Last week, a group of journalists and photographers from national, provincial and municipal media outlets, as well as from Hong Kong and Macao, paid a visit to Zhanjiang, a coastal city in Guangdong province, along with some Chinese and international students.

They observed Chinese white dolphins, marine ranches and mangroves that demonstrate Guangdong's achievements in marine ecological protection and local ecological civilization development.

In Leizhou Bay, they saw dozens of Chinese white dolphins leaping out of the water, swimming in pods under the blue sky.

The Chinese white dolphin, also known as the Indo-Pacific humpback dolphin, is nicknamed the "giant panda of the sea" and is under first-class State protection. It is also listed as a vulnerable species on the International Union for the Conservation of Nature Red List.

As these rare creatures have high water quality requirements, their presence speaks volumes for the stability and health of the sea's ecosystem, experts said.

Official statistics show that the Leizhou Bay is home to nearly 1,000 Chinese white dolphins. It also has a Chinese white dolphin nature reserve, which is one of the seven such reserves established in China.

Surrounded by the sea on three sides, Zhanjiang offers an ideal habitat for the Chinese white dolphin due to its superior marine ecosystem, said Yang Feng, a senior engineer from the city's ocean and fishery bureau. Yang was speaking at a GDToday Salon themed "A Date with Chinese White Dolphins" held on Aug 14 in Zhanjiang.

The GDToday Salon on the preservation of Chinese white dolphins is held on Aug 14 in Zhanjiang, Guangdong province. ZHANG GUANJUN/FOR CHINA DAILY

Zhanjiang boasts some 15,000 square kilometers of nearshore waters and has a coastline stretching nearly 1,244 km, accounting for 30.2 percent of the province's total. The city also has three typical marine ecosystems — mangroves, coral reefs and seagrass beds — with more than 2,000 marine species.

As a major maritime province, Guangdong has adopted an integrated approach to manage land and sea resources in recent years, and significantly improved the water quality of both nearshore areas and rivers flowing into the sea.

Currently, the province has established 16,600 sq km of marine ecological protection red lines, and boosted the protection of coastal zones, bays and islands through classified protection measures.

It has also optimized the layout of marine production, living and ecological spaces, enhanced the efficiency of artificial shoreline use and limited construction projects from occupying natural shorelines.

According to data from the Guangdong Marine Development Planning and Research Center, from 2019 to August 2023, Guangdong had invested nearly 2.68 billion yuan ($374 million) in a 100-km coastline restoration, 36-km beach restoration, the construction of 14 bays and other projects.

Additionally, it has established 119 marine nature reserves, covering a total area of 3,943 sq km. They have formed a comprehensive network to protect rare and endangered species like Chinese white dolphins and sea turtles, as well as typical marine ecosystems like coral reefs and mangroves.

Also, since bays are a key example and champion the Beautiful China Initiative in the marine ecological environment sector, Guangdong is pushing forward the beautiful bay protection and construction.

Zhang Yuming, deputy director of the marine ecological environment division of Guangdong Ecology and Environment Department, said the province has divided its nearshore waters into 59 bays, and highlighted pollution control, ecological protection and restoration, and beach environment management through a "one bay, one policy" approach.

In terms of financial investment, Guangdong will support eight pilot projects for beautiful bay construction during the 2024-25 fiscal year.

Currently, Qing'ao Bay in Shantou and Dapeng Bay in Shenzhen have been included in the first batch of the country's outstanding examples of beautiful bay construction.

This year, Guangdong has recommended Shenzhen's Daya Bay, Zhuhai's Wanshan Islands, Shanwei's Honghai Bay and Zhanjiang's Jinsha Bay to apply for the third batch of the country's outstanding examples of beautiful bay construction, Zhang said.