Technology empowers marine ecosystem protection in China

XIAMEN, Jan. 27 (Xinhua) -- In recent years, the coastal city of Xiamen in east China's Fujian Province has drawn on technological innovation to enhance the protection of its nearby sea areas.

At a marine environment management station of Xiamen's environmental hygiene center, the main screen displayed a comprehensive digital map of the city and its nearby sea areas. The map depicted many red and green arrows constantly shifting and creating trails minute by minute.

"These arrows indicate the possible routes of ocean trash," said Zhang Lianghua, director of the station. He explained that the detection and collection of ocean trash became more efficient thanks to the newly developed intelligent marine hygiene platform.

The platform, developed by Xiamen University for the station, was put to use in 2022. Liang noted that the platform features an algorithm for ocean garbage forecasts, which takes multiple factors into consideration, such as weather conditions and water dynamics.

"In accordance with the estimated route of the trash, we can dispatch our cleaning teams to intercept it in time," said Liang, adding that after the job is done, field data will be compared with the statistics provided by the platform, the results of which will be used to improve the algorithm's accuracy.

The station is now working closely with Xiamen University to develop a function for identifying different types of ocean trash for the platform, which is expected to be completed by the end of 2024, Liang said.

Apart from improving the environment of sea areas, technological advancement has also improved the city's capability of marine life preservation, especially some endangered species.

At a national-level nature reserve for rare marine species in Xiamen, an extensive system has been set up to monitor the activities of Chinese white dolphins, a species under first-class protection in China. According to Cai Libo, an official with the reserve, the system is equipped with cameras, hydrophones and drones, and patrol teams are routinely deployed for effective monitoring and management.

"Through this system, we can easily pinpoint the whereabouts of Chinese white dolphins," said Cai. "For instance, during important periods, such as their breeding period, we can quickly locate their area of activities, and notify vessels to avoid these areas."

With the help of the system, the reserve can more efficiently track the dolphins and respond to emergencies. Over the years, it has seen steady growth in its white dolphin population.