Xing Huina (photo by Luan Haijun)
Xing Huina, Deputy Director of the Information Bureau and Spokesperson of the Information Office of the State Council:
Good morning, ladies and gentlemen. Welcome to the press conference of the Information Office of the State Council.
Today, the Information Office of the State Council of the People's Republic of China released a white paper on "China's Marine Ecological and Environmental Protection" and held a press conference to introduce and interpret the main contents of the white paper.
Guided by Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, the white paper thoroughly implements Xi Jinping Thought on Ecological Civilization, systematically introduces China's policy concept of building a marine ecological environment in harmony between people and the sea, comprehensively expounds China's important measures to promote the protection of the marine ecological environment, systematically carry out the governance of the marine ecological environment, and improve the level of green and low-carbon development of the ocean. We call on all countries to jointly protect the marine ecological environment, promote the sustainable development of the ocean, and jointly build a cleaner and more beautiful world.
The white paper consists of three parts: a preface, a main body and a conclusion, with a total of about 27,000 words. Among them, the text contains 7 parts, namely: 1. Construct a harmonious marine ecological environment between people and the sea; 2. Coordinate and promote the protection of the marine ecological environment; 3. Systematic management of the marine ecological environment; 4. Scientifically carry out marine ecological protection and restoration; 5. Strengthen the supervision and management of the marine ecological environment; 6. Enhance the level of green and low-carbon marine development; 7. Carry out international cooperation on the protection of the marine ecological environment in an all-round way.
The white paper was published in eight languages, including Chinese, English, French, Russian, German, Spanish, Arabic and Japanese, and was published by the People's Publishing House and the Foreign Languages Publishing House, and distributed in Xinhua bookstores nationwide.
In order to help you better understand the relevant content of the white paper, we invited Mr. Sun Shuxian, Vice Minister of Natural Resources and Director of the State Oceanic Administration, and Ms. Guo Fang, Vice Minister of the Ministry of Ecology and Environment, to introduce the relevant situation and answer your questions at today's press conference.
First of all, I would like to invite Mr. Sun Shuxian to introduce the situation.
Sun Shuxian (photo by Liu Jian)
Sun Shuxian, Vice Minister of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Director of the State Oceanic Administration:
Ladies and gentlemen, good morning! It is a great pleasure to witness the release of the white paper on "China's Marine Ecological Environmental Protection" with you today, and first of all, thank you for your concern and support for the protection of the marine ecological environment.
The white paper "China's Marine Ecological Environmental Protection" systematically expounds the concepts, practices and achievements of China's marine ecological environmental protection. We hope that the release of the white paper will encourage people from all walks of life and the international community to have a more comprehensive and in-depth understanding of China's marine ecological and environmental protection undertakings, and further strengthen exchanges and cooperation.
Dear friends, the ocean is a treasure trove of natural resources and a strategic place for high-quality development. At present, global ocean security, development and governance are facing a series of outstanding challenges, and China has always actively promoted the process of global ocean governance, and is a firm promoter and active actor in the protection of marine ecological environment.
General Secretary Xi Jinping stressed that "we must care for the ocean as we do life". Since the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, under the guidance of Xi Jinping Thought on Ecological Civilization, China has carried out a series of fundamental, pioneering and long-term work in the field of marine ecological environmental protection, promoted historic, turning point and overall changes in the protection of marine ecological environment, made a series of landmark achievements, and embarked on a road of harmony between people and the sea with Chinese characteristics.
First, the concept of marine ecological environmental protection is innovative in uprightness. We adhere to the priority of ecology, deepen the objective understanding of the natural laws of the ocean, and incorporate the construction of marine ecological civilization into the overall layout of marine development. We adhere to the overall planning of land and sea, the linkage of rivers and seas, and systematic governance, and realize the transformation from a single element to an overall policy, from terminal governance to full-chain management; We adhere to the guidance of science and technology, pluralistic co-governance, national participation, and win-win cooperation, and improve the comprehensive governance capacity from multiple angles and in all aspects, and a number of models of beautiful China construction and harmony between people and sea like the "Xiamen Practice" have emerged, vividly demonstrating the implementation of China's ecological civilization thought.
Second, the practice of marine ecological environmental protection is moving forward in exploration. China has taken the lead in proposing and delineating ecological protection redlines, improving the marine protected area system, and implementing major projects for marine ecological protection and restoration, which have significantly enhanced the diversity, stability and sustainability of ecosystems. China's maritime area management model has also shifted from "flat" to "three-dimensional", with the rapid development of marine renewable energy development and utilization technology, and the level of conservation and intensive utilization of marine resources has been greatly improved. China continues to improve its laws, regulations and institutional system, and comprehensively uses various comprehensive monitoring and supervision methods such as land, sea, air and space to promote early warning and monitoring of marine ecology, enhance marine disaster prevention and mitigation capabilities, and build a safety barrier for marine ecology.
