City takes pride in 'Zhuhai blue'

Liang Jinqiang, 63, a resident on an islet in Zhuhai, has developed the habit of taking a morning walk and doing tai chi.

Liang, from a northern city near Beijing, moved to Zhuhai with his wife soon after he retired.

"We moved to Zhuhai not only because my son works in Zhuhai, but also because the air quality and living environment are much better here," he said.

Liang said his family decided to move at the suggestion of his son a couple of years ago.

"Everyone in our family agrees that the decision was a good one, especially when other regions are shrouded in thick smog," he said.

"We enjoy 'Zhuhai blue' almost every day," he said.

Liang's praise for the clear blue air is no exaggeration.

According to a report released last week by Beijing-based Standard Ranking, Zhuhai ranked seventh in the country's top 50 "Oxygen Bar" cities in 2015 and claimed the top spot in Guangdong province. The report is mainly based on forest and greenery coverage and the number of days with good air quality.

According to local media reports, the city's average PM2.5 and PM10 figures in 2014 dropped by 10 percent from 2013, making Zhuhai one of only six key cities in China with up-to-standard air quality.

Shen Xueqiang, deputy director-general of the Ministry of Environmental Protection, said Zhuhai is successfully blazing a new trail for green, low-carbon development and a circular economy.

"While achieving excellent social and economic development, Zhuhai keeps topping other cities in the Pearl River Delta, and even nationwide, for its industrial structure, urban layout and environmental conditions," the official said.

"The city's development pattern complies with the general requirement of the central government and meets the demand of China's social and economic development," he added.

Chang Jiwen, deputy director of the resource and environment policy research institute of the State Council Development Research Center, said the perseverance of Zhuhai's authorities to protect the local environment, their innovative management mechanism and stringent execution have all combined to maintain Zhuhai's enviable living environment and healthy ecology.

In terms of urban planning, the city has set an eco-control area of about 1,053 square kilometers, or 58.54 percent of the city's total land area.

The city government has cooperated with Peking University to launch an eco-civilization research institute, the first of its kind in China, to offer advice to the city government.

The city government signed an agreement last week with the Shanghai Horticultural Science Planning Institute for technological support for its eco-development.

The government has also issued 17 regulations and 12 guidelines to keep eco-protection on the right environmental track.

Zhuhai has taken the lead in China by releasing indices on the eco-environments of different districts on a weekly basis.

The city has also attached great importance to soliciting the opinions of experts on how the city can become an international livable city.

Zhuhai was crowned "the most livable city" in China by the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences in August for the second consecutive year, and the city was honored as a "national civilized city" early this year, in recognition of the city's overall social development.

Zhuhai's outstanding environment is helping the city vie for premium international resources - capital, technologies, human resources, projects and events, said Yuan Chiping, a professor at Sun Yat-sen University in Guangzhou.

"Its excellent environment, together with burgeoning opportunities and improving traffic infrastructure, will definitely help Zhuhai become an attractive destination for talented people from home and abroad," Yuan said.

According to David Luo, CEO of Wartsila-Yuchai Engine Corp, the fact that Zhuhai has not ravaged the local environment during its development drive was a big attraction for his European parent company.

The city's eco-advantage also enabled it to participate in the "Europe-China Eco-Cities Link" project in March.

Zhuhai is the only city in Guangdong and one of only two in China to become a comprehensive pilot city for the project, which aims to help Chinese cities benefit from the advanced ideas, technologies, management experience and partnership of Europe.

(China Daily 12/17/2015 page6)