The "Ecological City" concept formulated in the UN Man and the Biosphere Program and the construction of environmentally sound cities are gaining increasing numbers of proponents in China following the country's rapid urbanization that began in the 1990s.

Guiyang, capital city of southwest China's Guizhou province, is an example after winning the titles of "Forest City" and "Mountain Resort" by the Chinese Meteorological Society.

Its ecological development improved rapidly after it was listed in the first group circular economy pilot cities in 2002.

Part of the effort came through an investment of 2.2 billion yuan by the local government to improve the Nanming River by closing more than 400 heavily polluting firms.

Nature's gifts

Surrounded by mountains and more than 127,000 hectares of manmade green belt, 42 percent of Guiyang is forested.

It is also called a naturally air conditioned city with pleasant subtropical climate that is cool in summer and warm in winter.

It is crossed by mountains and rivers, making it one of the China's premier cities for air and water quality.

It has an average of 343 days of good air quality a year along with an average annual temperature of 24 C and 78 percent humidity.

Burgeoning tourism

To facilitate its environmentally friendly development, the city emphasizes tourism, culture, logistics, agriculture and other ecological industries.

The city received 23.37 million tourists - seven times Guiyang's population - from home and abroad last year, an increase of 26.03 percent over 2006 as tourism income grew by 41.9 percent to 12 billion yuan. Its 16.7 percent increase in the service industry ranked it No 1 in growth in the sector nationwide for the first time.

In the first nine months of 2008, the city's tourism revenue surged 49.18 percent year-on-year to 14.75 billion yuan generated from more than 20 million domestic and foreign travelers.

From May to Sept alone - as Guiyang held its "Summer Resort Capital" program - the tourism industry earned 10.52 billion yuan.

"While pleased with the rapid growth of the tourism industry, local authorities will pay more attention to sustainable growth in the sector," said Yuan Zhou, mayor of Guiyang, "We give priority to the protection of aboriginal cultures, natural heritage and the ecosystem, viewing them as crucial to sustaining tourism."

Yet "developing an ecological city cannot step over the stage of industrialization", said Li Jun, a member of the standing committee of CPC Guizhou Committee and secretary of the CPC Guiyang Committee.

"We have to develop the hi-tech industry while improving resource industries through the mode of sustainable economy."

Clean water

Water pollution was the most painful headache for local authorities in the 1990s. But changes began at the turn of the century when the city government started water pollution control projects.

In the past seven years, about 2.2 billion yuan has been invested to build 44 large water treatment facilities.

Guiyang initiated an environmental protection court last year to resolve problems in cross-regional pollution and improper rulings in environmental cases. The court processed more than 60 cases in 11 months.

The city invested another 800 million yuan this year to improve water quality in Hongfeng and Baihua lakes, as well as the Aha reservoir. The local government issued a plan in February to further enhance forest management.

On Oct 24 this year, Guiyang announced a new index system and a range of new measures to evaluate and supervise the city's ecology.

Under the new system and management measures, the city has specific goals for its eco-development by 2012 that project annual per capita GDP will reach 34,600 yuan, with added value from the service industry accounting for more than half of the increase.

As well, forest coverage is expected to reach 45 percent, while 95 percent of days will meet clean air standards in downtown areas, and the city's major drinking-water sources should then all be certified as safe.

Experts said the targets will engage more Guiyang residents in building an ecological city.

(China Daily November 20, 2008)