The third is to build consensus with other countries in the world on the protection of the marine ecological environment. Since 2012, we have submitted more than 800 proposals to international organizations, actively participated in the formulation of international rules for environmental protection and resource conservation, signed Belt and Road cooperation agreements with more than 50 countries and international organizations, and closely aligned with major cooperation initiatives such as the United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the United Nations Ocean Decade. We have carried out extensive foreign assistance and training, and contributed wisdom and strength to properly address the challenges of the global marine ecological environment.
Dear friends, the blue planet we live on is the common home of mankind, and all mankind is a community with a shared future that shares weal and woe and stands together through thick and thin.
Let me start with a brief introduction. Thank you!
Xing Huina, Deputy Director of the Information Bureau and Spokesperson of the Information Office of the State Council:
Thank you, Minister Sun, and I would like to give the floor to Ms. Guo Fang for her introduction.
Guo Fang (photo by Liu Jian)
Guo Fang, Vice Minister of the Ministry of Ecology and Environment:
Good morning, ladies and gentlemen, journalists. On behalf of the Ministry of Ecology and Environment, I would like to express my heartfelt thanks to friends from all walks of life who have long cared about and supported the protection of China's marine ecological environment.
As Minister Sun just said, General Secretary Xi Jinping cares about the construction of marine ecological civilization and the protection of marine ecological environment. Since the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, under the guidance of Xi Jinping Thought on Ecological Civilization, China's marine ecological environment protection has undergone unprecedented major changes, which are mainly reflected in the four insistences:
We have adhered to the system concept and deepened the reform of the system and mechanism for land-sea co-ordination. In particular, in 2018, the Ministry of Ecology and Environment (MEE) integrated the responsibility for marine environmental protection into the Ministry of Ecology and Environment, and set up three ecological and environmental supervision and management institutions in river basins and seas, connecting land and sea, ecology and environment, and building a comprehensive management system with land-sea coordination and river-sea linkage, with stronger inter-departmental cooperation and smoother inter-regional coordination.
We insist on putting the people first, and the results of the construction of the beautiful bay have been continuously demonstrated. China has always adhered to the concept of ecology for the people and ecological benefits, formulated and implemented the "14th Five-Year Plan for the Protection of the Marine Ecological Environment" and the "Action Plan for the Construction and Improvement of Beautiful Bays", and is currently focusing on building more than 110 beautiful bays, and is carrying out marine debris cleanup in 65 bays to promote the recycling of marine plastic waste.
Today, I also brought a small object to my journalists, this beautiful silk scarf is actually made of three discarded plastic bottles, which are all from the public welfare beach clean-up action in Nansha District, Guangzhou. We strive to build all 283 bays in the country into beautiful bays by 2035, so that the beautiful vision of "clear water, clean beaches, fish and gulls, and harmony between people and the sea" depicted on this silk scarf will become a reality.
We have continued to focus on tackling key problems, and the quality of the ecological environment in coastal waters has continued to improve. China has always kept a close eye on the Bohai Sea, the Yangtze River estuary-Hangzhou Bay, the Pearl River estuary and other coastal strategic intersections, implemented key measures, fought several beautiful battles, and achieved a major transformation in the quality of the ecological environment from stabilization to improvement to obvious improvement. According to statistics, in 2023, the area of seawater with excellent water quality in offshore waters will reach a record high of 85%, an increase of 13.7 percentage points compared with 2018, and achieve "six consecutive years of growth". Twenty-four typical marine ecosystems have been eliminated from their "unhealthy" status since 2021.
We have adhered to the rule of law and continuously strengthened the supervision and law enforcement of the marine ecological environment. China has always protected the oceans with the strictest system and the strictest rule of law, amending the Marine Environmental Protection Law three times and amending it once, formulating and revising seven administrative regulations and more than 10 departmental rules, forming a strong legal guarantee. We have always adhered to strict supervision and law enforcement, investigated more than 53,000 sewage outlets into and out of the sea, completed more than 16,000 rectifications, continued to carry out special supervision and law enforcement actions of "Green Shield" and "Blue Sea", and implemented three rounds of central environmental protection inspections, during which more than 200 outstanding problems related to the sea were found and rectified.
Through unremitting perseverance, everyone can feel that in recent years, the sea water has become clearer, the beaches have become cleaner, the seabirds have increased, and the coastal wetlands have become more beautiful. The continuous improvement of the marine ecological environment is a vivid portrayal and powerful empirical evidence of the historical, turning point and overall changes in China's ecological and environmental protection. In the next step, we will continue to promote the comprehensive management of key sea areas, comprehensively promote the construction of beautiful bays, and continue to meet the needs of the people to enjoy and be close to the sea.
"There is no distance between each other, and thousands of miles are still neighbors." We are also willing to work with other countries to exchange and learn from each other, pragmatically cooperate, and jointly promote the building of a community with a shared future for the ocean, so that the blue planet will always maintain a clear background.
That's all I have to say, thank you.
Xing Huina, Deputy Director of the Information Bureau and Spokesperson of the Information Office of the State Council:
Thank you, Minister Guo, for your introduction. Now let's enter the Q&A session, welcome all media friends to ask questions, please inform your news organization before asking questions.
