China's nature reserves exceed global average
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E-mail China Daily, May 23, 2013
The size of nature reserves in China reached almost 15 percent of the country's total land area by the end of 2012, exceeding the global average of 12 percent.
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Swans and tens of thousands of rare migrant birds spend the winter in Poyang Lake Nature Reserve in Yongxiu county, Jiangxi province. China has established 286 national nature reserves in the past 20 years. [Photo/China Daily] |
Li Ganjie, vice-minister of environmental protection, announced the figure at a celebration of the 2013 International Day for Biological Diversity on Wednesday.
The figure has grown from 6.9 percent in 1993 to 14.9 percent today. The number of national-level nature reserves has increased from 77 to 363, marking the achievements the Chinese government has made to promote biodiversity since the country signed the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity 20 years ago.
"Setting up nature reserves is seen as the core measure in biodiversity conservation to prevent the current loss of species and habitats," said Zhang Shigang, country coordinator of the United Nations Environment Program China.
That's why the theme of the 2013 International Day for Biodiversity in China is "biodiversity and nature reserves", while the international theme is "water and biodiversity".
"The United Nations Millennium Ecosystem Assessment indicates that in the past 50 years, 60 percent of the world's ecosystems have been degraded. Loss of biodiversity reduces our food, medicine, clean air and water. The ecosystem that human beings rely on is fragile," said Zhang Xinsheng, chairman of the International Union for the Conservation of Nature Council.
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