Supporting High Quality Development with High Quality Ecological Environment - Written on the occasion of the First National Ecological Day, Civilization | Ecology | Ecological Environment

Originally supported by high-quality ecological environment for high-quality development

——On the occasion of the first National Ecological Day

On August 15th, China will welcome its first National Ecological Day. This pioneering and iconic commemorative day reflects the important position of ecological civilization construction in the new era and the firm determination to comprehensively promote the construction of a beautiful China.

A patch of ancient cypress stands proudly. Cuiyun Corridor, Jiange County, Guangyuan City, Sichuan Province, is under the protection of "one tree, one stall", with daily patrols by "one tree, one person" and scientific rescue by "one tree, one policy". 20973 ancient trees have weathered wind and rain, and are as green as ever.

A park, stretching the painting. The Tianhan Wetland Park, located in the urban area of Hanzhong, Shaanxi Province on the Han River, is a place where water is in the green, green is in the water, and people are in the painting. Once a place where sewage flowed, it has become a "happiness park" for citizens.

A large river, lush with greenery. In 2022, the proportion of excellent water quality in the national control section of the Yangtze River Basin reached 98.1%, and the number of "smiling angels" finless porpoises stopped falling and rebounded, leading to a turning point in the ecological environment of the Yangtze River Economic Belt.

A forest, a garden, and a river create a new chapter of harmonious coexistence between humans and nature.

Placing the construction of a beautiful China in a prominent position in the construction of a strong country and national rejuvenation, and supporting high-quality development with a high-quality ecological environment, accelerating the modernization of harmonious coexistence between humans and nature. The recently held National Conference on Ecological Environment Protection issued a new order to comprehensively promote the construction of a beautiful China.

A developing country with a population of over 1.4 billion is moving towards a new era of ecological civilization and a socialist modernized country that is prosperous, democratic, civilized, harmonious, and beautiful. It vividly writes history and has a profound impact on the world.

The sky is bluer, the earth is greener, the water is clearer, and thousands of miles of rivers and mountains are more diverse and colorful

The contribution of ecological civilization construction lies in the present and the benefits lie in the future.

The green miracle of turning the sandy land into a sea of forests continues to be created in Horqin Sandy Land.

Recently, the National Forestry and Grassland Administration held a meeting in Zhangwu County, Fuxin City, Liaoning Province to promote the annihilation of the Horqin and Hunshandak sandy areas, marking the official launch of these two major sandy areas. "We will follow the inherent laws of the ecosystem, persist in scientific sand prevention and control, and ensure that the control is integrated into one area," said Yu, director of the Institute of Sand Land Management and Utilization at the Liaoning Academy of Agricultural Sciences on National Day.

Yue Taiqing, Deputy Director of the Three North Bureau of the National Forestry and Grassland Administration, introduced: "We are working closely with relevant departments to prepare the sixth phase plan of the 'Three North' project, and simultaneously preparing the implementation plans for the three iconic battles of the Yellow River's' Several Bend 'campaign, the annihilation of the two major sandy areas of Horqin and Hunshandak, and the interception battle on the edge of the Hexi Corridor Taklamakan Desert."

In Zhanjiang, Guangdong, it is pointed out that "strengthening the construction of marine ecological civilization is an important component of ecological civilization construction"; In Yuncheng, Shanxi, it was emphasized that "anything detrimental to the ecological protection of the Yellow River Basin must not be done"; During the inspection in Sichuan, it was instructed to "do a good job in the construction of ecological civilization"

For the overall plan, for the long-term strategy.Through in-depth investigations and research on the front line, important meetings with a long-term perspective, the profound connotations of the "four major changes" in ecological civilization construction are becoming increasingly clear.

——Starting from addressing prominent ecological and environmental issues, we will focus on integrating key areas and addressing both symptoms and root causes, achieving a significant transformation from focused remediation to systematic governance.

In February 2014, Beijing experienced severe haze.

