'Precious' Guizhou

By Fu Chao, Jia Tingting and Li Jun ( China Daily )

Updated: 2014-07-10

Economy growing in harmony with natural world, Fu Chao, Jia Tingting and Li Jun report.

Mountains covered with deep green forests flank the roads to every county and town in Guizhou province.And inside those locales, stories abound about Guizhou's lead in environmental protection and sustainable development.

As the province's many ethnic groups celebrate their lifestyles in harmony with nature, an international ecology forum in the capital city Guiyang is offering a window on the distinctive approach to combining eco-protection and economic development.

He Li, the province's deputy governor, noted the gui in Guizhou means precious in Chinese.

"Guizhou is a place that has precious natural landscapes and an abundance of precious resources.

"We have made huge efforts to protect and maintain our resources and we'd like to share the treasure with everyone in the world," said He.

Tranquil life

Biasha in the Miao language means a place full of greenery.

In Biasha Village parents plant a tree for a newborn baby as a symbol of life. When someone passes away, a tree will be planted near the grave to show the continuity of life.

With great respect for nature, people in Biasha believe that each tree represents the spirit of an ancestor that can protect and bless them.

Biasha is in Congjiang county of Qiandongnan Miao and Dong autonomous prefecture, home to 33 ethnic groups and famed for original cultures and lifestyles.

Qiandongnan has many villages like Biasha where villagers hold great respect for nature.

In Langde Miao Village signs everywhere warn not to cut down trees.

A staff member working in the publicity department at the village said it is very different from some popular tourism areas in Guizhou.

"The environment and culture of Langde is more original. Villagers refuse to have their village transformed into a commercial tourism area by the government," said the spokesman.

"They want to keep the environment as it was thousands years ago and believe that's the most important thing in life."

The forest coverage rate in Qiandongnan autonomous region is a staggering 62.22 percent.

UNESCO listed Qiandongnan as one of the top 10 tourism destinations on its "Embrace Nature" list.

Eco forum

The Guiyang Ecological Civilization Global Forum that starts on July 10 and last for three days is a national-level event with profound influence and international insights.

The forum started in 2009 when participants from around the world share their views on green economy and sustainable development.

For the next four years, the forum focuses on environmental practices, coversing such issues as eco challenges, economical transformation, balance between growth and society, and sustainability.

"This year's forum is more like a community where everyone is free to express ideas," said Zhang Xinsheng, secretary-general of the forum committee.

"We need to be result-oriented as it is more important to solve environmental problems than just give opinions," said Zhang.

By holding the forum every year, Guizhou aims to be a good example in advancing "ecological civilization", he said.

Guiyang Party Chief Chen Gang said the forum helps the Chinese government to promote environmental protection on the international stage.

Surging business

During a conference with enterprises from Switzerland in April, Chen said the city's ecology is similar to Switzerland, which attracts high technology, modern manufacturing and modern services.

Guiyang has launched a trade project with Switzerland in the city's comprehensive bonded zone. To further deepen cooperation, the two sides has reached an agreement to build a 1.21-squre-kilometer free trade area in the zone.

The provincial government is also developing a new area covering regions in Guiyang and Anshun city.

The Guian New Area is now building infrastructure and seeking investors in high-tech industries.

Guiyang has advantages to develop big data and cloud computing, said Chen. "The industries will benefit from the province's mild climate, sufficient energy supplies and advanced transport," he said.

To date, big companies like Alibaba, Foxcoon, China Unicom and China Mobile have built data centers in the new area.

By the end of 2016, the revenue driven by big data in Guiyang is expected to reach 54 billion yuan ($8.8 billion), accounting for 30 percent of the city's information industries.

"Big data is the future of information technology, and Guizhou will attract more talented people in the next few years," said Ma Yun, founder of Alibaba.

Some 5,000 people will work in big data-related industries in the next three years, according to the local government.

At the eco-forum of last year, a panel discussion also centered on how to develop the province's advantageous industries or industries that will not cause harm to the environment such as tourism, organic agriculture, herbal medicine and high-tech.

Qiandongnan's Majiang county is the largest blueberry production center in the province. Farms use organic techniques and some are open to tourists.

An employee at a local farm in Majiang said pesticide or any chemicals are never used. Instead all the weeding is done manually.

To date, the planting area of blueberry in China has reached 180,000 mu, or 119,880 square kilometers, in which Majiang accounts for over 10 percent of the total. Guizhou is also one of the largest herb cultivation centers in the country. In Qiandongnan, herbs were grown across 309.2 sq km last year.

In the whole province, the herb industry generated jobs for 3.38 million people in the past three years, 1.11 million of them from impoverished families, according to statistics from the provincial government.

Relying on its rich resources, Guizhou aims to seek balanced development in the near future.

Contact the writers at fuchao@chinadaily.com.cn and jiatingting@chinadaily.com.cn and lijun@chinadaily.com.cn