During the meetings of the National People's Congress (or the NPC for short) and the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (or the CPPCC for short) in 2016, Zeng Hua, a CPPCC member, took the lead in putting forward a proposal titled "Proposal for Listing Jingmai Mountain Ancient Tea Plantation in Pu'er City, Yunnan Province to Apply for UNESCO World Heritage Site Status in 2018," calling on the ancient tea plantation to be included in China's effort to apply in 2018 for UNESCO World Heritage Site status for its sites of historical or cultural significance.

Since June 2010, Yunnan Province has been pushing for a coordinated effort to make the tea plantation a UNESCO World Heritage Site. In November 2012, the province succeeded in having the tea plantations put on "China's Shortlist of Candidates for UNESCO World Heritage Site Status."