Focus on the key issues, identify the root cause, and prescribe medication. Since 2013, the concentration of PM2.5 in Beijing has decreased from 89.5 micrograms per cubic meter to 30 micrograms per cubic meter in 2022, earning the praise of the United Nations Environment Programme as the "miracle of Beijing" in air pollution control.

In the past decade of the new era, China has become the first developing country in the world to comprehensively manage PM2.5, adjusting industries, reducing dust and controlling vehicles, and reducing coal consumption, tackling various challenges. With the economic output doubling, the average concentration of PM2.5 in key cities has decreased by 57%, and the number of days with heavy pollution has decreased by 93%, making it the country with the fastest improvement rate in air quality globally.

The battle to defend the blue sky, clear water, and pure land continues, and breakthroughs have been made in environmental pollution prevention and control. At the same time, China is deepening the modernization of its national governance system and governance capacity, adhering to the integrated protection and systematic governance of mountains, rivers, forests, fields, lakes, grasslands, and sands, achieving a shift from key governance to systematic governance, and strengthening ecological and environmental protection in all aspects, regions, and processes.

——Adhere to the transformation of concepts, strengthen responsibilities, continuously enhance the consciousness and initiative of the entire Party and the whole country in promoting ecological civilization construction, and achieve a significant transformation from passive response to proactive action.

"The river water is neither black nor odorous, it is getting clearer and clearer." Chen Chujuan, a villager from Fenghu Village, Chaoyang District, Shantou City, Guangdong Province, witnessed the changes in the training of the river over the years. In June 2018, the central environmental protection inspector "looked back" and pointed out the problems in the rectification work of Lianjiang. Shantou City was determined to promote the rectification with unconventional measures, from "I want to govern" to "I want to govern", which forced development transformation and industrial upgrading. Lianjiang has been upgraded from a generally black and odorous area to Class IV in the national examination, and has been rated as one of the "Top Ten Beautiful Rivers and Lakes in Guangdong Province".

From "ultra-low emissions" to "ultra-low emissions", Shanxi Taigang Group is making every effort to build a green steel enterprise with higher standards, with ultra-low emissions of exhaust gas, zero emissions of wastewater, and no solid waste leaving the factory. "On the basis of achieving the full process ultra-low emission transformation, we are self pressurizing and accelerating the implementation of ultra-low emission transformation. The pollutant emissions from processes such as sintering and coking have been further reduced by more than 10%," said Wang Wei, deputy director of the environmental protection operation area at Taiyuan Iron and Steel Works.

"In the past decade of the new era, China has resolutely abandoned the modernization path of Western countries' 'pollution first, treatment later', and adhered to the principle of protecting while developing and developing while protecting, forming a good situation where the whole party and the whole country take the initiative and firmly follow the path of ecological priority and green development." said Zhuang Guiyang, Deputy Director and Researcher of the Institute of Ecological Civilization at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.

——Keeping up with the times, looking at the world, assuming the responsibility of a major country, demonstrating the responsibility of a major country, and achieving a significant transformation from a participant in global environmental governance to a leader.

In the past decade of the new era, the forest coverage rate in China has increased from 21.63% to 24.02%, and the preserved area of artificial forests has reached 1.314 billion acres. Against the backdrop of the continuous reduction of global forest resources, China's forest coverage rate and forest volume have maintained a "double growth" for many consecutive years. Since the beginning of this century, about 1/4 of the world's newly added green area has come from China.

The construction of ecological civilization is related to the future of humanity, and building a green home is a common dream of people from all countries.

China not only vigorously strengthens its own ecological civilization construction, but also actively participates in global environmental governance. Put forward the idea of jointly building a global community of life, promote the conclusion, signing, entry into force and implementation of the Paris Agreement, make major strategic decisions on carbon peaking and carbon neutrality, promote the joint construction of the green "the Belt and Road", successfully hold the 15th Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity, the 14th Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Wetlands... China is committed to promoting the construction of a fair and reasonable global environmental governance system with win-win cooperation, and building a clean and beautiful world. China's significant achievements in ecological and environmental protection have been widely praised by the international community, and it has become an important participant, contributor, and leader in global ecological civilization construction.

