On January 22 nd, Wuyuanwan Wetland Park in Xiamen, Fujian, tourists photographed black swans on the plank road. Wuyuan Bay was once covered with salt drying fields, farms and garbage dumps, and the natural ecosystem was seriously damaged, so it was considered as an uninhabitable place. In 2005, Xiamen started the comprehensive improvement project of Wuyuan Bay, implemented measures such as ecological restoration, comprehensive development and overall development, reserved plots worth tens of billions of yuan in the central city to carry out ecological protection and restoration, and built a wetland park of about 99 hectares, attracting more than 90 kinds of wild birds to feed and inhabit, and rare species such as chestnut-throated bee tiger and white dolphin and black swan have settled here one after another. Zhongqing Daily Zhongqing Net reporter Zhang Yujia/photo
In 1986, an essay-writing activity called "2000-Xiamen in My Mind" aroused widespread concern in Xiamen. Later, more than a dozen good strategies in the essay were adopted and incorporated into the Economic and Social Development Strategy of Xiamen from 1985 to 2000, which was a strategic plan for economic and social development that spanned 15 years earlier by local governments in China, and "beautiful environment" was included in one of the six strategic goals.
In 2002, a mobilization order of "promoting the development of the island and across the island" was in full swing, encouraging Xiamen to accelerate its transformation from an island-based city to a bay-based ecological city.
In 2017, BRICS leaders met in Xiamen, and Xiamen was praised as a "high-value ecological garden city".
In 2024, the national level issued a road map for building a beautiful China in an all-round way. Xiamen’s ecological practice for more than 30 years is like a microcosm, and it has become a pioneer in comprehensively promoting the construction of a beautiful China. Recently, the reporter visited Xiamen, looking for generations of successive strugglers and exploring the practical code of beautiful Xiamen.
Find the way of ecological management from a lake
Xiamen is endowed with unique advantages as well as the unique sea. This city has won the reputation of "International Garden City" and "UN Habitat Award" successively, not only because of its talent, but also because of its arduous efforts.
Yaodang Lake was originally deep into the inner bay fishing port of Xiamen Island. At night, the fishing fire was like a star, the scenery was like a dream, and the grand scene of "Yaodang fishing fire" spread. But in the 1970s, the lake turned black and smelly, and the fish, shrimp and egrets disappeared.
当地可查记录显示，那一时期，筼筜湖污染源较多，125家企业向该湖排放工业废水，占全市工业废水排放量的45%以上，全市近一半的生活污水直接排入筼筜湖，还有6家医院的污水也直入此湖。
“筼筜湖何时不再黑臭？”当地群众发出强烈呼声。
1988年3月，一场整治环境污染的硬仗在厦门打响。很多人都记得，时任厦门市委常委、常务副市长的习近平同志主持召开专题会议，提出“依法治湖、截污处理、清淤筑岸、搞活水体、美化环境”20字方针，拉开了筼筜湖综合治理序幕。
针对前期资金不足问题，筼筜湖治理方案明确每年投入1000万元财政资金，占当时厦门全市基本建设支出近10%；同时，多渠道筹措排污费、土地批租收入、借款和技改资金，以空前力度加大治理投入。
在厦门市市政园林局党组成员、总工程师王艳艳看来，这样的治理力度在当时实属罕见。
水域面积1.6平方公里的筼筜湖先后进行了五期大规模整治，总投资约19.9亿元。事实上，36年来，厦门在海洋生态保护修复上累计投入1056亿元。
“以筼筜湖综合整治为起点，城市生态价值观念逐步觉醒。”厦门市副市长张志红说。
The earliest 20-character governance policy has been affecting the ecological construction of Xiamen. As the first principle, "governing the lake according to law" has not only run through the comprehensive management of Yundang Lake for 36 years, but also is the background color of Xiamen’s ecological construction.
Many cadres in Xiamen said that if there is no guarantee of the rule of law, ecological restoration will be difficult for a long time. In 1994, after Xiamen obtained the legislative power of special economic zones, the first substantive local regulation was the Regulations of Xiamen on Environmental Protection. Since then, Xiamen has given full play to the advantages of the legislative power of special economic zones in the construction of marine rule of law, and has successively formulated more than ten laws and regulations related to the sea.
