An education center will be established in Beijing's biggest wetland nature reserve.
The center, at Widgeon Lake National Wetland Park, will be set up with the help of the World Wide Fund for Nature and hopes to boost public understanding of the importance of wetlands.
"The establishment of the center is one of the steps we have taken to protect the wetlands and its wildlife," said Liu Xuemei, deputy director of the park's administrative office.
"We're planning to restore some 1,000 hectares of wetland by 2015."
Liu said the center will welcome its first visitors in 2013.
One of the park's attractions is a special feeding and breeding zone for birds, she said.
The capital's only wetland bird reserve, as well as one of the most significant bird habitats in North China, is closed during the harsh winter months.
The park, located in northwestern Yanqing county, promotes the significance of the wetlands to the local environment, especially among young people.
Students from middle and primary schools can visit for free.
The park also provides free entry to kindergartens and schools for children with learning difficulties. One of its proudest achievements has been to allow children see creatures in their natural habitat and not just in the pages of books.
Wild ducks at Widgeon Lake National Wetland Park in Yanqing county, Beijing, on June 15, 2010. [Photo by Su Weizhong / for China Daily] |
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