Profoundly elucidate the relationship between humans and nature, and propose the basic strategy of adhering to harmonious coexistence between humans and nature; Profoundly elucidating the relationship between development and protection, and proposing the important concept that green mountains and clear waters are invaluable assets; Profoundly elucidating the relationship between the environment and people's livelihoods, and proposing the significant assertion that a good ecological environment is the most inclusive welfare of people's livelihoods

The new era nurtures new ideas, and new ideas guide new practices. Through unremitting efforts and long-term efforts, our country's sky is bluer, the earth is greener, the water is clearer, and the rivers and mountains are more colorful. The achievements of ecological civilization construction in the new era have attracted worldwide attention, becoming a significant symbol of historic achievements and changes in the cause of the Party and the country in the new era.

Located in the mountainous area of northern Zhejiang, Anji, Huzhou.

The Shenlan No.1 Cafe in Hongmiao Village, Meixi Town attracts a constant stream of tourists. Those who come here not only for a cup of coffee, but also value this scenery. The abandoned mines have been renovated, with clear blue lake water and green tea mountains. This year's May Day holiday saw a daily reception of over 10000 people. Anji County, with a permanent population of less than 600000, now has over 300 rural coffee shops selling scenery.

For 18 years, Anji has firmly adhered to the concept of "green mountains and clear waters are as valuable as gold and silver", adhered to the principle of "ecological county", and resolutely controlled pollution. It has become the first county-level city in China to win the United Nations Habitat Award, and has embarked on a sustainable development path of ecological beauty, industrial prosperity, and people's prosperity.

People will not betray the green mountains, and the green mountains will not betray them. From 2012 to 2022, the gross domestic product of Anji region increased from 25.3 billion yuan to 58.2 billion yuan, and the per capita disposable income of farmers increased from over 15800 yuan to over 42000 yuan. "We actively broaden the path of transforming green mountains and rivers into gold and silver, do a good job in articles such as' ecology+industry 'and' ecology+technology ', accelerate the layout of new energy, new materials and other new economic industries among green mountains and rivers, and strive to continuously transform Anji's' green beauty' into 'golden value'." said Yang Weidong, member of the Standing Committee of the Huzhou Municipal Party Committee and Secretary of the Anji County Party Committee.

A small county town in mountainous areas, with beautiful scenery of the times.

General Secretary emphasized, "Practice has proven that economic development cannot come at the cost of destroying ecology. Ecology itself is the economy, and protecting ecology is the development of productivity."

Dealing with the relationship between development and protection is a global challenge and an eternal issue facing human social development. The world's largest developing country has written a heavy "green answer sheet".

The light of thought illuminates the path forward.

——Properly handling the relationship between high-quality development and high-level protection.

On January 5, 2016, the symposium on promoting the development of the Yangtze River Economic Belt was held in Chongqing, and coastal provinces and cities were preparing to launch a large-scale event.

Ecological environment protection and economic development are not contradictory relationships, but dialectical unity. Only by laying a solid foundation for green development can there be vigorous progress in future development. The great protection of rivers and rivers brings vitality to the rivers. The ten-year fishing ban has allowed the mother river of the Chinese nation to rest and thrive. In 2022, the gross domestic product of the Yangtze River Economic Belt region reached 55.98 trillion yuan, accounting for 46.5% of the national total.

The Minister of Ecology and Environment, Huang Runqiu, stated that high-level protection is an important support for high-quality development and is also necessary. High level protection is crucial for ensuring high-quality development, guarding the bottom line, and promoting the transformation and upgrading of industrial structure, energy structure, and transportation structure, thereby driving high-quality development. On the other hand, the achievements of high-quality development promote the construction of ecological and environmental protection projects and the development of environmental protection industries, thereby assisting in high-level protection.

In the past decade of the new era, it is precisely because the entire Party and the country have firmly established and practiced the concept that green mountains and clear waters are as valuable as gold and silver, and have focused on handling the relationship between high-quality development and high-level protection, that remarkable ecological miracles and green development miracles have been created.