A reporter from CCTV asked a question (photo by Zhao Yifan)
Reporter from CCTV:
We know that China has a variety of typical marine ecosystems such as coral reefs, mangroves, and seagrass beds, but what measures have we taken to protect and restore typical marine ecosystems in recent years, and how will we consolidate the existing conservation achievements in the future? Thank you.
Sun Shuxian, Vice Minister of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Director of the State Oceanic Administration:
Thank you for your question. Marine ecosystems provide multifaceted ecological services for our survival, production and life. In recent years, the Ministry of Natural Resources has adhered to the concept of respecting, conforming to and protecting nature, vigorously carried out the protection and restoration of typical marine ecosystems, and strived to improve the diversity, stability and sustainability of ecosystems. The work is mainly carried out in the following aspects:
In terms of current status investigation, in 2020, we completed the current situation survey of typical ecosystems such as coral reefs, seagrass beds, and coastal salt marshes across the country, basically grasped the distribution and ecological status of various typical ecosystems, and identified outstanding ecological problems, major threats and major risks.
In terms of early warning and monitoring, we regularly carry out ecological early warning monitoring in key areas and release early warning products, which provides a basic basis for marine ecological protection and restoration.
In terms of ecological assessment, we regularly carry out the evaluation of the status of typical ecosystems, and in June this year, some media friends may have noticed that in June we issued the "China Marine Ecological Early Warning Monitoring Bulletin" for the first time, and the monitoring results show that the coral reefs, seagrass beds, coastal salt marshes, and mangrove ecosystems are generally excellent.
In terms of ecosystem protection, the vast majority of typical marine ecosystems such as mangroves, coral reefs, and seagrass beds have been included in the ecological protection redline, implemented strict protection, and gradually removed human activities that do not meet the management requirements and have a serious impact on the structure and function of the ecosystem.
In terms of ecosystem restoration, we have actively mobilized central and local financial funds to carry out the protection and restoration of degraded and damaged typical marine ecosystems, and restore ecosystems and their service functions.
In the next step, we will take multiple measures to continuously strengthen the protection and restoration of typical ecosystems: First, grasp the dynamic changes, continue to strengthen the investigation and assessment of the current status of typical marine ecosystems, and gradually improve continuous observation and monitoring and early warning monitoring. The second is to strengthen protection and management, strictly implement the ecological protection redline system, combine the regular physical examination of land and spatial planning and the "five-year assessment", supplement the distribution areas of other typical ecosystems in a timely manner, and strengthen the management and control of sea-use islands involving typical ecosystem projects. The third is to scientifically implement protection and restoration, improve the scientificity of protection and restoration through classified policies, enhance scientific and technological support capabilities, and strengthen whole-process tracking and monitoring, effect evaluation and post-management and protection, so as to ensure the effectiveness of restoration. In addition, we will actively explore and promote the realization of the value of ecological products, carry out value accounting of ecological products on a pilot basis, and encourage social capital to participate in the protection and restoration of typical marine ecosystems, so as to form a social atmosphere of co-construction and sharing.
Thank you!
China News Service reporter (photo by Zhao Yifan)
China News Service:
The white paper introduces the construction of the rule of law in China's marine ecological and environmental protection. I would like to know what work China has carried out in the construction of the rule of law in the marine ecological environment. How can the rule of law be used to protect the marine ecological environment? Thank you.
Guo Fang, Vice Minister of the Ministry of Ecology and Environment:
Thank you for your question. A good ecological environment must be guaranteed by the rule of law. We often say that it is necessary to control pollution accurately, scientifically and in accordance with the law, and that the core concept of China's ecological and environmental protection is to adhere to the law and regulations, strict supervision, and the protection of the ocean with the strictest system and the strictest rule of law. With regard to the issue you have just been concerned about, I would like to briefly introduce it from two aspects: legislation and law enforcement.
First of all, in terms of legislation, China has enacted a comprehensive law on the protection of the marine ecological environment, namely the Marine Environmental Protection Law. Since 2012, there have been 3 amendments and 1 revision. In particular, last year's newly revised "Marine Environmental Protection Law" was revised from the original 10 chapters and 97 articles to 9 chapters and 124 articles, adding 27 articles, of which only 8 articles were not amended at all, and there were many institutional innovations and pragmatic measures, such as taking the overall planning of land and sea as the principle of marine ecological and environmental protection, focusing on the management of marine garbage, the supervision of sewage outlets into the sea, and the prevention and control of pollution in rivers entering the sea to make detailed provisions, and increasing the punishment items, increasing the intensity of punishment, and enriching the methods and means of punishment.
The Wetland Protection Law, the Fisheries Law, and the Coast Guard Law respectively make clear provisions on coastal wetlands, the protection of marine fishery resources, and the enforcement of the marine environment.
