In April, as the temperature gradually warms, the trees grow new leaves and show green.
Forests are the largest species gene pool in terrestrial systems and the largest carbon storage pool.
General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out during his investigation in Hainan a few days ago that "Tropical Rainforest National Park is a national treasure, a reservoir, a grain depot, a money depot, and a carbon depot."
At present, my country's forest area is 220 million hectares, and the forest stock volume exceeds 17.5 billion cubic meters. These two indicators have maintained "double growth" for more than 30 consecutive years.
Against the background of the continuous reduction of global forest resources, my country has become the country with the largest increase in forest resources in the world.
Among the hundreds of millions of acres of forests in my country, some were once barren mining areas.
In recent years, all localities have actively promoted the protection and restoration of mine ecology in accordance with the requirements of green development.
Judging from the satellite cloud map, these areas that used to be yellow are shrinking, the green is gradually expanding from shallow to deep, and the once barren hills and depressions have turned into thousands of hectares of forests.
Mine boss changed to forest farm owner
Good water from the mine is the best proof of ecological improvement
Green - standing on the back of Huluo Mountain in Yangbu Village, Ganxian District, Ganzhou City, Jiangxi Province, looking around, everything you see is green.
The dark green is the old forest, and the light green is the newly planted seedlings.
"This area used to be like the Loess Plateau. When the wind blows, it's all yellow sand." When Han Xianlin, a villager in Yangbu Village, pointed to a hilltop and described the scene to the visitors, everyone's eyes widened.
In the direction of his finger, there is now a large navel orange forest. The snow-white flowers have just faded, and some small green fruits are emerging from the oily green leaves.
Han Xianlin put a lot of effort into planting this orange forest.
Don't look at the back of the tiger loquat is now a flower and fruit mountain, the mountain is full of peaches, plums, oranges... In spring, it blooms, white and pink; in autumn, it bears fruit, and the mountain is full of fruit fragrance.
But ten years ago, it was an abandoned mine.
Ganzhou City has a lot of rare earth and tungsten. In the past, due to over-exploitation, soil erosion was serious in many places, and there were bare mountains full of holes. There were 17 abandoned rare earth mines in Ganxian County alone.
The more than 800 acres of green mountains in Hulubei have also been reduced to "red deserts" during mining, with no grass growing.
Han Xianlin used to be the owner of rare earth mines. Later, the country started to remediate rare earth mines, and he faced changing careers.
But his fate with this mine is not over.
In 2011, the district implemented comprehensive geological management of abandoned mines.
Two years later, the restoration of abandoned mines in Yangbu Village was basically in place, and a demonstration belt of fine orchards was planned to encourage villagers to contract and operate.
Han Xianlin contracted 500 acres and planned to fill the hole he dug himself.
"It was a headache to plant trees at first," Han Xianlin said. "When planting trees in mines, you have to be patient."
First, the soil is unqualified.
Because mining uses a lot of oxalic acid, the soil is extremely acidic, making it difficult for plants to grow.
Han Xianlin and the workers brought uncontaminated soil from other places for replacement and mulch, and sprinkled quicklime to neutralize the acidic soil, improving the soil structure.
Water is also a big problem. The water on the mountain is all polluted, let alone drinking, watering the trees is a problem.
Han Xianlin had to buy water from the county seat first.
What is more serious is the problem of soil erosion. When a heavy rain occurs, there will be mudslides on the mountain, and the planted saplings will be washed away, and all efforts will be in vain.
In order to fix the soil and water, Han Xianlin learned to grow grass from the science and technology commissioner.
Improving the ecological environment of the mountain is obviously not a short-term and effective work.
"In the past few years, I was mainly in mountain management, because planting trees is difficult to survive, and a 25% survival rate is not bad." Han Xianlin said, "After three or four years, the survival rate of saplings began to increase."
"As long as the tree can live, there is hope." Han Xianlin watched as the trees began to bear fruit, and he became more energetic in governing the mountain.
In order to increase soil fertility, he built a pig farm with a scale of 1,000 pigs at the foot of the mountain. The biogas slurry produced every year is used to make organic fertilizers and farmyard manures. , The ecological model of raising pigs and fishes under the mountain.
With careful cultivation, the navel orange forest took root in the mine and grew taller day by day.
