Zhouqu County's Lijie Village in northwest China's Gansu Province has taken swift measures to ensure public safety as the landslide displacement process accelerates.
Located in Gannan Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture in the convergence zone of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau and the Qinling Mountains, the county is prone to geological disasters such as landslides and debris flows.
In August last year, the landslide mass of the north mountain in the village experienced continuous displacement. The displacement has accelerated since mid-December.
The village has a permanent population of 576 households, totaling around 1,700 people. To ensure the safety of residents in the area, local authorities initiated a Level-IV emergency response to geological disaster prevention at 18:00 on Saturday.
They formed 10 working groups to mobilize the relocation of 50 households directly threatened by the landslide. The following day, these households were moved to a temporary housing area one kilometer away.
"The staff members from local town and township were very supportive. They helped us farmers with moving our belongings," said Li Zhaojun, a villager.
Currently, local authorities are closely monitoring the trend of the landslide risk. The country's Ministry of Natural Resources and the Gansu Provincial Department of Natural Resources have also dispatched expert teams to Zhouqu for landslide assessment and management.
Villagers in northwest China's Gansu relocated to avert potential landslides
The Global Mayors Dialogue opened in Harbin, capital of northeast China's Heilongjiang Province on Tuesday, bringing together mayors and senior city officials from across Europe, Asia, and North America to have in-depth exchanges on practical approaches to developing the ice and snow economy.
Held under the theme "Connecting the World with Ice and Snow, Win-Win Cooperation for a Shared Future", the three-day event gathered mayors, deputy mayors, and mayoral representatives from cities across the globe, including Canada, Finland, Germany, Greece, the Republic of Korea, Thailand, and Türkiye, focusing on the ice and snow economy, cultural integration, smart city development, heritage preservation, and urban governance.
The event featured a main dialogue and a scenario-based dialogue salon to foster in-depth exchanges and spark new ideas. Guests are invited to visit iconic sites such as the Harbin Ice and Snow World and attend the opening ceremony and trade events of the Harbin Ice and Snow Economy Expo, which are showcasing Harbin's achievements in building an ice and snow economy brand, strengthening international exchanges and cooperation, and inheriting ice and snow culture.
Harbin, called China's "ice city", has turned its long, cold winters into a major tourist attraction. Last winter, it welcomed a record 90.36 million visitors, generating 137.22 billion yuan (about 19.44 billion U.S. dollars) in revenue, a year-on-year increase of 16.6 percent.
International mayors gather in Harbin to explore ice and snow economy