Not only at the national level, but also at the local level along the coast, for example, Hainan Province has issued regulations on the protection of coral reef clams, and Xiamen City has issued regulations on the protection of Chinese white dolphin populations and habitats, and the effect is obvious, the population of Chinese white dolphins has increased from 60 in the early nineties of the last century to nearly 80 now, and it is said that Xiamen citizens can see Chinese white dolphins in the central urban area.
In terms of law enforcement, the Ministry of Ecology and Environment, the China Coast Guard and other departments have established a regulatory and law enforcement mechanism, and on the basis of regular inspection and law enforcement, they have jointly carried out special supervision and law enforcement actions of "Green Shield" and "Blue Sea". From 2020 to 2022, more than 19,000 inspections were carried out on marine projects, oil platforms, islands, and dumping areas, and more than 360 cases of illegal reclamation, illegal dumping, and destruction of islands were investigated and dealt with, severely cracking down on illegal and criminal acts in key areas of marine ecological and environmental protection.
In the next step, the Ministry of Ecology and Environment will continue to cooperate with the legislature to do a good job in the compilation of the "Ecological and Environmental Code", improve and improve the legal system of the marine ecological environment, and use the power of the rule of law to protect the marine ecological environment. Thank you!
Nanfang Daily Nanfang + reporter asked questions (photo by Luan Haijun)
Nanfang Daily Nanfang + reporter:
In recent years, China has continued to promote the construction of beautiful bays. In this process, how to promote local conditions to adapt measures to local conditions and better realize "one bay, one policy" and "each with its own beauty"? What's next? Thank you.
Guo Fang, Vice Minister of the Ministry of Ecology and Environment:
Thank you for your question. I just showed you the results of the construction of the beautiful bay. The construction of a beautiful bay is an important starting point for the protection of the marine ecological environment, and our progress is still very smooth, and the effect is also obvious, mainly to do three things: one is the top-level design of "three five-year plans"; One is the comprehensive management of "one bay and one policy"; There is also the "demonstration and leading" of grassroots innovation.
The first is the top-level design of "three five-year plans". Starting from the "14th Five-Year Plan" for marine ecological and environmental protection, we will continue to promote the "Three Five-Year Plan" and strive to build 283 bays into beautiful bays by 2035. At present, 11 coastal provinces (autonomous regions and municipalities) across the country have formulated provincial-level construction plans and implementation plans for 130 specific bays, forming a planning, layout and implementation system for comprehensively promoting the construction of beautiful bays from the central to the local.
The second is the comprehensive management of "one bay and one policy". For those common issues, such as pollution prevention and control in coastal waters, restoration and restoration of marine ecology, and the cleanliness of beaches and beaches, which are also of great concern to the media, every bay construction must be done. But at the same time, we are also very worried that in the construction process, we still need "one bay and one policy" to form our unique advantages and characteristics. Therefore, the "one bay, one policy" requires that each bay should be adapted to local conditions in combination with its own endowment. By the end of 2023, 1/2 of the 1,682 specific tasks and measures identified during the 14th Five-Year Plan period have been completed, and nearly 2/3 have been completed so far, and the rest are being promoted. In 2023, 167 of the country's 283 bays have an excellent sea area of more than 85%, and flagship species such as Bryde's whales, Chinese white dolphins, and black-faced spoonbills frequently appear in many bays. "One bay and one policy" has indeed created "each beautiful", I will introduce the impressive, there are 28 kilometers of Sunshine Coast Greenway in Zhangbei Bay, Rizhao, Shandong Province, and 3.3 kilometers of sandy beaches in Beihai, Guangzhou, forming a beautiful "Silver Beach" that stretches for ten miles. I see that today's reporter friends are very young, and they are going to have a summer vacation, so I can take my children to these places to have a look.
Third, we strongly encourage grassroots innovation to "demonstrate and lead", especially institutional innovation, mechanism innovation, and technological innovation. Through the selection of excellent cases of beautiful bay construction, a number of good experiences and good practices that can be replicated and promoted have been formed, such as more than 10 green and environmentally friendly marine public welfare organizations active in Dapeng Bay, Shenzhen, to carry out 100-mile coastline revetment actions, and drive the public to become participants and supervisors in the construction of beautiful bays. Tangshan Bay, Hebei Province, uses the seaweed reef ecosystem reconstruction technology to reproduce the 4,000 acres of seabed with oysters into mountains, algae and grass into forests, ginseng and shellfish interdependent, and fish and shrimp playing together.
The "Opinions of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China and the State Council on Comprehensively Promoting the Construction of a Beautiful China" issued at the end of last year also put forward clear requirements and made special arrangements for the construction of a beautiful bay. In the next step, we will earnestly implement the plan, promote and complement each other through the continuous improvement of top-level design and grassroots practice that has achieved increasing results, and more effectively promote the high-quality development of the construction of a beautiful bay.
Thank you!
Shenzhen Satellite TV direct news reporter asked a question (photo by Luan Haijun)
Shenzhen Satellite TV direct news reporter:
We know that due to industrial agglomeration and resource demand, coastal areas are prone to face pressure on ecological and environmental protection, which once restricts the economic and social development of coastal areas. So I would like to ask in particular, what work has been done in recent years to balance resource development and ecological protection, and promote the development of marine economy in coastal areas? Thank you.