The controversy about the use of Aoguan natural coastline in Haicang Bay of Xiamen has lasted for many years. Yu Xingguang, former director of the Third Institute of Oceanography of the Ministry of Natural Resources, said that although this natural coastline is only a few hundred meters, it contains different landforms such as beaches, reefs, mangroves and wetlands, and developers are also optimistic about this coastline. Yu Xingguang, a former deputy to Xiamen Municipal People’s Congress, has called on many occasions to protect the "pocket" coastline of Aoguan.
The protection of the coastline was finally written into "Several Provisions on Marine Environmental Protection in Xiamen City" in the form of laws and regulations, and Article 16 of Chapter III clearly stipulates that "any activity to change the natural coastline of Aoguan coastal area is prohibited".
In addition to investment governance and legal protection, Xiamen also has a series of institutional innovations, such as establishing the marine management office of the municipal government, taking the lead in setting up a professional marine cleaning team in the country, prohibiting the introduction of heavy pollution projects, rationally arranging industrial concentration areas, and promoting the relocation and upgrading of enterprises in the main city.
From a lake, a coastline, a bay, an island, a mountain, from a part to the whole, from the mountain top to the ocean, Xiamen has built a system governance system and a "multi-regulation" business collaboration platform.
Ke Yuzong, Party Secretary and Director of Xiamen Natural Resources and Planning Bureau, introduced that all kinds of spatial planning originally scattered in natural resources, development and reform, ecological environment, water conservancy and other departments were integrated as a whole, and all kinds of ecological environment control requirements were managed by drawing, forming a "blueprint" of global space based on ecological environment, supported by resource carrying capacity and based on special planning of various departments, so as to save resources and protect the environment to the maximum extent.
Positive interaction between scientific and technological support and scientific decision-making
For more than 30 years, Xiamen’s "high face value" cannot be separated from strong scientific and technological support. In the Economic and Social Development Strategy of Xiamen from 1985 to 2000, "environmental protection technology" is clearly regarded as the key social science and technology field.
With the deepening of marine ecological restoration, the problems involve a wide range, involving many stakeholders, and the problems of science and technology, administration, law, economy and environment are intertwined. How to allocate basin resources and plan space? Each department has its own work objectives.
In 1995, the Xiamen Municipal Government’s Coordination Leading Group for Integrated Marine Management was established, with the mayor or deputy mayor as the team leader and department leaders as members, and the Marine Management Office, a functional department of the government’s integrated marine affairs management, was also established.
In 1996, Xiamen took the lead in setting up a marine expert group in China relying on the Marine Management Office, and the municipal government issued a letter of appointment. Hong Huasheng, the first returned female doctor of oceanography in China, was the first group leader.
The personnel structure of the expert group also changes with the development stage of Xiamen. At first, there were only some experts in the fields of ocean and planning. When the goal of marine ecological restoration is gradually expanded, legal experts and economists are added. When Xiamen is open to the whole world outside the island, Xiamen’s high-quality marine economic development needs major technical preparation, and some influential academicians join in.
Yu Xingguang, a former leader of the expert group, recalled that in principle, every two months, the expert group listened to a briefing on important matters related to the sea in Xiamen, and the city leaders in charge of the ocean discussed with the members of the expert group. "Suggestions can be made on the spot, or not necessarily on the spot. It can be written or oral. " Through consultation, investigation, feedback and continuous communication, the expert group reached a basic consensus, and most of the opinions were adopted by the government to a high degree, forming a benign interaction. "This mechanism is a scientific decision-making model that relies on science and technology, takes fewer detours and seeks truth from facts."
"My contact with scientists is like a student going to worship a teacher." Pan Shijian, who was the deputy mayor of Xiamen at that time, kept a "seamless" close contact with the expert group. "Sometimes my mind is prone to fever, so I should listen to other people’s opinions."
