This Day, That Year

Item from July 25, 1984, in China Daily: Nanwan Peninsula, Hainan province, is the only nature reserve where rhesus monkeys breed in China. Since the sanctuary was established 20 years ago, the monkey population has increased from around 60 to 10,000. ... China will establish 138 more nature reserves by 1990, bringing the total to 400 and covering 240,000 square kilometers, authorities said.

Since China's first natural protection zone was established in Guangdong province in 1956, more than 2,700 nature reserves have been built across the nation, according to the State Forestry Administration.

Covering 1.7 million square kilometers and occupying 15 percent of the country's total land area, they have played an important role in safeguarding China's forests, wildlife and water.