It is the most popular city in Guangdong recently! A shocking "mangrove city"

In the past six months, Zhanjiang has repeatedly become the focus of important news!

In September last year, as the largest single project invested by a German enterprise in China and the Sino-German International Cooperation As a benchmark, the integrated base project invested by world chemical giant BASF Group in Zhanjiang, Guangdong was officially put into operation, attracting global attention.

Zhanjiang, which aims to strengthen the sea, has laid out a world-class super-large petrochemical base and a modern large-scale port-facing steel base on Donghai Island, but this does not affect its ability to build a world-class industrial base along the more than 1,500 kilometers of coastline of the Leizhou Peninsula. It is the largest and most diverse national mangrove nature reserve in my country.

Recently, this increasingly famous mangrove city has once again come into public view.

The Zhanjiang Mangrove National Nature Reserve in Guangdong, located along more than 1,500 kilometers of coastline on the Leizhou Peninsula, is the nature reserve with the largest mangrove area in my country. From the establishment of a provincial nature reserve in 1990 to the upgrade to a national nature reserve in December 1997, the scope of the reserve expanded to the entire Leizhou Peninsula. In 2018, the Zhanjiang mangrove reserve area was expanded to 20,278.8 hectares.

In the intertidal zone where the blue ocean and reddish-brown land meet in Zhanjiang, lush, vigorous and powerful mangroves grow continuously.

Here is not only the largest contiguous native mangrove forest in my country, but also the oldest skeletal soil forest in my country. The former is distributed along the coast of Gaoqiao Town, Lianjiang City, in the northwest of Leizhou Peninsula, and the latter is distributed in the mangroves of Techeng Island in Xiashan District, Zhanjiang City.

What many people don’t know is that while the area of ??mangroves in the world is decreasing at a rate of about 1% per year, the area of ??mangroves in Zhanjiang has been growing against the trend year by year in recent years. It is called by international wetland experts A successful example of wetland restoration in the world.

The endless mangroves in Zhanjiang.

According to the latest survey statistics from the Ministry of Natural Resources, the total area of ??Zhanjiang Mangrove Nature Reserve is 20,278.8 hectares, of which the mangrove area has increased to 9,200 hectares. The mangrove area accounts for 33% of the country’s total and 79% of Guangdong Province’s. %.

Artificial afforestation is indispensable for the rapid recovery and growth of mangroves in Zhanjiang. Statistics show that through the efforts of the past three years, as of the end of 2021, Zhanjiang City has added 2,250 acres of mangrove artificial afforestation, 14,400 acres of mangroves have been closed and replanted, and 414 acres of coastal ecological forests have been created.

Dozens of egrets hovering over the mangroves are quite spectacular. Photo by Nanfang Daily reporter Wu Ming

Another major attraction of the Zhanjiang mangrove forest is that it is a paradise for birds and an important habitat and resting place for migratory birds migrating north and south. On weekdays, the protected area is sparkling, birds chirping in the forest, and fish and shrimp gather under the trees. The most eye-catching thing is the group of egrets that fly from time to time in the forest.

Spoon-billed Sandpipers forage in Leizhou Bay, Zhanjiang City. Photo by Cheng Li

In winter, as migratory birds fly south, this place becomes more and more lively. The simultaneous survey of Asian waterbirds for 15 consecutive years shows that the population and number of waterbirds in the protected area are on the rise. What is precious is that a variety of rare birds have been continuously recorded in the Zhanjiang mangrove wetland, including the Spoon-billed Sandpiper and the second-level protected animal Black-faced Spoonbill. In early 2016, the reserve detected 43 Spoon-billed Sandpipers in Leizhou Bay, which is said to be the largest wintering record in my country. Their appearance is the best proof of the superiority of this coastal city's wetland ecology.

Zhanjiang Gaoqiao Mangrove Forest. Picture source: Zhanjiang release

On the one hand, we continue to promote the restoration and protection of mangrove wetlands, and introduce 15 financial regulations for the first time in the country, and strive to take the lead in building the first mangrove city in China; on the other hand, Baosteel Zhanjiang Iron and Steel, China Major industrial projects such as China Refinery and BASF are rapidly advancing construction, paving the way for the rise of two hundred-billion-dollar port-facing industrial clusters, green steel and green petrochemicals.

Looking back at the development history of Zhanjiang in recent years, it is not difficult to find that this coastal city turned out to be a master of ecological balance, actively transforming the advantages of ecological resources into local high-quality development advantages, and creating a win-win situation for both ecology and economy. development path.

Donghai Island Baosteel Zhanjiang Iron and Steel Plant.

The blue carbon value contained in Zhanjiang’s vast mangroves has begun to take shape under the new development concept. In June 2021, the first 5,880 tons of carbon emission reduction transfer agreement for the mangrove afforestation project in Zhanjiang, Guangdong was signed. This is my country's first blue carbon project transaction.

At present, Zhanjiang has completed the carbon storage and carbon sink accounting work of mangroves, seagrass beds and other marine ecosystems, and plans to compile the "Mangrove Carbon Sink Inclusive Carbon Benefit Methodology" before the end of this year. and other normative documents, strive to be recognized and released by the provincial competent authorities, create Zhanjiang standards, promote the overall integration of marine carbon sink resources into the province’s emissions trading system, and strengthen the development of the blue carbon economy.

Relying on the inclusive carbon benefit mechanism, Zhanjiang will also establish a new model of restoring and constructing mangroves funded by enterprises, achieving a win-win situation for all parties under the government + market model.

In April last year, about 30 Chinese white dolphins were found swimming and playing in the waters of Leizhou Bay.

Lucid waters and lush mountains are invaluable assets! Currently, Zhanjiang is taking the construction of a mangrove city as an opportunity to deeply explore the value of mangrove tourism, promote the upgrading of existing mangrove scenic spots, and accelerate the construction of a mangrove museum. , mangrove science popularization base, mangrove R&D platform, etc. to promote industrial ecology and ecological industrialization.

Planning and developing from the perspective of the harmonious emergence of man and nature, Zhanjiang mangroves are becoming one of the new business cards of Guangdong’s ecological civilization construction.