'Park city' concept leads Chengdu to sustainable development

Snow-capped mountains can be seen from the urban area of Chengdu, capital of Southwest China's Sichuan province. [Photo by Tian Xianghe / For China Daily]

Tian Xianghe, a photography enthusiast living in Chengdu, has found it's easier to take pictures of the surrounding snow-capped mountains from inside the city in recent years. He could even take stunning photos of the mountains with his smartphone on sunny days.

Behind this change are efforts made by Chengdu to turn itself into a "park city".

Known as the "home of giant pandas", Chengdu is a metropolis in Southwest China with nearly 20 million residents. Following a sustainable development philosophy, the city aims to build itself into a "park city" and improve the lives of its residents.

The "park city" concept was first put forward in February 2018. It caters to people's need for a better living experience and is a people-centered concept that takes the form of an improved natural environment in all aspects, rather than simply adding more parks and gardens to the city, according to local officials.

"Through the construction of a 'park city', Chengdu aims to explore a new development model and generate a driving force for high-quality urban development," said officials. The new development model focuses on balanced development between nature, human needs, and productivity.

The Chengdu science city is built according to the "park city" concept, with nature, human needs and productivity in harmonious co-existence. [Photo provided to China Daily]

To implement the "park city" concept, the city has carried out a slew of measures in recent years related to urban layout, environmental protection, and industrial development.

One key move has been to build the Longquan Mountain Forest Park in the central area of the city. As the "green heart" of Chengdu, the forest park will cover a total area of 1,275 square kilometers. Officials said it is currently the largest urban forest park in the world.

The city is also building the world's longest planned urban greenway system. The Tianfu Greenway, with a total planned length of 16,900 km, will connect ecological areas such as parks, small amusement areas, and scattered green spaces, turning the city into a giant park.

The Tianfu Greenway will become a space where people can participate in a wide array of outdoor activities, local officials said.

Streets in old districts have been renovated by removing illegal structures to expand space, planting trees, and setting up cultural facilities. In new areas, an array of new communities is taking shape, focusing on living, business, and ecological protection, said the officials.

People run along the Tianfu Greenway in Qingbaijang district, Chengdu. [Photo provided to China Daily]

A low-carbon traffic system integrating urban rail, buses, and pedestrian access is also under construction. The total operating mileage of urban rail transit in Chengdu had reached 558 km by the end of 2020, behind only Beijing, Shanghai, and Guangzhou.

Under the "park city" framework, an increasing number of industries in the city have embraced green and low-carbon development. Residents now prefer vehicles with lower emissions when traveling or commuting, local officials said.

Chengdu launched 10 major projects for a happy and good life at the beginning of this year, closely linking urban planning with the well-being of citizens. A major task of the projects is to focus on reducing carbon emissions and steadily improving the environment.

The city plans to build more than 10,000 km of Tianfu Greenway and 1,000 park communities by 2025 and create 1,000 "park city" demonstration scenes every year.