Mirror View·Echo|Looking at the Green "Butterfly Change" of Central China from the Millennium Salt Lake
Cultivating a green foundation for high-quality development is an inevitable requirement for promoting the rise of the central region.
On May 16, 2023, General Secretary Xi Jinping issued important instructions on the protection and utilization of salt lake during his inspection of Yuncheng Salt Lake in Shanxi.
In recent years, Shanxi Province has actively promoted environmental protection and industrial transformation, and achieved new results in green development. Yuncheng Salt Lake, located at the foot of Zhongtiao Mountain, has transformed from a salt production pond and industrial zone to a tourist attraction and ecological protection area.
Yuncheng Salt Lake has a salt mining history of more than 4,600 years and is one of the three largest sodium sulfate inland salt lakes in the world. With the large-scale development of sea salt and well salt, Yuncheng Salt Lake gradually stopped producing edible salt and turned to developing chemical products such as mirabilite and anhydrous sodium sulfate since the 1980s.
On February 11, 2009, saltpeter workers were collecting sodium sulfate at Yuncheng Salt Lake.
On August 25, 2016, workers were digging salt at the Yuncheng Salt Lake.
Yuncheng prospered because of salt, but it also faces development difficulties due to over-exploitation, outdated industries, and increased pollution. In accordance with the principle of "ecological priority, protection first, and moderate development", Yuncheng City completely stopped industrial production activities within the salt lake in September 2020. The thousand-year-old salt lake is shifting towards a green development model of ecological protection, landscape reshaping, and industrial transformation, and accelerating the construction of a nationally renowned cultural tourism and health care demonstration zone and an international tourist destination.
On May 10, 2024, workers drove excavators to carry out ecological restoration work in Yuncheng Salt Lake.
The site of the comprehensive upgrading and transformation project of Yuncheng Salt Lake photographed on April 14, 2024. The project is an ecological governance and infrastructure supporting project of Yuncheng Salt Lake, aiming to create a boutique tourist resort complex integrating food, accommodation, transportation, travel, shopping and entertainment, and promote the transformation, upgrading and integrated development of the cultural and tourism industry.
The site of the Yuncheng Salt Lake comprehensive upgrading and renovation project photographed on April 30, 2024.
The Yuncheng Salt Lake Ring Trail photographed on June 5, 2024.
Nowadays, strolling along the lakeside trail of the Salt Lake, with rippling blue waves and beautiful scenery, the Salt Lake has gradually become a good place and check-in spot for people to get close to the mountains, water and nature.
White swans play in Yuncheng Salt Lake on January 5, 2024.
On May 21, 2024, tourists took photos at the upgraded and renovated "Salt Lake No. 006 Light Pole" viewing platform in Yuncheng City.
Tourists visit Yuncheng Salt Lake on May 27, 2024.
On June 5, 2024, people rode on the Yuncheng Salt Lake Ring Trail.
Adhering to ecological priority and green development, the central region is striving to implement the important concept of "Green water and green mountains are gold and silver mountains", promote high-quality development and create high-quality life with high-level protection, and contribute to building a beautiful China where people and nature live in harmony.
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