Uphold concept of ecological civilization blaze new path for green development

Hongfeng Lake in Qingzhen of Guiyang City is one of the largest artificial lakes on the plateau in Guizhou, and also an important source of water for more than 1 million people in Guiyang. Human activities and the concentration of industrial enterprises along the lake, however, pose a great threat to the lake environment. In recent years, Qingzhen, taking the lead in practicing the concept that lucid rivers and lush mountains are invaluable assets, has blazed a new path of green development characterized by integration and mutual reinforcement of ecological and economic development. Apart from good practices in advancing ecological progress, it also provides a replicable Hongfeng Lake model which is worthy of in-depth study and dissemination nationwide.

Hongfeng Lake

Ecological restoration to protect clean water source

More than 558 households moved away from the Hongfeng Lake Primary Water Source Protection Zone where over 20 industrial enterprises, 20 farmhouse restaurants and more than 500 barbecue spots were demolished and 122,000 square meters of illegal buildings were torn down. We have built 132 sets of sewage treatment facilities to treat the domestic sewage of 128 villager groups along the lake, and built a collection and treatment system for domestic garbage from the villages along the lake, with a daily treatment capacity of 3,255 tons. In combination with domestic sewage treatment, more than 4,000 mu of cutover land and degraded wetland have been rehabilitated; more than 320,000 arbor shrubs have been planted; nine water quality monitoring stations, eight bird monitoring stations, and more than 20 water quality, plants, fish and beasts monitoring stations have been set up to protect the water body of the Hongfeng Lake.

Excellent ecology conducive to economic development

We adjust the surrounding agricultural industrial structure by planting flowers, fruits, tea and vegetables in place of grain to drive the development of characteristic tourism. Nowadays, the rural tourism focusing on ecological protection is developing vigorously, and the 10,000-mu tea garden of Ludishao Village, the 10,000-mu flower sea of Youer Village, the 10,000-mu vineyard of Youqi Village, and the high-efficiency agricultural demonstration garden of Luojiqiao Village are popular among tourists. The economic development in rural areas has begun to accelerate and the living standards of farmers are improving rapidly, presenting a vivid picture of “rich people and beautiful ecology”. According to statistics, in 2018 and 2019, the tourism industry along the Hongfeng Lake earned an income of over RMB 42.6 million, contributing to sustainable development of wetlands and communities.

Green transport embodying low-carbon living

The first bucket-style highway bridge in Guizhou, the Huayudong Bridge of Qingzhen was recently completed and opened to traffic. This is a red steel pipe arch bridge that spans the Hongfeng Lake. In tearing down the old bridge to make way for the new one, the construction unit upheld the concept of green development and adopted a cutting-and-dismantling approach which ensured zero pollution to the water environment. In addition, to facilitate the travel of local people, Qingzhen built small loop roads measuring 60 kilometers along the Hongfeng Lake, linking up the villager groups in this area. The green concept was implemented to minimize the adverse impact of construction activities and best protect the soil and vegetation on both sides of the roads. As a result, the project not only solved the traffic bottleneck for local residents, but also contributed to the ecological protection of the Hongfeng Lake.

Science popularization to enhance people's environmental awareness

Relying on the good ecological environment and unique cultural connotations, we have built biodiversity bases, exhibition halls of photographers associations, and popular science bulletins. We make full use of the platforms of schools, communities and party schools to popularize wetland knowledge and conduct more than 50 popular science publicity and education activities on the World Wetlands Day, World Environment Day, World Water Day and Wetland Protection Week through field investigations, and visits to classrooms and communities. Along the boundary of Hongfeng Lake Wetland Park, 59 posts have been installed. Besides, the park management services area, reasonable utilization area, and publicity and education area have been set to form a sound publicity and education system and strengthen the people's awareness of protecting the lake.

The New Huayudong Bridge

Shahbaz Khan, Representative of UNESCO Beijing Office, when attending the Eco Forum Global Guiyang 2021, indicated that he was very impressed by the practice that Guiyang pursues the concept of ecological civilization and has blazed a new path of green development. He pointed it out that Guiyang is a promising city, and UNESCO can make Guiyang's nature-based solution an exemplary case that will shed light on the path towards ecological civilization and sustainable development.