Chinese Lake Needs More ProtectionNorthwest China's Qinghai Province is fighting the deteriorating environment at Qinghai Lake, the largest inland salt lake in China covering 4,282 square kilometers.Various projects to improve biological conditions around the lake have been built since late 1998. Fish in the lake have been protected since the early 1990s, and bird habitats have been well preserved too, said Mei Jieren, an official from the province's environmental protection bureau. People in the province are also planting grass and trees in farmland in poor condition, including that around Qinghai Lake. A lower water level, the deterioration of grassland vegetation and desertification are said to be threatening the lake. The numbers of fish and birds there are also dwindling. Mei said that the decline of water level is mainly because of over-evaporation. But he admitted that over-farming and over-herding have been causing the lake problems for years. |
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