On March 30, the front page of People's Daily looked into Erhai Lake again and published the article "The principal project of 129 km ecological corridor was completed, Erhai Lake is becoming amazing". 

Image : © People’s Daily

Original Report:

An ecological corridor between Cang Mountain and Erhai Lake has now become a popular tourist attraction in Dali, Yunnan Province, attracting booming tourism from all over the country. The beauty of Erhai Lake impressed Mr. Zhou, a tourist from Guangdong, "it's so beautiful all the way. I did not feel tired when cycling!"

President Xi Jinping visited the lake during an inspection tour of Yunnan in January 2015, stressing ecological protection of the lake. The remediation of Erhai Lake was started then, and the construction of ecological corridor was put into practice.

The full project name is Ecological Restoration and Wetland Construction of Erhai Lake Riparian Buffer Zone which includes 5 contents: over 790 hectares ecological restoration and wetland construction, 129 km ecological corridor construction surround the lake, 1806 households ecological relocation, 30 km sewage pipe network improvement and 5 scientific research and experimental sites. The project started in 2018, with a total investment of nearly 10 billion RMB. "We have completed the principal part of Erhai Lake 129 km ecological corridor. Landscape promotion and other ancillary projects are in progress." Said Xiong Yingli, deputy director of the project.

The Three Lines (ecological red lines, minimum environmental quality baselines, and upper resource usage limits) of ecological protection in Erhai Lake were demarcated in May 2018. 1806 households in 23 villages of 8 towns around Erhai Lake were demolished by the end of 2018, and over 1000 mu of land was vacated. In 2019, the construction of 1806 Town was started. The local government arranged the moved residents with five plots. Besides high-quality architecture construction, the industrial supporting infrastructures were created for each plot. The overall construction of resettlement housing has been completed. Dali Town and Haidong Plot have been delivered before the Spring Festival in 2021.

An asphalt road which is several meters wide cuts through the Erbin Village and the Xiamo Village. Erhai Lake is on the other side of the road. It used to be the foundation of civil houses under the subgrade, but now it has become a variety of pipelines. The ecological corridor intercepts the sewage water, reduces the pollutant discharge, restores the lakeside biodiversity, and expands the lake region by 10 hectares. The water quality of Erhai Lake reached class II within 7 months and class III within 5 months in 2020 and was excellent in National Assessment Section of Surface Water. Zhang Heng, a villager in Beishengjiu Village, said: "we can see more water birds this year, and the cauliflower that has not been seen for many years by the lake has come back."

The ecological corridor also acts as an economic corridor. In Shangguan Town, Shangguanhua Ecological Park over 230 mu is under construction. In Xizhou Town, the dwelling environment around the ecological corridor is constantly improving. The rural areas, villages and courtyards are becoming more attractive. "We delicately lead the rural economy, make the tourists visit local villages along the corridor, and let the local residents enjoy the ecological benefits!" Dali Town Mayor Yang Liping said. (Zhang Fan, Xu Yuanfeng)