Comparing Xiongan New Area’s past and present through combo photos

The two photos reveal that Xiongan New Area in north China’s Hebei province, has turned greener between 2017 to 2019. The man-made forests reached 133 square kilometers in 2019, with the forest coverage rate increasing to 11 percent. (The left photo is provided by China Xiongan Group Ecological Construction Co., and the right photo is taken by Xue Zhiyong from People’s Daily Online.)

On April 1, People’s Daily Online released 20 groups of before-and-after photos which reveal the changes of Xiongan New Area in the past two years on the occasion of its 2nd anniversary of establishment.

To date, the national-level new district about 100 km southwest of Beijing has mapped out an overall design as guidance for its development from 2018 to 2035.

Some infrastructure projects such as afforestation, pollution control and high-speed rail stations have been launched, after which the new areas started taking on a new look.

The forestation campaign began in November 2017, bringing new greenery about 133 square kilometers to Xiongan within two years. It can be expected that the forest coverage rate, now standing at 11 percent, will further increase to 40 percent.

The Xiongan Citizen Service Center was completed in early 2018, which can be used for exhibition of the New Area’s planning, government services and conferences.

In the same year, the Ministry of Ecology and Environment (MEE) officially set up a branch in Xiongan New Area, the first of this kind across the country after the establishment of the ministry in March.

On top of that, a batch of educational institutions, hospitals and leading enterprises, such as Alibaba, Huawei, Tencent and Baidu, have settled down here.

Xiongan New Area is a national strategy area designated by the State Council. It aims to facilitate the integration of Beijing, Tianjin and Hebei province, and aims to be a green and innovative city.