General Secretary Xi Jinping’s Concerns | Better Protect Our Common “Blue Homeland”—The Third New Practice of Deeply Cultivating the “Blue Land”

The ocean is the common "blue home" of mankind.

General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out that strengthening the construction of marine ecological civilization is an important part of the construction of ecological civilization. We must adhere to green development, work one generation after another, and work hard over time to build a beautiful China and make China's contribution to protecting the global village.

The Spartina alterniflora on the coastal beaches of the Yangtze River Estuary is hard to find, the population of the "mythical bird" continues to recover, and the "smiling angel" East Asian finless porpoise coexists harmoniously with the residents of the island county...

On the eve of "World Oceans Day" on June 8, reporters found in interviews in many places that coastal provinces continue to promote marine ecological environment restoration work and take effective measures to protect marine biodiversity. Some cities have established marine ecological environment governance that coordinates all parties. system, contributing China’s strength to safeguarding the common “blue homeland” of mankind.

Overlooking the coastal area of ​​Shanghai Lingang New Area, large oyster reefs shaped like open shells appear in the rising and falling tides. Various seabirds fly over from time to time. Dense reeds, seagrass and other native plants grow on the tidal flats. Also found everywhere.

However, just two years ago, this beach was a different story.

"At that time, it looked 'green', but in fact it was 'lifeless'." Bei Zhuyuan, deputy director of the Shanghai Marine Management Center, recalled that at first glance, the coastal area was full of alien invasive species - Spartina alterniflora. .

Spartina alterniflora is an invasive alien species common in coastal areas of my country. According to Bei Zhuyuan, this kind of organism has a relatively developed root system and often "binds" the tidal flat soil into a "monolith", making it difficult for other plants to survive. "The activity space of benthic organisms has been compressed, and even birds are reluctant to come."

The coastal area of ​​Shanghai Lingang New Area belongs to a coastal zone system with typical ecological transition characteristics and is one of Shanghai's important original ecological wetlands. Due to the invasion of alien species, high winds, strong waves, and beach erosion, the tidal flat wetlands once shrank, and various functions such as ecosystem pollution purification and berm disaster reduction were significantly degraded.

In 2022, the Shanghai Lingang Coastal Marine Ecological Protection and Restoration Project will be officially implemented. The project starts from the Luchaogang sluice in the west and ends at the Nanhui Dongtan Phase IV embankment in the east. It involves a total length of 17 kilometers of coastline and a total restoration area of ​​about 200 hectares. A coastal space that integrates land and sea and coordinates ecological disaster reduction is gradually constructed.

In coastal areas, local ecological restoration measures are adopted in a way that adapts to the laws of nature and local conditions, such as restoring tidal flat wetlands, replanting native vegetation, and innovatively applying new beach protection and beach consolidation technologies.

"These oyster reefs are the 'homes' we have created for marine benthic organisms. The reef beach surface has undulating micro-topography and shallow water tidal ditches. On the one hand, it restores biodiversity, and on the other hand, it can alleviate the erosion trend of the middle and low beach surfaces. "Liu Hanzhong, a staff member of the project designer, said, pointing to the scattered oyster reefs of different sizes in the sea.

"We must resolve to take measures to curb the deterioration of the marine ecological environment and make a significant improvement in my country's marine ecological environment." Bei Zhuyuan said that these words of General Secretary Xi Jinping impressed him deeply. Relevant departments of marine management will continue to work hard to protect the blue sea and blue sky for the people.

On May 31, 2024, oyster reefs were seen on the tidal flats of Nanhuizui waters in Shanghai's Lingang New Area. Photo by reporter Fang Zhe

[Reporter’s Observation] The “transformation” of the coastal beach in Shanghai’s Lingang New Area is a vivid epitome of local efforts to strengthen the restoration and construction of the marine ecological environment. The "2023 China Marine Ecological Environment Status Bulletin" shows that the proportion of the country's coastal waters with excellent water quality is 85.0%. In recent years, my country has comprehensively delineated marine ecological protection red lines, implemented coastal zone protection and restoration projects, blue bay renovation operations, and mangrove protection and restoration special action plans. The degradation trend of typical ecosystems in local sea areas has been initially curbed, and the water quality of coastal waters has continued to deteriorate. For the better. Respect nature, comply with nature, protect nature, and let more blue bays regain their natural beauty.

In midsummer, on the Jiushan Islands surrounded by the waters of the East China Sea, the peak breeding season of Chinese Crested Terns has quietly arrived.

The Chinese Crested Tern, which mainly inhabits coastal islands, comes to the eastern coast of my country to breed in summer, and in winter goes to Indonesia, the Philippines and other places to overwinter. Because it is extremely rare and has mysterious traces, the Chinese Crested Tern is known as the "mythical bird" in the industry and was once on the verge of extinction.

"Seabirds are an integral part of the marine ecosystem." said Ding Peng, deputy director of the Nature Reserve Management Center of Xiangshan County, Ningbo City, Zhejiang Province. According to his observations, the Chinese Crested Tern has certain indicators for the health of the marine ecosystem. effect.

In order to revive the "mythical bird", Ding Peng, together with scientific researchers and volunteers from all walks of life, have made arduous efforts. Ding Peng revealed that they first need to select a target breeding island area based on the habits of the "mythical bird" and carry out adaptive improvement and habitat construction of the breeding ground before the birds migrate there.

