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3.4 million hectares of wetland in China lost between 2003 and 2013

(People's Daily Online)    13:57, August 25, 2016
3.4 million hectares of wetland in China lost between 2003 and 2013
Yellow River Delta wetland.

There was an 8.82 percent reduction in Chinese wetlands between 2003 and 2013, according to Chen Fengxue, vice administrator of the State Forestry Administration on National Wetland Conservation. Nearly 3.4 million hectares of wetlands were lost in that 10-year period, Chen shared at a conference held in Harbin, Heilongjiang province.

At the conference, Chen hailed work done in the past five years to prevent this reduction and degradation, praising achievements such as enhanced international cooperation and improved social awareness of wetland conservation.

However, Chen also stressed the serious challenges coming in the next five years. Wetland conservation has become an essential task for maintaining ecological diversity, and the country has formulated a number of policies aimed at protecting the wetlands. Wetland protection is also very much an international priority, he added, pointing out that wetlands only cover 5.58 percent of China, which is lower than the world average of 8.6 percent.

Nevertheless, Chen emphasized the importance of comprehensive protection and expansion of the wetlands. He suggested combining wetlands with other ecosystems, as well as other forms of social and economic development. By 2020, the area of wetlands in China is expected to exceed 53.3 million hectares, 50 percent of which will be protected.

At the conference, Chen also called for practical policies and fiscal subsidies to better protect the wetlands. 

(For the latest China news, Please follow People's Daily on Twitter and Facebook)(Editor: Hongyu,Bianji)

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