Belt and Road Environmental Cross-border Scheme Initiated

2018-10-31

CHINA and other countries are working on a cross-border environmental protection scheme along the Belt and Road region.

China and Myanmar have built national and provincial nature reserves in a bid to protect a variety of rare species that are thriving in the Gaoligong Mountains, on the China-Myanmar border.

The area is prone to forest fires, logging and poaching, particularly in the Nujiang, Baoshan and Dehong areas in Yunnan Province. Such incidents pose threats to both countries, making cross-border environmental protection vital.

In 2015, China and Myanmar established a research lab on biodiversity, to conduct a variety of projects such as field surveys and training. Both sides work together against illegal activities in the region.

"We often meet colleagues from Myanmar," said Li Zhengbo, deputy head of the Baoshan management bureau of the Gaoligong Mountains National Nature Reserve. Foresters on both sides have reached agreements on putting out forest fires, investigating criminal cases, and building environmental protection awareness.

From 2010 to 2015, Yunnan apprehended 130,000 suspects in regard to forest and wildlife crime in the region, many with the assistance of Myanmar.

As the Belt and Road increases pace, more joint eco-efforts are underway. Research projects on environmental protection have begun between China and Pakistan on the river flow, landscape and geological disasters.

"The China-Pakistan Economic Corridor is an important part of the Belt and Road initiative, and research on environmental protection will definitely play an important part in the construction of the Silk Road Economic Belt and the corridor," said Lei Jiaqiang, director of the Xinjiang Institute of Ecology and Geography under the Chinese Academy of Sciences.

Mechanisms to decrease risks and improve regional cooperation are also being looked into. (Xinhua)

(Editor: LI Yuan)