Killing rats, catching snakes, clearing shrubs, pulling out taller grass... In order to give the Chinese Crested Tern a better "home", Ding Peng did a lot of hard work.

Once everything was ready, scientific researchers and volunteers placed fake tern models in artificial habitats and played mating calls to attract Chinese Crested Terns and Great Crested Terns to breed in specific areas.

"Our staff responsible for monitoring and protection will also be stationed in the living areas of the target islands, and conduct research and protection of birds at close range every day in artificial wooden houses built around the breeding grounds." Ding Peng said.

As of the end of 2023, 179 Chinese Crested Tern chicks have been successfully hatched on the island, and 1,781 Great Crested Tern and Chinese Crested Tern chicks have been ringed, providing a basis for understanding the migration dynamics and activity patterns of Chinese Crested Tern. Research lays the foundation.

General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out that we must attach great importance to the construction of marine ecological civilization, strengthen the prevention and control of marine environmental pollution, protect marine biodiversity, and achieve the orderly development and utilization of marine resources.

In Hainan, some places have taken measures to build "breeding homes" for sea turtles; in Shandong, "rehabilitation to reefs" has led to the frequent appearance of white-finned porpoises, whales and other marine life; in Fujian, relevant departments have implemented grid management of sea areas. Strengthen encrypted law enforcement patrols to protect underwater corals...

"Caring for marine life is also caring for humans themselves." Ding Peng said.

On May 20, 2024, Chinese Crested Tern on the Jiushan Islands. Provided by interviewees

[Reporter’s Observation] On January 1, 2024, the newly revised Marine Environmental Protection Law came into effect. The law clarifies that the state will strengthen the protection of marine biodiversity, improve the survey, monitoring, assessment and protection system of marine biodiversity, maintain and repair important marine ecological corridors, and prevent damage to marine biodiversity. In recent years, various regions have worked together to build a marine biodiversity protection network covering the whole area. Unique creatures that live with the sea, such as the "mythical bird", are expected to have a better living environment.

The sun shines on the blue sea, and East Asian finless porpoises swim in twos and threes. On Haxian Island, Changhai County, Dalian, Liaoning Province, this group of marine animals, known as "Smiling Angels," are now migrating to the sea near the island to breed and inhabit.

Liang Zeye, an environmental volunteer, has been tracking the movements of East Asian finless porpoises for more than ten years. In his view, East Asian finless porpoises are extremely picky about their breeding environment. "Not only do they require clean seawater, but they also have 'special requirements' for air, food and other aspects. The ecosystem of a place needs to be 'high-scoring' in general before they can arrive."

As the only island county in Northeast China, Changhai County has outstanding ecological resource advantages with a chain of harbors and dense vegetation. In recent years, the local government has continuously increased investment in strengthening the overall management of ecological protection and striving to build a seaside county with "blue sky, clear water, green islands, clean beaches, beautiful bays and abundant resources".

Liang Jinye, director of Dalian Changhai Ecological Environment Branch, said that the local government pays attention to the systematic, holistic and collaborative nature of marine ecological and environmental protection work, coordinates the promotion of marine pollution control, ecological protection and climate change response, and establishes and improves clear rights and responsibilities, multi-party co-governance, A smooth, coordinated and efficient marine ecological environment management system.

Vigorously develop deep-sea aquaculture, focus on improving the county's sewage and garbage treatment capacity, and accelerate the construction of clean energy projects such as offshore wind power and ocean thermal energy... In the process of promoting low-carbon construction in urban and rural areas, the local area has gradually transformed its overall ecological advantages into industrial development advantages.

General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out that we must adhere to the overall coordination of land and sea, and adhere to the development path of enriching the country by relying on the sea, strengthening the country with the sea, harmonious people and sea, and win-win cooperation.

In recent years, many places have adopted an overall approach to prevent and control marine pollution and ecological protection and restoration, and have achieved good results by coordinating land and sea resource allocation, industrial layout and ecological environment protection.

In Zhejiang, many people have participated in the "Blue Cycle" marine plastic waste management project. Through the cooperation between inland and coastal areas, marine plastic waste can be recycled and reused, achieving a "win-win" of ecological protection and increasing income and enriching the people. In the 2023 United Nations "Champions of the Earth Award" selection, "Blue Cycle" stood out from many projects around the world and won this honor.

On August 16, 2023, a corner of Xiaoshuikou Forest Park, Xiaochangshan Island, Changhai County. Photo by reporter Chen Wei

[Reporter’s Observation] The “14th Five-Year Plan for Marine Ecological Environment Protection Plan” proposes to adhere to problem orientation, precise policy implementation, key breakthroughs, systematically plan land and sea pollution prevention and control, ecological protection and restoration and other goals and tasks, and strengthen the comprehensive management from source to end. Chain governance. In today's marine ecological management work, comprehensive management of coastal zones based on ecosystems continues to deepen, a marine space planning system that coordinates land and sea has basically taken shape, and a marine space use control system has gradually been established... A good situation of coordinating all parties and regional linkage has begun to take shape. Prosperous toward the sea and beautiful because of the sea, the picture of a "blue home" with clear water, clear beaches, gathering fish and gulls, and a harmonious sea of ​​people is slowly unfolding around people.