China has witnessed leapfrog progress in ecological conservation over the past decade, demonstrating the success of the country's approach to achieving a balance between ecology and the economy, as well as harmony between man and nature.
Since the 18th CPC National Congress in 2012, the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, with Xi Jinping at its core, has vigorously promoted theoretical, practical, and institutional innovation in ecological civilization. The country's ecological civilization system has taken shape and gradually improved, with the concept of green development gaining widespread support.
Over the past ten years, the country has intensified its enforcement of environmental regulations and redoubled its efforts in the fight against pollution and environmental degradation.
Since 2013, China has earmarked over 200 billion yuan (approximately 28.6 billion US dollars) to combat air pollution, launched specific national campaigns to defend its blue skies, clear waters, and clean land, and conducted environmental inspections nationwide. It has also adopted the 'river chief' and 'lake chief' systems to safeguard the ecological environment of its rivers and lakes.
Official data shows that through persistent efforts to combat air pollution, the number of days with good air quality accounted for 87.5 percent of the total in 2021, an increase of 6.3 percentage points from 2015.
The PM2.5 density, a key indicator of air pollution, dropped 3.3 percent year on year to 29 micrograms per cubic meter in 2022, having decreased continuously for nearly a decade.
While forest resources have continued to decrease globally, China's forest coverage rate has reached 24.02 percent, with increased forest area and stock volume since 2012.
Water quality has also shown remarkable improvement, with 84.9 percent of surface water sections achieving an excellent quality grade, approaching the levels seen in developed countries.
The total amount of freshwater resources available in China's lakes and reservoirs has increased significantly since 2012, and the transparency of most lakes has steadily improved, with greater biodiversity in major lakes, according to a report released by the Chinese Academy of Sciences in December 2022.
According to information released by the Ministry of Ecology and Environment in November 2023, China now has 240 bases for innovative practices in line with the concept of "lucid waters and lush mountains being invaluable assets" and 572 demonstration areas of ecological civilization construction.
In addition, the number of urban parks has reached 65,000, offering more leisure options to residents.
"The sky has turned blue, the water has become clear, and we can truly see great changes in the environment," said Ji Huanzhi, a resident of northeast China's Anshan City, Liaoning Province.
According to experts, the idea that clear waters and lush mountains are invaluable assets has increasingly become the consensus and practice of the entire Party and society, with ecological and environmental conservation experiencing historic, transformative, and comprehensive changes.
"General Secretary Xi Jinping has led unprecedented efforts to promote the construction of ecological civilization, pushing forward reforms that are comprehensive, systemic, and holistic. Aimed at bottleneck problems to carry out targeted solutions, these efforts have streamlined the relationships between humans and nature, development and protection, the environment and people's livelihoods, the local and the overall, the present and the future, and domestic and international considerations, " said Wang Ru, a professor at the CPC Party school.
"We have embarked on a new journey towards Chinese modernization. That is a further exploration that requires us to continuously enrich the connotation of ecological civilization based on our existing concepts of environmental protection and sustainable development, " said Qin Changbo, executive director of the Chinese Academy of Environmental Planning (CAEP) under the Ministry of Ecology and Environment.
China achieves significant leap in ecological conservation, balancing economy and nature
