Biodiversity Conservation Projects in Hainan Win Global Acclaim

By Chen Shumin / HICN / Updated: 17:32,24-September-2021

As part of a campaign held by the China Environmental Protection Foundation (CEPF) in cooperation with Paradise International Foundation and guidance from China's Executive Committee for the Preparation of the 15th meeting of the Conference of Parties (COP 15) and the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) Secretariat, three of Hainan's positive biodiversity conservation projects (the protection of Hainan Gibbons, protection of Blue-Tailed Bee-Eaters, and waste management and ecological rewilding in Danzhou’s Laoshi Village) were recognized on September 23. Among a field of 258 cases submitted from 26 countries, it is a point of pride for Hainan that three of the cases have been included on the list of "100+ Biodiversity Positive Practices and Actions Around the World" in the campaign.

This is not the first time Hainan's biodiversity preservation practices have received global attention and praise by ecological experts from various countries around the world. Early this September, provincial authorities announced at an online press conference organized by the World Conservation Congress (WCC) and the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) that the current population of Hainan Gibbons has increased to 35 individuals in five family groups. 

Female Hainan Gibbon and her baby. SU XIAOJIE & LI TIANPING

In addition to the gibbons living in the mountains of south central Hainan, the Haikou Wuyuanhe National Wetlands Park is home to the Blue-Tailed Bee-Eater, one of the most beautiful birds in the world. Conservationists have set up a special "community" with sandy soil slopes near the river for these birds to build their nests and roost. According to Lu Gang (head of the Haikou Duotan Wetlands Research Institute), because of conservation efforts, the population of Blue-Tailed Bee-Eaters has almost tripled to 72 from only 26 individuals in 2018.

Blue-Tailed Bee-Eaters in the Haikou Wuyuanhe National Wetlands Park. CHEN WEIDONG

In terms of biodiversity and ecological protection, Danzhou's Laoshi Village not only includes public education and project promotion, it also includes rewilding of the mangrove forests. Many locals  have been taking the initiative both in planting mangrove trees and in collecting trash.

All three of the above projects from Hainan will be compiled into the pamphlet which will be released at the COP 15 this October in Yunnan Province’s Kunming.

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