Sun Shuxian, Vice Minister of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Director of the State Oceanic Administration:
Thank you for your question. The development of marine economy in coastal areas is a hot issue of great concern in recent years. In recent years, the Ministry of Natural Resources has insisted on attaching equal importance to development and protection, and actively supported the high-quality development of the ocean through high-level protection, mainly carrying out the following aspects:
In terms of optimizing the pattern of marine space development and protection, we have implemented the sea-related requirements of the National Territorial and Spatial Planning Outline (2021-2035) of the CPC Central Committee and the State Council, compiled the spatial planning of coastal zones and coastal sea areas, delineated the red line of marine ecological protection, clarified the spatial layout of marine ecological space and marine development and utilization, and coordinated and optimized the distribution arrangements of key sea-using activities.
In terms of strengthening the guarantee of marine resource elements, the "Notice on Further Improving the Guarantee of Land Use and Sea Elements" has been issued to simplify and optimize the requirements and procedures for the demonstration of the use of sea areas for landing projects. Strictly control the new reclamation and new islands.
In terms of promoting the conservation and intensive utilization of marine resources, we have steadily and orderly promoted the three-dimensional and hierarchical establishment of rights in sea areas, and promoted the transformation of the use of sea areas from "plane" to "three-dimensional". Explore giving uninhabited islands the right to use the right to transfer, mortgage, lease and other powers in accordance with the law, and gradually expand the proportion of market-oriented allocation in the sea market.
In terms of strengthening green and low-carbon technology innovation, we have promoted the transformation and development of the marine industry through technological innovation, strengthened technical research in seawater desalination, marine energy development, utilization of marine biological resources, and offshore engineering equipment, so as to inject new momentum and create new advantages for the high-quality development of the marine industry.
At present, the development of the mainland's marine industry and the protection of the marine ecological environment have shown good results. In terms of marine economic development, in 2023, the mainland's marine GDP will be 9,909.7 billion yuan, an increase of 6% over the previous year, and the growth rate will be 0.8 percentage points higher than the GDP. Thank you!
Global Times reporter asks questions (photo by Luan Haijun)
Global Times: I am more concerned about the issue of ecological and environmental governance in the inland sea, because it is considered to be a global problem. China's only inland sea is the Bohai Sea, so I would like to ask, can you tell us about the ecological and environmental management of the Bohai Sea in recent years? What are the exemplary implications of some of our initiatives for the rest of the world? Thank you. Guo Fang, Vice Minister of the Ministry of Ecology and Environment: Thank you for your question, and thank you for your concern about the governance of the Bohai Sea. Indeed, as you said, the inland sea is deep into the interior of the continent, and only the strait is connected with the open ocean, so it often has the characteristics of small sea area, slow exchange speed, relatively poor ocean capacity, and more human activities, which can easily form a difficult point in marine environmental governance. There are also many in the world, such as the Chesapeake Bay in United States, the Baltic Sea in Europe, and the Seto Inland Sea in Japan, all of which have gone through years of governance practice, and the Bohai Sea is the only semi-enclosed inland sea in China, which has experienced the ecological dilemma of deterioration of near-shore water quality, ecological degradation, resource depletion, and frequent disasters. China attaches great importance to the governance of the Bohai Sea and has been doing so. Especially since 2018, two rounds of key comprehensive management have been carried out consecutively, and the results are still relatively obvious. In 2023, 83.5% of the coastal waters of the Bohai Sea will have excellent water quality, an increase of 18.1 percentage points from 2018 and exceeding our average growth rate. In the practice of Bohai Sea governance, China has explored and formed a comprehensive management model of inland sea ecological environment with integrated land and sea, which has "three keys". One of the keys is land and sea coordination. The pollution of the Bohai Sea is mainly due to the excess of nitrogen and phosphorus nutrients, and the problem seems to be in the sea, but the roots are on land. In recent years, the water quality of the Bohai Sea has been improved by controlling the two "gates" of rivers entering the sea and sewage outlets, playing a set of "combination punches" for the total nitrogen treatment of rivers entering the sea, doing a detailed job of investigation, testing and tracing the treatment of sewage outlets into the sea, and establishing a land-sea integrated pollution control mechanism of "river basin-estuary-coastal sea area". I can report to you that the water quality of the Bohai Sea is still improving. The second key is to reduce pollution and expand capacity. Pollution reduction is relatively easy to understand, that is, through the reduction of total nitrogen in rivers entering the sea, the investigation and remediation of sewage outlets into the sea, etc., to reduce the amount of pollutants discharged into the sea. The expansion is what Minister Sun just introduced, which expands the environmental capacity of the ocean itself through the protection and restoration of coastal wetlands and the restoration of ecological coastlines. For example, the restoration of coastal salt marshes and seagrass beds in the Yellow River Estuary and Luanhe Estuary has effectively improved the capacity of pollutants to accommodate and degrade pollutants in the region. Through the efforts of pollution control and ecological restoration, the quality improvement of the marine ecological environment of the Bohai Sea has been effectively promoted. The third key is regional coordination. The governance of the Bohai Sea involves multiple departments and regions. In the process of governance, it can be said that the advantages of China's system have been fully demonstrated, and the resources and forces of all parties can be fully mobilized, and a coordination and linkage mechanism with clear responsibilities, division of labor and cooperation, and joint efforts has been established. It has improved the mechanism for coordinated governance and consultation and notification of coastal waters, strengthened the joint prevention and control mechanism of the upstream and downstream of rivers entering the sea, and promoted the implementation of various governance tasks one by one. It can be said that the achievements of Bohai governance are the result of joint efforts. These "three keys" of the comprehensive management of the Bohai Sea have become a new plan for the global inland sea ecological environment management, and they are also the Chinese solutions and Chinese wisdom that we provide. We look forward to working with all interested countries to strengthen technical cooperation and exchanges in this field. In the next step, we will continue to maintain the comprehensive management of the Bohai Sea and promote the continuous improvement of the quality of the Bohai Sea's ecological environment. Thank you!
