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The Yangtze River, winding through 11 provinces, autonomous
regions and municipalities from west to east, is China’s mother
river. Protecting and improving the environment along the major
waterway while developing the economy has become one of
China’s top priorities.
The Yangtze River Economic Belt boasts a population of
roughly 600 million that generate 40 percent of China’s GDP.
Many enterprises thrive along the belt and will now have to be on
the frontlines of protecting and building the ecological sanctity
of the river. As the country strives to continue to elevate the
living standards of its citizens, all polluting enterprises are being
required to either close down production or transform themselves
into environmentally-friendly companies.
Going green
Under a local government campaign against pollution in Yichang
City, in central China’s Hubei Province, the Hubei Xingfa Chemicals
Group closed, relocated or upgraded to clean industries a total
of 134 chemical plants along the Yangtze River. Four sewage
discharge outlets, which used to release untreated waste water
directly into the river, were shut down and the waste water
now goes to a sewage disposal plant for further processing.
Green vegetation was then planted on the sites to restore the
environment. Xingfa, located on the bank of the Yangtze River
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In Wuhan North Lake, the construction of a sewage treatment
plant is in full swing. The short-term plan is to treat 800,000 tons
of sewage daily while the long-term goal is 1.5 million tons.
With the restoration of the river’s ecological environment high
on the agenda in developing the Yangtze River Economic Belt,
unplanned development along the river will be stopped and the
total pollution discharge will be capped.
“The area along the Yangtze River has the most abundant
ecological resources in China,” said Luo Laijun, an economist
from Renmin University. “The protection of the environment here
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country.”
Jingzhou City in Hubei Province has actively restored the
ecological environment of its lakes and wetlands. By the end of
2017, there were a total of 24 newly emerged lakes in the city.
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Jingzhou. “Fish farming was mostly disorganized then, with
everyone fending for themselves. Now things are much better
since many local governments along the Yangtze River rotate the
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Jiang Shenghui, a villager from the Liangzi Lake area in
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worry anymore.” He continued, “The government organizes the
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paid by either collecting rent or working for the collective. This
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Center of the State Council, said, “Rivers are the birth places of
many civilizations. The Yangtze River Basin is the key ecological
defense line of our country and its ecological protection is key to
the development of the Chinese nation.”
Chang added, “This requires that all companies along the
Yangtze River—no matter what industry they develop—make
ecological protection a priority.”
Innovation and coordination
Along the Yangtze River, the Donghu New Technology
Development Zone, dubbed China’s Optics Valley, is the world’s
largest research and development (R&D) and manufacturing
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Golden Waterway
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Belt vibrant and green
By Yuan Yuan