Editor’s notes:

After the national vacation of the May Day, colleagues at the Research Office of China Biodiversity Conservation and Green Development Foundation (CBCGDF) received reports from volunteers that the existing reed lands in the coastal area ranging from the south of Dazhi River to the Luchao Port will be reconstructed and planted with cedars and fruit trees because of the shelter forest construction project newly initiated by relevant departments. It is said that the project aims to improve the regional ecological environment. To destroy the local eco-environment under the guise of planting trees is to take place in Shanghai, an iconic cosmopolis of ecological civilization construction. It is unbelievable.

The tree planting at the Nanhui Wetland is a typical spoon-feeding operation because local authorities were not aware that the large-scale tree-planting never equals to green development. Not every place is suitable for planting trees. Wetlands and mudflats which are the core component of the local ecological system should be protected and respected. Any behavior of disrupting local ecology with the excuse for planting trees.

Has this shelter forest construction project in the Yangtze River ever been notified to the public and undertaken environment impact assessment? We share an article entitled An Investigation on A Tree-planting Project in Reed Lands at Nanhui Wetland, and we welcome your comments v1@cbcgdf.org.

The Original Title:

An Investigation on A Tree-planting Project in Reed Lands at Nanhui Wetland

At the beginning of this May, some bird lovers found that engineering vehicles are in operation in the reed lands situated at the south of Donggang Street in the Nanhui New Town. After consulting with authorities, we learned that the existing reed flats ranging from the south of Dazhi River to the Luchao Port will be refilled and planted with cedars and fruit trees for the construction of the Yangtze River shelter forest, with the incentive of improving local ecological environment.

According to the forest land construction plan of Nanhui New Town, a stretch of forest land covering an area of 6,500 mu will be constructed within this year.

Shanghai is a coastal city, and Nanhui New Town is developed on wetlands. Reed wetland, a representative local ecological system, has a significant role in maintaining ecological security, reserving and purifying water, conserving biodiversity, and promoting ecological tourism. The construction of forest land will destroy the original wetland environment during engineering. Therefore, the project has aroused a heated discussion, and many people believe it is destroying ecology, far from an authentic ecological project. Do people also query whether the project has been scientifically justified, evaluated by EIA, and fully disclosed to the public?

Some have contacted members of the National People's Congress (NPC), Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) and the National Forestry and Grassland Administration to interfere and conserve the existing reed wetland.

Many people post on-site pictures, and they feel worried about the fate of birds inhabiting here.

The reed flats in Nanhui wetland have been shrinking rapidly due to urban development and afforestation projects. We have appealed to the conservation of Nanhui wetland (reed flats included) repeatedly. See the link below. In order to gather your comments and responses to the ongoing project, we sincerely invite you to participate in our survey and make an important contribution to our research. Please also feel free to forward it among your networks. Let's work together for a brighter future of Nanhui wetland.

(Photo credit: Fu Kai)

Original Chinese article:

http://www.cbcgdf.org/NewsShow/4856/12384.html

By / Wang Yanqing