CCTV reporter from China Central Radio and Television asked questions (photo by Luan Haijun)
CCTV: The white paper mentions that the mainland is the first country in the world to propose and implement the ecological protection redline system. What is the role of the marine ecological protection redline? What are your thoughts on how to keep this red line? Thank you. Sun Shuxian, Vice Minister of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Director of the State Oceanic Administration: Thank you for your question. Since 2019, the Ministry of Natural Resources, together with the Ministry of Ecology and Environment, the National Forestry and Grassland Administration and other departments, has carried out the delineation of ecological protection redlines in conjunction with the preparation of territorial and spatial planning. In the process of demarcation, we adhere to the principle of combining "delineation as much as possible" and "seeking truth from facts", and based on the assessment of the importance of marine ecological protection, we have prioritized areas with extremely important ecological functions such as biodiversity maintenance and coastal protection, as well as extremely ecologically fragile areas such as coastal erosion, into the marine ecological protection redline. At the same time, the red line also covers most of the undeveloped uninhabited islands, as well as the distribution areas of rare and endangered marine species, migratory bird migration paths, habitats and spawning grounds of important fishery resources, etc., which play a very key role in protecting the habitat, migration and migration of marine life. At present, about 150,000 square kilometers of marine ecological protection redlines have been demarcated across the country, and most of the typical marine ecosystems such as mangroves, coral reefs, and seagrass beds have been included in the redlines, forming an important blue ecological barrier at sea. In order to strengthen the management and control of marine ecological protection redlines, we have also issued the Notice on Strengthening the Management of Ecological Conservation Redlines (for Trial Implementation) with relevant ministries and commissions, which regulates the specific types and management requirements for allowing limited human activities, as well as the specific circumstances and approval procedures for the occupation of major national projects, and clarifies the regulatory responsibilities of departments for ecological protection redlines. On this basis, all provinces and municipalities have taken into account their respective local realities, comprehensively considered principles and flexibility, and refined and issued more local characteristics and operational requirements for ecological protection redline control. In the next step, we will strengthen coordination and linkage with local governments, regularly carry out evaluation of the effectiveness of marine ecological protection redlines, increase publicity, strengthen the awareness of all sectors of society to strictly abide by marine ecological protection redlines, and unite social forces to jointly protect marine ecological protection redlines. Thank you!
A reporter from Hong Kong China Review News (Photo by Luan Haijun) Hong Kong China Review News reporter: Ocean issues are global issues, what results has China achieved in participating in global ocean governance? In addition, what are the considerations for promoting international cooperation and exchanges on marine ecological protection in the next step, as well as providing China's solutions for global ocean governance? Thank you. Sun Shuxian, Vice Minister of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Director of the State Oceanic Administration: Indeed, the ocean issue is a global issue that has attracted widespread attention from all over the world, not only coastal countries, but also landlocked countries. China has always attached great importance to international exchanges and cooperation in the protection of the marine ecological environment. First, we will continue to deepen cooperation in key areas of the Belt and Road Initiative and actively expand global partnerships. We have issued a series of cooperation documents, such as the Concept of Maritime Cooperation in the Belt and Road Initiative, the Blue Partnership Principles and the Blue Cooperation Initiative of the Belt and Road. China has signed cooperation agreements in the maritime field with more than 50 countries and international organizations, laying a solid foundation for practical cooperation. The second is to continuously strengthen the construction of cooperation platforms and project cooperation. We have established cooperation platforms such as marine joint research centers/laboratories with 9 countries including Indonesia and Thailand; Regular maritime cooperation mechanisms have been established with the European Union, Africa, South-East Asia and island countries; In the areas of marine scientific research, marine disaster prevention and mitigation, marine ecological and environmental protection, and planning for the development and utilization of marine resources, it has provided technical support and capacity-building training for relevant coastal and island countries, and carried out a series of specific and pragmatic project cooperation. Third, we should actively participate in global governance in the ocean sector. We have participated in the negotiation of the BBNJ Agreement and played a constructive role, actively responded to the UN Ocean Decade initiative, and shared our practices and experiences in the fields of marine scientific research, environmental protection, and disaster prevention and mitigation. A series of international exchange activities, such as the Global Coastal Forum and Xiamen Ocean Week, will be held to provide experience and examples for the protection of the global marine ecological environment. Next, we will take multiple measures to further consolidate international cooperation and exchanges on marine ecological and environmental protection. On the one hand, it is to continue to expand the circle of blue friends. Promote cooperation in the fields of integrated ocean management, marine scientific research, ocean observation and disaster prevention and mitigation, ecological and environmental protection, and capacity building. The second is to improve the construction of cooperation platforms and mechanisms. Implement the China Action of the Ocean Decade, build a well-known brand for international cooperation such as the Global Coastal Forum, and provide more public goods and services to the international community. Third, China actively participates in global governance in the field of marine ecology, conducts in-depth cooperation with the United Nations, its exclusive agencies and regional organizations, conducts multilateral and bilateral consultations on important issues in the field of marine ecology, actively contributes China's wisdom and solutions, and demonstrates its image as a responsible major country with practical actions. Thank you!