Han Xianlin said: "In 2012, the fruit trees were only 40 to 50 centimeters high, but now the tallest trees have grown to over 2.5 meters, and the short ones are also 1.67 meters tall. There are also many fruit trees. Last year, the fruit trees were 200,000 kilograms, and this year is the least. 400,000 kilograms."
When the tree grows, the mountain becomes better.
Planting trees and fruits has completely improved the ecology of the tiger loquat.
"In the past, the Taojiang River at the foot of the mountain was turbid in the rainy season. Now, no matter how heavy the rain is, the water in the river is crystal clear, and the river fish that have not been seen for many years have returned." What makes Han Xianlin most proud is that last year, they finally hit the mountain on the mountain. Drinkable mountain spring water.
"The water quality is very good." The good water from the mine is the best proof of ecological improvement.
After eating the sweet water that he had worked hard for, Han Xianlin finally didn't have to go to the county to buy bottled water.
The owner of the mine has changed into the owner of the forest. Examples such as Han Xianlin are not rare in Ganzhou.
In recent years, the greening campaign of abandoned mines has been launched in various abandoned mining areas in Ganzhou City, striving to make up for the ecological debt.
The forest coverage rate of Ganzhou has increased from 40% to over 76%, making it a "National Forest City".
The villagers who moved out have returned
Former environmental pain points become ecological highlights
"One city with green hills and half a city with lakes" is a feature of Jiawang District, Xuzhou City, Jiangsu Province.
The mountain refers to Dadong Mountain and the lake is Pan'an Lake, both of which are national 4A-level tourist scenic spots.
Next to the Pan'an Lake Scenic Area, there is a village called Mazhuang.
Last year, more than 400,000 people visited here.
"Every day people from other places come to visit our Mazhuang!" The old people in the village sighed, "If there was a trip in the village in the past, everyone would laugh out loud. It was messy, and there was coal dust everywhere. Who would want to come?" But now Mazhuang, where is there any shadow of coal ash—clear water, clear water, green trees, gray tiles and white walls, and sachets with the fragrance of herbs. People who don’t know it can’t tell that this place was once a coal village.
"A city of coal ashes and half of the city's soil", this is the Jiawang of the past - prospered because of coal but also declined because of coal.
Excessive coal mining has left 132,300 mu of coal mining subsidence, and there are 283 bare mountains in the district. The harsh ecology makes it impossible for local farmers to cultivate and live.
Pan'an Lake was originally the largest coal mining subsidence area in Jiawang District, with a total area of 17,400 mu.
In 2010, Jiawang District officially implemented the transformation of the coal mining subsidence area of Pan'an Lake, using the feature of "sag" to transform it into an artificial lake.
Get on the cruise ship of Pan'an Lake and sail towards the center of the lake.
Born in 1990, Xuzhou girl Zhu Xuening is one of the boat girls on this lake. Her father is a coal miner in Jiawang.
"When I was a child, there were coal trucks on the road, and I didn't dare to wear white clothes to go out." Zhu Xuening said that coal mining caused many subsidences in the region and serious environmental pollution. Industrial projects were reluctant to settle here. There are no classes to work in”, so he had to go to Wuxi to work and became an “ecological refugee”.
Zhu Xuening never dreamed that one day he would row a boat in the cave where his father was digging coal.
With the improvement of Jiawang's environment, ecotourism has developed.
"Pan'an Lake Wetland Park provides a lot of jobs, and the nearby villagers are given priority for employment. I never go out to work again." Zhu Xuening said, "My sister-in-law also works in Pan'an Lake and is a tourist bus driver."
The "environmental pain points" of the past have become today's "ecological highlights" and "industrial focus".
This is a new development after afforestation in many former mining areas.
Keshutang, Shangjia Village, Xunwu County, Ganzhou City used to be a rare earth mining area with serious environmental damage.
Villager Xie Lixin's family lives at the foot of the mining area.
"Before rare earth mining was done, we were surrounded by green mountains. Whether it was in the mountains, streams or wells, you could drink water as you like. Later, due to over-exploitation in the mining area, the soil and water became acidified and there was no harvest, so we had to move to the county seat." Xie Lixin said, "In 2017, when I heard the news about the governance of Keshutang, I immediately returned to the village to participate in the governance work. Through the governance, the acid soil has become fertile soil, the sewage has become clean water, all the barren hills have been restored to green, and the environment is better than a decade ago. Even better. Many families in the village have also moved back one after another. My family has grown more than ten acres of passion fruit and navel oranges in the fields, and they have an annual income of 40,000 to 50,000 yuan just after the fruit.”