Pan Shijian said that many ideas and details can’t be communicated just by holding a meeting, but by calling or visiting at any time, and opening up information to experts. "There is nothing to hide."
Gaoji seawall, which blocks the east and west waters of Xiamen, is 2212 meters long and has played an important role in Xiamen’s history. The opening of Gaoji seawall is regarded as the top priority of "Xiamen’s marine ecological function restoration project". Hong Huasheng introduced that after the opening, the "meridians" of the sea area were opened, and the originally semi-closed bay became an open and permeable bay, which was conducive to enhancing the water exchange capacity and largely solved the problem of the maximum environmental capacity of the entire western sea area of Xiamen and Tongan Bay, which played the most critical role in the entire ecological restoration.
How to determine the opening width, tidal capacity, dredging depth, hydrodynamic improvement and siltation degree, water quality control index, etc. The Third Institute of Oceanography of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Xiamen University conducted back-to-back mathematical model research and calculation comparison at the same time, and nanjing hydraulic research institute also conducted physical model experiments to ensure accuracy and science.
In the past 2023, there were 60 or 70 species of birds observed in Xiatanwei Mangrove Park in Xiamen, which is the latest data from the team of Yang Shengchang, an associate professor at the School of Environment and Ecology of Xiamen University. Before the ecological restoration in this area, there were only twenty or thirty species of birds.
"After the implementation of the ecological restoration project, the biggest thing is the ecological benefits, especially the significant improvement of biodiversity." Yang Shengchang said that the number of benthic organisms such as shellfish, shrimps and crabs has also increased by about three times. In the early years, Xiatan tail was frequently farmed out of order and seriously polluted. It was regarded as a remote place by Xiamen people and unwilling to come. "After coming, it will be smoked away by the smell of seawater." The local native mangroves have also been seriously damaged.
Mangroves are regarded as "the protector of islands". Since 2005, Xiamen Municipal Government has entrusted Academician Lin Peng of Xiamen University to lead the research group of mangrove project of Xiamen University to plant mangrove experimental forest in Xiatanwei. Mangrove restoration has been included as a private practical project by Xiamen Municipal Government.
Lu Changyi, a student in Lin Peng and dean of the School of Environmental Science and Engineering of Tan Kah Kee College of Xiamen University, recalled that some villagers had resistance to the construction of the mangrove wetland at Xiatanwei, and some villagers even climbed onto the hook machine to stop the project.
In May 2012, at the beginning of the project, Lu Changyi came to the village with a portable projector on his back. As night fell, he borrowed a white sheet as a curtain, hung it on the stone wall at the head of the village, and told the villagers about his ecological "open class". With the efforts of all parties, the villagers finally expressed their understanding and support for the Xiatanwei project. More than 60% of the mangrove planting workers are composed of local villagers.
Today, Xiatanwei Mangrove Park has become a green buffer zone to resist typhoon, storm surge and other marine disasters, integrating nature education, leisure science and other functions. Yang Shengchang said: "There are almost no children in Xiamen who don’t know about mangroves."
In November 2023, Peter Thomson, Special Envoy of the UN Secretary-General for Ocean Affairs, came to Xiatanwei Mangrove Park during Xiamen International Ocean Week, and highly affirmed the balance between ecology and economy in Xiamen, expecting it to provide "Xiamen samples" for international marine ecological environment governance.
High-level protection and high-quality development
Why is Xiamen so different?
When we carefully explore the logic of urban texture formation, we will find that there are many wonderful "concessions" in Xiamen: in order to protect more than 500 trees, the lucky chance Bridge in Wuyuan Bay has made a detour; In order not to disturb the Chinese white dolphins, the scheme of Xiang’ an cross-sea bridge was changed to a submarine tunnel with double construction cost and greater construction risk; In order to avoid reservoirs and plants, Xiamen built a mountain road with only three lanes; There is a 3-hectare nature reserve in the middle of the high-rise buildings in the urban area, which is reserved for the "most beautiful bird in China" to settle down and breed. Xiamen is their breeding and habitat in the northernmost latitude of the world.
"Concession" everywhere is not a compromise, but a kind look back on the natural life of the triumphant city, and the wisdom of cooperating with high-quality development and high-level protection.