Beijing Youth Daily reporter asked a question (photo by Luan Haijun) Beijing Youth Daily reporter: Just now, Minister Guo introduced some changes in the Marine Environmental Protection Law after the latest revision, and we have also noticed that the latest revision of the Marine Environmental Protection Law has made a series of new provisions on strengthening the protection of marine biodiversity. What's next for us to restore biodiversity? Thank you. Guo Fang, Vice Minister of the Ministry of Ecology and Environment: Thank you for your question. The biodiversity you care about is getting more and more attention from the world. All things have their own harmony to live, and each has its own nourishment. Biodiversity is the foundation and lifeblood of the earth's community of life. As the largest ecosystem on Earth, the ocean is the richest treasure of biodiversity. Protecting marine biodiversity is the continuation of the oldest and most beautiful life story on Earth. China is a major maritime country, with more than 28,000 species of marine life recorded in total, accounting for about 11% of the total number of known marine species in the world, and is one of the countries with the richest marine biodiversity in the world. China attaches great importance to the conservation of marine biodiversity, and has been promoting protection, restoration, and regulatory governance, and the newly revised Marine Environmental Protection Law also focuses on the protection of marine biodiversity, requiring the improvement of investigation, monitoring, assessment and protection systems, and the maintenance and restoration of important marine ecological corridors. According to the 2023 Communiqué on the State of China's Marine Ecology and Environment, the health status of the 24 typical marine ecosystems included in the monitoring has generally improved, and since 2021, the "unhealthy" status has been cleared, and marine biodiversity has steadily improved. Media friends have also been very concerned, and there are more and more reports and pictures of the harmonious coexistence of marine life and humans, such as the Chinese white dolphins in the Pearl River Estuary and Sanniang Bay, and the Bryde's whales in Shenzhen Bay and Weizhou Island, which have now become local Internet celebrities and city endorsements. In December 2022, the 15th Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity (COP15) promoted the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, or Kunmeng Framework, which is a milestone. Accordingly, with the approval of the State Council, the Ministry of Ecology and Environment, together with relevant departments, has formulated and issued the Strategy and Action Plan for Biodiversity Conservation in China (2023-2030), which regards the ocean as an important area and key goal, and will focus on strengthening the restoration and restoration of marine ecosystems such as estuaries, bays, mangroves, coral reefs, and seagrass beds. Just now, Minister Sun also gave a more detailed briefing. In the next step, the Ministry of Ecology and Environment and other relevant departments will conscientiously implement the requirements of the "Kunmeng Framework", thoroughly implement the strategy and action plan, guide and supervise coastal areas to combine the construction of beautiful bays, systematically carry out fine surveys of bays, focus on ecological protection and restoration and restoration, continue to strengthen investigation, monitoring and supervision and management, and take multiple measures to protect marine biodiversity. Thank you! Xing Huina, Deputy Director General and Spokesperson of the Information Bureau of the Information Office of the State Council: You can continue to ask questions. Two other reporters raised their hands.