——Properly handle the relationship between key challenges and collaborative governance.

We need to seek new governance approaches from a systems engineering and global perspective. Ecological environment governance is a systematic project. We will not only focus on the main contradictions and their main aspects, take effective measures to address prominent ecological and environmental issues, but also strengthen goal coordination, multi pollutant control coordination, departmental coordination, regional coordination, and policy coordination to promote carbon reduction, pollution reduction, green expansion, and growth. This is the deepening application of systematic concepts in the practice of ecological civilization construction, and also the specific embodiment of key breakthroughs and comprehensive promotion of work ideas.

——Properly handle the relationship between natural restoration and artificial restoration.

Build a comprehensive pattern of protection and governance from the mountaintop to the ocean. We will adhere to the integrated protection and systematic management of mountains, rivers, forests, fields, lakes, grasslands, and sands, and comprehensively utilize both natural restoration and artificial restoration methods. We will implement policies tailored to local conditions and classified according to different zones. Mainly focusing on natural restoration, combining natural restoration with artificial restoration. This is a practical requirement to follow natural laws and actively and effectively carry out ecological protection and restoration.

——Properly handle the relationship between external constraints and endogenous dynamics.

To promote the construction of ecological civilization, it is necessary to establish a sound institutional framework, strengthen institutional implementation, and fully mobilize the enthusiasm, initiative, and creativity of the general public to consolidate and develop the achievements of ecological civilization construction in the new era. We must always adhere to the strictest system and the strictest rule of law to protect the ecological environment, make the system a rigid constraint and an untouchable high-voltage line, and at the same time, stimulate the internal driving force of the whole society to jointly protect the ecological environment, transforming the construction of a beautiful China into a conscious action of all people. This reflects a scientific understanding of the dialectical unity, interconnection, and transformation between external and internal factors.

——Properly handling the relationship between "dual carbon" commitments and independent actions.

China will complete the world's highest carbon emission intensity reduction in the shortest time in history. Our commitment to the "dual carbon" goal is certain and unshakable, but the path, methods, pace, and intensity to achieve this goal should and must be determined by ourselves. This reflects the dialectical unity of stability and progress.

Higher position, broader perspective, and greater efforts, composing a new chapter in the construction of ecological civilization in the new era

Guangyuan, Sichuan is full of lush mountains and lush waters.

After the rain, Wang Shiyin, an ecological forest ranger from Wulipo to Cuiyunlang in Jianmenguan Town, Jiange County, Guangyuan City, conducted patrols with his companions to promptly check for any broken branches, toppling, or other conditions in the trees. "We must continue to deepen the defense of blue sky, clear water, and clean land, accelerate the transformation of ecological advantages into economic advantages, carry out pilot mechanisms for realizing the value of ecological products, and build a strong ecological barrier in the upper reaches of the Jialing River..." We must keep in mind the instructions, consolidate and develop the achievements of ecological civilization construction in the new era, make good mountains, good water, and good ecology a beautiful business card of Guangyuan, and support high-quality development with a high-quality ecological environment, "said Dong Li, Deputy Secretary of the Guangyuan Municipal Party Committee and Mayor.

To forge ahead in a new era and embark on a new journey, we must have a new atmosphere and new achievements.

China's economic and social development has entered a high-quality stage of accelerating green and low-carbon development, and the construction of ecological civilization is still in a critical period of pressure accumulation and heavy burden.

"Building a beautiful China is an important goal of comprehensively building a socialist modernized country." "We must plan and promote the ecological and environmental protection work of the new journey with a higher position, broader vision, and greater efforts, and write a new chapter in the construction of ecological civilization in the new era.".

Anchor the goal, focus on practical work, and overcome difficulties.

——Continuously deepen the battle against pollution prevention and control.

Winning the battle against pollution prevention and control is closely related to the vital interests of the people and is a key measure to build a beautiful China.

