Charging stations key to sustainable development

The number of electric charging stations installed on the banks of the Yangtze River in Yichang, Hubei province, will be raised to provide safe facilities for docked vessels and help to reduce the pollution they cause while idle, the city's port and shipping management bureau said.

Yichang, the second-largest city in Hubei and home to the Three Gorges Dam, is one of the most important ports on the lower and middle reaches of the river.

More than 60,000 passenger cruisers and freighters dock at the city's ports every year. Many stay at their berths for as long as a week, consuming huge amounts of power while awaiting permission to pass through the dam's system of locks.