Pan Shijian remembers that at the beginning of the 21st century, Xiamen was in the period of rapid construction of the Special Economic Zone and needed money everywhere. "On the one hand, we are faced with building this city quickly to meet the needs of the people. At the same time, we are also faced with an island city with a beautiful environment that needs ecological restoration. There are many specific and difficult choices." Pan Shijian said, "We don’t simply dial the abacus, and the calculated value is still not worth it."
Taking Wuyuan Bay in the northeast of Xiamen Island as an example, due to seawall blocking and regional development and construction, the water exchange capacity in this area is poor, and planting, breeding and salt field management also lead to increased pollution. In 2003, the local per capita GDP was only 39.4% of the average level of Xiamen. Two years later, Xiamen started the comprehensive improvement project of Wuyuan Bay with reference to the management experience of Yaodang Lake.
At first, the land in Wuyuanwan Bay was planned to be stored as construction land. The Xiamen Municipal Government fully solicited and adopted expert opinions, adjusted the development and utilization planning of Wuyuanwan area in time, abandoned the hot real estate development at that time, and reserved 89 hectares of original wetlands in the bay.
The habitat of chestnut-throated bee tiger is also in this wetland. In 2011, the Xiamen Municipal Government designated the Chestnut-throated Bee Tiger Nature Reserve, in which 37 hectares in Wuyuanwan Wetland Area are feeding grounds and 3 hectares in the urban area are breeding grounds. According to the original plan, if these 40 hectares were used for development, the land value would be as high as 3 billion yuan.
"Is this article about urban construction simple or complicated? Xiamen’s development philosophy is: what you do today should provide a better platform and environment for tomorrow’s development. " Pan Shijian said.
Later data showed that by the end of 2022, the land value of Wuyuanwan area alone had increased by more than eight times compared with that of 2005, and the value created far exceeded the income from real estate development abandoned at that time, and the chestnut-throated bee tiger retained valuable habitats.
Today, Wuyuan Bay has become a new "city meeting room" in Xiamen, attracting more than 300 well-known enterprises to settle down; Xiamen International Yacht Club and Sailing Port have been built, and more and more young people come to experience sailing, yachting and surfing. Music festivals, trunk fairs and art exhibitions will also be held on weekends.
"Looking up is fresh blue, and looking around is pleasant green." Strolling through Xiamen, people will find that the distance between people and the sea is so close, cyclists ride in the bay driveway, children chase the sea, the elderly do morning exercises in the seaside park, and in the afterglow of sunset, the long shadows of citizens and tourists cover Baicheng beach.
Huang Zhiquan, a member of Xiamen Bird Watching Association, loves two scenic spots in Xiamen. One is the white scenery where flocks of egrets catch fish at the gate of the west dike of Miandang Lake, and the other is the black scenery where flocks of wintering cormorants arrive as scheduled every winter and feed and inhabit in Xinglin Bay, forming a unique ecological wonder of "Qi Fei with ten thousand birds".
Earlier Xinglin Bay was still a rotten mire. Xinglin Bay used to be a beautiful bay in history, but it has been affected by dams, production, construction and aquaculture pollution for a long time. Some experts came here to inspect, and the ship could not move forward before it got close, and it was full of silt.
The construction of Garden Expo Garden in Xinglin Bay, jimei district, Xiamen is the most difficult project that Pan Shijian has handled. He not only wants to carry out ecological restoration in this area, but also wants to build Jimei New City, and Yuanboyuan is an opportunity.
It only took more than two years from the application for construction to the final completion of the Garden Expo Garden. For this purpose, Xiamen has set up a special headquarters to conduct in-depth investigations on various birds, fish and other animals and plants to ensure that the original ecological balance will not be destroyed during development and construction. Seriously protect the original ecological green space, water system and nursery, and obtain good ecological benefits with minimal transformation or no transformation.
It is difficult to estimate how much economic growth this water garden has driven in jimei district. Jimei district used to be an old industrial zone in Xiamen. Now, an industrial chain with garden art, culture and education, sports, hot spring vacation, water sports and navigation education has been gradually established, forming a sustainable industrial system.
