LANZHOU－After a heavy snowfall, the Ziwuling nature reserve in Gansu province, which has vast untapped natural resources, is wrapped in white.

At the nearby H9 platform at the Changqing oilfield, several red machines lie scattered about as the oilfield explores low-carbon development while preserving the reserve's ecology.

"Backward management often led to poor sewage treatment in the past, and the pungent smell of oil and gas could be sensed everywhere," said Zhao Aibin, deputy head of the oilfield's No 12 production plant. "At that time, the drilling rigs 'drank' diesel oil and 'spat' black smoke."

Electric motors now power drilling rig systems and equipment as the oilfield, one of China's largest oil and gas fields with a history spanning more than 50 years, pursues green and low-carbon development while increasing production.

The oilfield is located in the hinterland of the Yellow River Basin, in an area with 16 ecological protection zones and 48 tributaries of the river. In recent years, it has shut down nearly 1,000 oil and gas wells in nature reserves and water source areas.

Thanks to technological innovation and improved management, the annual oil and gas output of the oilfield increased from 50 million metric tons in 2013 to 60 million tons in 2020. The total number of workers, however, has remained at about 70,000, marking an increase in production efficiency.

The H9 platform, which covers an area of just over 2.67 hectares, has wells extending several kilometers underground and access to about 2,000 hectares of underground reserves.

In the Gucheng operation area of the No 12 oil production plant there is a tree plantation with 120,000 trees, giving the area a green coverage rate of 90 percent.

"The oil reservoir at a depth of more than 2,000 meters is similar to a piece of streaky pork, with multiple oil layers," said Ma Hong, head of the plant. "In the past, only one layer of the reservoir was developed in the Gucheng operation area.

"The technological upgrade has made deeper development possible, injecting new vitality into the old wells."

XINHUA