In recent years, the plant species in the abandoned mine management area has increased from a few herbs to more than 100 species of grasses, shrubs and trees.
More than 2,600 acres of camellia oil, passion fruit, kiwi fruit, borneol camphor and other economic crops have been planted, which has boosted farmers' income.
Xunwu County, which once had 14 square kilometers of abandoned rare earth mines, has now become a national demonstration county for ecological civilization construction, with a forest coverage rate of 83%.
Planting trees is more important than protecting forests
Implement the forest chief system, with secretaries at all levels serving as forest chiefs
Sun Hongye, 65, has been a forest ranger for 18 years.
In 2017, he had already retired, but he was rehired because he was reluctant to go to the forest.
The youth forest farm covers an area of 5,000 mu in the northeast of the main urban area of Jiawang District, Xuzhou City. This is Sun Hongye's work place and his home.
Every morning at 7 o'clock, Sun Hongye starts from home on time, puts on his armband, takes his walkie-talkie and flashlight, and starts a day's patrol work along the trail in front of the door.
This road, Sun Hongye was already too familiar with it, but every spring, he made new discoveries.
Newly grown pine saplings, newly opened locust flowers... "In the past two years, the ecology of the forest farm has been getting better and better. The forests here are denser and more beautiful, and there are more and more types of trees." Sun Hongye said , "Pistacia chinensis was planted recently and can be used for furniture; neem trees were not available before, and the kernel oil can be used to make soap... In the past, it was mainly pine and arborvitae."
There are many mountains in Jiawang, but many of them were once barren.
In 2011, the area of barren hills here ranked second in the city, and the forest coverage rate was the last.
In order to realize the ecological transformation, in recent years, Jiawang District has started the greening project of barren hills, completed 42,000 mu of afforestation and planted 4 million trees of various types.
Beginning in 2020, the district has started the replanting of mountain alopecia areata and the transformation of mountain forests and forests. Replanting and mixed transformation are carried out for some alopecia areata plots in the mountain and pure oriental orientalis forests with fragile ecosystems, and the replanting increases the area of 8,200 mu of mountain forests. The forest coverage rate jumped to the forefront of Jiangsu Province.
"There used to be some sick and dead trees and dead standing trees in the forest. After these trees were cut down, more precious and more effective seedlings were replanted." Land, don't be squeamish."
Planting trees is important, but protecting forests is even more important.
"When the temperature rises in spring, we must pay attention to fire prevention." Sun Hongye said that the most important job for forest guards is to prevent fire.
In order to control the fire to the lowest point, he and other forest rangers patrol the mountains 24 hours a day in shifts on important fire festivals such as the Spring Festival, Tomb-sweeping Day, and October 11th.
What makes him proud is that in the more than ten years he has been a forest ranger, there has never been a fire or a single tree lost in the youth forest farm.
In the youth forest farm, including Sun Hongye, there are a total of 6 forest rangers, there are forest chiefs in the town and district, and there are also forest chiefs in the city.
The reporter learned that last year, Jia Wang took the lead in carrying out the reform of the "forest chief system" in Xuzhou City, and established a three-level forest chief system of district, town and village.
The district-level forest chief is served by the secretary of the district party committee, the town-level forest chief is served by the town party committee secretary, and the village-level forest chief is served by the village branch secretary to comprehensively promote forest management and protection.
In recent years, the strict protection and publicity of forests in the district has strengthened the local people's awareness of forest protection.
Sun Hongye said that there were many villagers who came to the mountain to collect firewood, pine nuts, and hook locust flowers. Once, a couple was found at the foot of the mountain preparing to cut down trees. Sun Hongye immediately went up to stop it. He quarreled.
But over the years, the quality of the surrounding villagers has been greatly improved. Few people maliciously damaged the forest, and they never met anyone who came to chop down trees.
At present, many provinces and cities in my country have implemented the forest chief system.
According to the "Opinions on Fully Implementing the Forest Chief System" issued by the Central Office and the State Office, in June this year, my country will fully establish the forest chief system, which means that all forests will have their own exclusive guardians.
Our reporter Wang Yajing