In Fujian, the special rectification of urban dust pollution has recently been launched, with a focus on urban housing construction, municipal infrastructure projects, etc., focusing on solving the air pollution problem caused by dust particles. In Kunming City, Yunnan Province, we will adhere to the integration of mountain, water, and urban governance, accelerate the construction of an ecological barrier around the Dianchi Lake greenway, and the first phase of the greenway construction project is planned to be completed within the year. In Qingshen County, Sichuan Province, continuous exploration and implementation of the "deposit system, paid system, and point system" has led to a harmless recycling and disposal rate of pesticide packaging waste in the county exceeding 85%

Maintain strength, extend depth, and expand breadth, deepen the defense of blue sky, clear water, and pure land, and continuously improve the quality of the ecological environment.

——Accelerate the green and low-carbon transformation of development mode.

Green and low-carbon development is the fundamental solution to ecological and environmental problems.

On the banks of the Grand Canal in the sub center of Beijing, the "Cultural Granary" Grand Theater, the "Forest Book Garden" Library, and the "Canal Boat" Museum have entered the final stage of construction. As a national green development demonstration zone, the Beijing Urban Sub center has become the first large-scale public building in China to fully implement the three-star green building standard. The three major buildings are expected to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by nearly 10000 tons annually.

In Dabancheng District, Urumqi City, Xinjiang, the 110 kV Green Source Dabancheng Distributed Wind Farm has recently been commissioned to generate electricity. The wind on the desert and Gobi has transformed into a continuous stream of electricity, and Dabancheng District has achieved full "green power" supply.

The formation of green production methods and lifestyles is accelerating, and the green background of high-quality development is constantly being planted.

——Efforts will be made to enhance the diversity, stability, and sustainability of ecosystems.

The world's largest national park system, accelerating construction. The National Park Law has been included in the legislative work plan of the State Council for the year 2023, and is expected to be submitted to the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress for review within the year. Relevant departments are solidly promoting the establishment of new national parks. The National Park Spatial Layout Plan has selected 49 candidate areas and will basically complete the construction task of national park spatial layout by 2035.

The ecological protection red line covering the whole country has been effectively implemented. The national ecological protection red line has been delineated and released, covering a land area of no less than 3 million square kilometers and a marine ecological protection red line of no less than 150000 square kilometers, helping to solidify the foundation of national ecological security.

A series of policy measures are being vigorously implemented, increasing efforts to protect the ecosystem, expanding the path of transforming green mountains and clear waters into golden mountains and silver mountains, and leaving a beautiful ecological space for future generations.

——Actively and prudently promote carbon peak and carbon neutrality.

Renewable energy installed capacity surpasses coal-fired power! According to data released by the National Energy Administration on July 31st, as of the end of June, China's installed capacity of renewable energy reached 1.322 billion kilowatts, a year-on-year increase of 18.2%, historically surpassing coal-fired power, accounting for approximately 48.8% of China's total installed capacity. The construction of large-scale wind and photovoltaic bases, major hydropower projects, and pumped storage projects continues to advance, and new breakthroughs are continuously made in the development of renewable energy, playing an important role in achieving carbon peak and carbon neutrality.

The achievement of the "dual carbon" goal is a broad and profound transformation, and cannot be easily achieved. Adhering to the principles of national coordination, prioritizing conservation, dual wheel drive, smooth internal and external communication, and risk prevention, we will implement the "1+N" policy system for carbon peak and carbon neutrality. China will vigorously promote harmonious coexistence between humans and nature, and promote the construction of a community with a shared future for mankind.

Building a beautiful China is a long and arduous task that requires strong measures to safeguard it. Strengthening the guarantee of the rule of law, improving green and low-carbon economic development policies, and strengthening technological support... All regions and departments are focusing on using a combination of the rule of law, market, technology, and policies to open up a new situation of comprehensively promoting the construction of a beautiful China.

The 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China has outlined a grand blueprint: by 2035, "green production and lifestyle will be widely formed, carbon emissions will steadily decrease after reaching their peak, the ecological environment will fundamentally improve, and the goal of a beautiful China will be basically achieved.". The next five years will be an important period for the construction of a beautiful China.