “China’s landscape engineering is one of the most promising, ambitious and inspiring examples of large-scale ecological restoration in the world. Due to the systematic approach that regards all ecosystems as a community of life, through unremitting efforts Restoring millions of hectares of land in China.”
Chongqing Guangyang Island comprehensively implements the protection measures of “mountain protection, water management, forest management, dredging fields, clear lakes, and abundant grass”, and the southern hilly area of Ganzhou, Jiangxi Province creates a “three-conformity” governance of “mountain and mountain, ground and underground, and watershed” Model, the integrated protection and restoration of “barren mountain afforestation, mine restoration, and soil and water conservation” in the Wenhe River Basin in Yimeng, Shandong… The implementation of 44 landscape projects has played an obvious demonstration effect, and explored many integrated protection and restoration methods experience.
Wang Lei introduced that Shanshui Engineering has built a cross-departmental, multi-subject, and multi-disciplinary collaborative mechanism. In the process of promoting the implementation of Shanshui projects, local governments have gradually established leading organizations composed of provincial, municipal, and county governments and relevant departments of natural resources, finance, and ecological environment, forming a cross-departmental working mechanism to promote work in a coordinated manner. Relevant managers, planning and design personnel, experts in related fields, local residents, social organizations and many other subjects also actively participated in it. At the same time, a new model of multi-element system governance has been initially explored through overall planning and deployment based on regions or river basins.
In the implementation of Shanshui Project, through land policy incentives, financial tools to tap potential, and integrated industrial development, etc., innovate investment and financing models and explore diversified investment mechanisms. For example, in the Shanshui Project at the headwaters of the Qiantang River in Zhejiang, the Qiandao Lake Water Fund was established, adopting a “charitable trust + business trust” structure for water source protection, investing in ecological agricultural products, nature education, ecological experience, cultural and creative projects that are beneficial to water source protection Projects and other ecological industries, to create the “Qiandao Qingquan” brand.
On the basis of ecological restoration, localities are also exploring the development of related industries such as ecological agriculture, ecological animal husbandry, ecological tourism, and ecological culture. While helping to solve the employment problem of local residents, they are also promoting ecological industrialization and industrial ecological development. In the past, it has further promoted the management and maintenance of ecological protection and restoration effects. For example, in the landscape project at the eastern foot of Helan Mountain in Ningxia, while implementing ecological protection and restoration, the wine and tourism industries have also developed well.
Landscape engineering not only inherits traditional ecological wisdom, but also draws on advanced international concepts. During the implementation of the project, the integration of local knowledge and ecological traditional wisdom is encouraged to carry out ecological protection and restoration. For example, the Shanshui Project in the source area of the Oujiang River in Zhejiang demonstrates and promotes the sustainable agricultural utilization systems of “rice-fish symbiosis” and “zizania duck symbiosis” inherited from local history. At the same time, in promoting the implementation of landscape engineering, fully transform and absorb international concepts such as “nature-based solutions”, rewilding, close to nature, and adaptive management, and incorporate them into relevant planning and technical standards to promote localization.
“This is a vivid practice of the concept of a life community of mountains, rivers, forests, fields, lakes, and grasses. It shows China’s highly responsible image of participating in global ecological and environmental governance. It provides Chinese wisdom and Chinese solutions for the world to deal with climate change and ecological environment degradation. It has become a landscape, forest, field, and lake. It is one of the landmark projects of grass-sand integrated protection and system governance.” Wang Lei said.
(Guangming Daily, Fuzhou, April 22)
“Guangming Daily” (version 03, April 23, 2023)
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责编：徐皓 ]