Environmental initiative creates public leisure assets and spurs agricultural and forestry industries

South China's Guangdong province has made significant strides in advancing the "Green and Beautiful Guangdong" initiative in recent years, aiming to promote ecological conservation and green development.

This includes implementing six major actions and adhering to an integrated approach to protect and systematically manage mountains, rivers, forests, farmland, lakes, grassland and deserts.

Through continuous tree planting, land greening and better forest resource protection, Guangdong has become one of China's greenest provinces. According to the latest data from the National Forestry and Grassland Administration, the province now boasts a total forest area of 9.53 million hectares and a forest coverage rate of 53.03 percent.

Chen Junguang, head of Guangdong Forestry Administration, said by 2035, the province plans to upgrade 1 million hectares of forest by introducing more plant species, and improve the health status and productivity of 2 million hectares of forest.

As a result, Guangdong will have a more optimized forest structure featuring diverse tree species, layers and colors, Chen noted.

Since 2023, the province has invested 4.07 billion yuan ($570.13 million) in the construction of 193"Green and Beautiful Guangdong "ecological demonstration sites, mostly forest parks.

A panoramic view of the West Lake in Huizhou, Guangdong province. The province has taken action to improve its environment, with its forest coverage now surpassing 53 percent. HUIZHOU PHOTO AGENCY

Also, it has established 15 new parks to showcase the implementation of China's innovative forestry administration mechanism called the "forest chief" scheme and the achievements of the "Green and Beautiful Guangdong" ecological initiative.

Additionally, Guangdong has released 10 cultural tourism routes in the past two years, which integrate natural landscapes, Red culture and historical sites.

This year, the province plans to explore and utilize local resources, and build ecological demonstration sites centered around suburban and mountain parks.

Other goals set by the provincial government include creating 30 provincial-level forest towns and 100 provincial-level forest villages this year, and designating 100 cultural tourism routes that feature natural scenery and Red culture by 2028.

Professor Xie Baojian from the School of Economics at Jinan University said the "Green and Beautiful Guangdong" ecological demonstration sites aim not only for greenery, but optimizing the ecological structure, bringing a more beautiful environment to the public and enhancing overall living conditions.

"Under-forest economy, or the development of forest byproducts, is a new industry that promotes coordinated ecological and economic development. It also serves as an important engine for boosting the coordination of regional functions," Xie said.

Efforts should be made to increase forest land use through ecological protection, transform green resources into economic benefits, and harmonize regional green and economic functions, thereby driving sustainable local economic development, he noted.

In northern Guangdong, Shaoguan is known for its abundant Sarcandra glabra, a herb used in traditional Chinese medicine for various conditions.

With low maintenance costs and high market demand, the herb has become a cash crop for Chen Cuiling's family in Ruyuan Yao autonomous county in Shaoguan. Chen and her husband have established a related planting cooperative, where workers collect wild Sarcandra glabra seeds from the mountains, cultivate them in greenhouses and then replant them in the forest.

Chen said each worker can earn 100-200 yuan per day and the cooperative purchases the dried herb that meets quality standards from farmers at a high price.

Currently, the cooperative's annual output value has reached 6.8 million yuan, benefiting more than 260 households in nearby areas.

Guangdong has continued for years to promote forest-related industries to enrich the people. It has developed such industry clusters as bamboo, medicinal herbs, flowers and seedlings, furniture processing and youcha, a traditional appetizer made with tea and other ingredients.

The province has also established a benefit-sharing mechanism between enterprises and farmers, enhancing the economic benefits of the "Green and Beautiful Guangdong" initiative.

As for the improvement of water ecology, Guangdong views the construction of waterside greenways as a key task, and completed 6,679 kilometers of greenways by the end of March. Currently, these greenways have become favorite places for local residents to get close to nature and enjoy leisure activities.

Thanks to the "Green and Beautiful Guangdong" initiative, the province's ecological and environmental indicators have remained stable or improved over the past few years.

For example, the concentration of six major pollutants across the province have met standards for nine consecutive years. Meanwhile, coastal water quality has reached its best historical level, with 92.3 percent of the area classified as excellent.