China Daily: We are concerned that the Ministry of Natural Resources has guided the implementation of a number of major marine ecological protection and restoration projects in coastal areas. Thank you. Sun Shuxian, Vice Minister of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Director of the State Oceanic Administration: Thank you for your attention. Since the 13th Five-Year Plan, we have organized and implemented a number of major projects by combining natural restoration and artificial restoration, and have promoted 175 implementations. I would like to combine a few specific examples to answer your question. The first is the problem of "hard seawalls" destroying the ecological function of the coastline. We have taken measures to ecologically transform seawalls to give full play to the disaster mitigation function of ecosystems and improve the resilience of coastal zones. Another example is the degradation of coastal wetlands caused by the invasion of artificial structures and alien species. We have restored the ecological functions of coastal wetlands by returning them to the sea, demolishing artificial structures, and planting mangroves, salt marsh vegetation and seagrass in the habitat areas of alien species in a timely manner after the removal of invasive alien species. Of course, ecological restoration measures also include the restoration of mangroves, coral reefs and seagrass beds, the protection and rescue of rare and endangered species, as well as engineering measures such as seawall opening renovation and bay dredging and remediation. At present, the marine ecological protection and restoration project has achieved obvious social, ecological and economic benefits, effectively reduced the pressure of regional ecological degradation, significantly improved the quality of the marine ecosystem, and enhanced the connectivity, stability and integrity of the ecosystem. Since 1988, Xiamen City, guided by the comprehensive management of Yundang Lake, has gradually carried out comprehensive treatment projects in the West Sea, Wuyuan Bay, East China Sea, Xinglin Bay, Maluan Bay and other bay areas, and realized systematic governance through land-sea coordination and river-sea linkage, forming a vivid animation of "Xiamen Practice" of harmonious coexistence between man and nature. Some time ago, many media went to the site to investigate, and I believe everyone has a deep feeling. In addition, through the implementation of the "Blue Bay" remediation project, the decline of the environmental quality of the sea area and the degradation of coastal wetlands have been basically curbed, and the coastline of Yintan has been connected, and the area of mangrove forests has increased steadily, resulting in good ecological, economic and social benefits. According to statistics, since the "13th Five-Year Plan", a total of 1,680 kilometers of coastline and more than 750,000 acres of coastal wetlands have been renovated and restored across the country, improving and enhancing the structure and function of typical marine ecosystems, effectively restoring the habitats of rare and endangered animals such as Chinese white dolphins and Chinese horseshoe crabs, and reducing the disturbance of the East Asian-Australasian migratory bird migration route. In addition, it also enhances the people's sense of gain and happiness near the sea and the sea, and builds a safety barrier for the high-quality development of the coastal zone. Thank you!
A reporter from Hong Kong Bauhinia Magazine asked a question (Photo by Luan Haijun) A reporter from Hong Kong Bauhinia Magazine: According to the white paper, Zhejiang Province's new model of "Blue Cycle" marine plastic waste management won the United Nations "Champions of the Earth Award" last year. May I ask, so far, how is the promotion and application of this marine plastic reduction model? What other Chinese wisdom and solutions has China contributed to the protection and governance of the global marine ecological environment? Thank you. Guo Fang, Vice Minister of the Ministry of Ecology and Environment: Thank you for your recognition of the "Blue Cycle". The control of marine plastic pollution is indeed a global difficulty, and it is also the focus of everyone's attention. Taizhou, Zhejiang Province has explored and formed a new model of "blue circulation" marine plastic governance, and adopted big data and blockchain technology to open up the path of marine plastic pollution control, high-value recycling of resources and common prosperity of fishermen, and achieved a win-win situation of ecological, social and economic value. Therefore, it stood out among the 2,500 applications in the world in 2023 and won the United Nations "Champions of the Earth Award", which is not easy. At present, the pace of promotion and application of "blue circulation" is very fast. As far as we know, not only in Zhejiang Province, but also in the Yangtze River Delta region and the southeast coast, Fujian, Shandong, Hainan have set up "blue cycle" demonstration centers. The "Blue Cycle" model has also been fully recognized internationally, and is also being promoted and applied in Singapore, France, Germany, Korea, Japan, Thailand and Switzerland. Not only the original relatively simple plastic waste bottles, but also some marine aquaculture nets and fishing gear are now included in the recycling sequence. The advanced technical solutions and operation mode of "Blue Cycle", as well as high-quality marine recycled plastic products, have been favored by many multinational enterprises, industry associations, financial institutions and even overseas government agencies, and the participants are becoming more and more extensive. To this end, the Ministry of Ecology and Environment (MEE) has jointly issued the Action Plan for Cleaning up Marine Litter in Coastal Cities to better promote the recycling and collection of marine litter and provide more raw materials for projects such as the "Blue Cycle". We believe that it should be able to play a further good role. Since the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, all coastal areas have been carrying out innovation in the protection and governance of marine ecological environment, and the more prominent ones are not only the "blue cycle" you mentioned, but also the "Xiamen practice" introduced by Minister Sun in detail just now, and the "Bohai Sea governance" that I just introduced. We have also launched a number of landmark achievements with recognition, influence and reputation through the evaluation of excellent cases of Beautiful Bay. At present, we are in the third batch of reviews, which provide new ideas and examples for global ocean governance. These experiences and explorations are not only "Chinese", but also "global". China is willing to work with other countries to open a new chapter in building a community with a shared future for the oceans, jointly protect the "blue homeland" on which mankind depends, and leave a blue sea and blue sky for future generations. Thank you. Xing Huina, Deputy Director General and Spokesperson of the Information Bureau of the Information Office of the State Council: This concludes today's press conference, thank you to the two ministers, thank you to all the media friends here, and goodbye!
The scene of the press conference (photo by Zhao Yifan)
Source: China News Network
New Media Editor: Qu Bingjie
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