Garden city grows to welcome racers in the 2008 Games

QINGDAO: "We will welcome the athletes in the coming Olympics sailing regatta from around the world to an ecological city," said Wu Yong, the director of Qingdao Bureau of Parks and Woods, noting that several years of large-scale reforestation have increased the charm and vitality of the city.

In 2000, the ecology of Qingdao was fragile, with forest covering only 20.51 percent its total area. To prepare for the Olympic Games, the plan of making it an ecological garden city was formulated by the municipal government, Wu said.

Reforestation in urban areas is expected to reach 120,000 mu (8,000 hectares) with a forest coverage rate of up to 30 percent by the end of 2010.

Millions of volunteers have taken part in activities to plant trees. The city says 90 percent of its citizens have joined in efforts to make Qingdao green.

Parkland increased by 106 hectares to 12.19 sq m per capita by the end of 2007. Green expanses in hills increased by 12.39 hectares and by 63.13 hectares in courtyards. Total green coverage exceeded 40 percent last year.

Qingdao has won the titles of national environmental protection model city, nationally advanced clean city, national garden city and "China Human Habitat Award".

It was one of the first 11 cities selected by the Ministry of Construction as ecological garden cities in 2007.

At present, more than 30 urban parks and wetlands on Jiaozhou Bay and the Dagu River are being restored and reshaped, including Fushan ecological garden, Baiguoshan garden and Taipingshan central garden. The city continues to landscape around the main routes of transportation and plant more flowers and trees in the city, Wu added.

Qingdao has the objective to become a national ecological garden city by 2010, which requires green coverage of over 45 percent and some 15 sq m of green land per capita.

Many approaches will be used to make it an ecological garden city, Wu said. The coastal forest belt will be increased to 116 km at an average width of 100 meters for a total forest area of 1,160 hectares.

To grow "a green passage" more than 4,660 hectares of forest will be planted along major freeways, railways and other transport routes in the city this year.

The new greenbelt along roads will reach 1,556 km this year. Of more than 4,573 hectares of new forest, 2,113 hectares will be planted along rivers.

The city will continue to landscape hills, gardens, airports and open space to develop an eco-city to welcome the Olympics.

To expand the forest, enhance local scenery and strengthen the ecology's ability to withstand natural disasters, Qingdao will return 7,980 hectares farmland to forests, with 15,866 hectares of land closed off for forest conservation.

The project of greening villages is also on the list. Some 1,275 villages will turn green in the process of planting village gardens, parks and forests.

(China Daily 03/12/2008 page24)