Xie Ming, deputy director of the Bureau of Industry and Information Technology of jimei district, Xiamen, said that in the past 10 years, the net population growth of jimei district was the largest in Fujian Province, reaching more than 500,000 people, and it is also the most populous district in Xiamen at present, reaching more than 1.1 million people, and the youth aged 14-35 accounted for 46% of the total population in the region. Young employees of some enterprises said that when they choose their place of residence, the beautiful environment and industrial agglomeration are very attractive.
Tens of thousands of fishermen have landed in successive bay renovations to make room for the blue sea and silver beach.
In order to avoid the loss of fishermen’s interests and ensure their livelihood, the government has set up special social security for fishermen who have lost their lives, organized re-employment training after landing, arranged for fishermen to work in enterprises and give subsidies, set up funds to encourage entrepreneurship.
Some fishermen change jobs, and some fishermen go to other places to seek development with their farming skills. Lin Yulin, deputy secretary of the Party Committee of Pantu Community in Tong ‘an District, Xiamen, said that the annual aquaculture output of Pantu people exceeds 400,000 tons, and about 10% of the output is transported back to Pantu. The output value of Pantu oyster accounts for about 70% of the Xiamen market.
Electronics, machinery, light industry and chemical industry were once the pillar industries in Xiamen. Xiamen has given up extensive industries, laid out strategic emerging industries led by scientific and technological innovation, and achieved remarkable results in marine economy and cultural tourism economy. The data shows that in 2023, the proportion of the tertiary industry in Xiamen exceeded 60%, which was nearly 6 percentage points higher than the national level; The added value of high-tech manufacturing industry accounts for more than 40% of the industrial proportion, which is 27 percentage points higher than that of the whole country; The energy consumption and water consumption of GDP per 10,000 yuan are at the leading level in China.
Today, Xiamen has developed into a high-quality city of innovation and entrepreneurship, with rapid development of new economy and new industries, keeping pace with trade and investment, and reaching five continents by sea, land and air. Xiamen embraces the world with a more open attitude.
According to the relevant person in charge of the Department of Resource Conservation and Environmental Protection of the National Development and Reform Commission, Xiamen’s cooperation with high-level protection and high-quality development has broken the problem. "The development of Xiamen does not depend on the consumption of resources and energy. Its practice has proved that high-level ecological protection can also create and develop new formats and support new economic advantages."
This is a relay race from generation to generation. Yu Xingguang has worked and lived in Xiamen for 43 years, witnessing Xiamen’s firm goal of ecological protection and restoration. "It will not change because of the change of leadership, will not retreat because of temporary economic difficulties, and will not change because of changes in the economic and ecological situation."
Xiamen "leaves the most beautiful beaches to the people" and protects the rocks and landforms along the beach and coast to the maximum extent; In all kinds of protection measures, the opinions of the masses are widely listened to, and Ludao children carefully care for every piece of green around them.
Enterprises and citizens actively subscribe for tree planting and daily management on Maluan Bay Ecological Island; "Citizen Lake Chief" competes to protect the Yaodang Lake; People call the Chinese white dolphin "Mazu fish", giving it the meaning of good luck.
"Xiamen people love nature." Pan Shijian grew up in Xiamen. When he was a child, he loved to climb trees and talk to birds in the trees. Birds chirped and he chirped. He likes swimming in the sea and watching crabs get into the beach. He said: "The owners of this city are not only people, but also animals and plants."
When he becomes a city builder, he wants to plant trees with large crowns that can make birds nest; It is also necessary to plant insect-infested trees so that birds can have food to eat; Plant trees in crevices of stones, on reefs at sea and on uninhabited islands. He also grows vegetables on his balcony and feeds them to the birds. "To truly love this city." Pan Shijian holds the idea that "the city is our mother." He built a sculpture on the beach beside the winding roundabout, where a mother was playing with her children at the seaside.
Zhongqingbao Zhongqingwang reporter Zhang Yi Source: China Youth Daily