The Yangtze River is one of the rivers with the richest aquatic biodiversity in the world, and it is also an important barrier to maintain the ecological security of the mainland. However, it was once faced with a continuous decline in the biodiversity index and a severe endangered situation of rare species. In order to protect the mother river, a 10-year ban on fishing has been implemented in key waters of the Yangtze River basin since 2021. In 2023, the Yangtze River fishing ban will usher in the final year of a three-year strong foundation. How effective have you been doing for three years?
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Since 2023, in the videos posted by netizens on the Internet, the number of fish in the Yangtze River has increased. Even the unexpected encounter with the finless porpoise in the Yangtze River has become a norm that can happen at any time. The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs also has good news, the number of finless porpoises has stopped falling and rebounded for the first time, the distribution range and visible frequency of rare species such as Yangtze River saury and snakehead have increased significantly, aquatic biological resources have recovered for the better, and the three-year fishing ban has achieved gratifying results.
At the beginning of the new year, a new phase of the Yangtze River fishing ban began.
At the Baiji Dolphin National Nature Reserve in Shishou, Hubei Province, plans to release the finless porpoise into the Yangtze River in 2024 have been put on the agenda, and staff are busy checking the activity and health of the finless porpoise for the smooth reintroduction. The reserve is located in the Jingjiang section of the Yangtze River, with superior hydrological conditions, which is very suitable for the Yangtze finless porpoise to inhabit and reproduce, and more than 100 finless porpoises have lived here. As the flagship species of the Yangtze River, the finless porpoise population directly reflects the health score of the Yangtze River ecosystem. However, since the 90s of the 20th century, the number of finless porpoises has decreased from about 2,700 to about 1,012 in 2017. It is precisely for this reason that the reserve has taken on the important task of ex-situ conservation of the finless porpoise. For the staff here, the first thing that strikes every day is patrolling.
Mao Junfeng, deputy director of the management office of the Baiji Dolphin National Nature Reserve in Tianezhou, Hubei Yangtze River: 12 rangers, in groups of two, walk along the reserve every day. The second is environmental governance to see if there is any damage.
Patrols are carried out not only during the day but also at night, regardless of whether they are eating or sleeping, if they find an abnormality, the rangers will deal with it immediately.
Tao Le, head of the Jiangbei base of the Yangtze River Tianezhou Baiji Dolphin National Nature Reserve in Hubei Province: During the peak period of illegal fishing, it is often at two or three o'clock in the morning that I go to sleep. Now that the ecological environment of the reserve has improved, I feel that the work we have done is very meaningful.
In addition to patrolling, it is also an important part of restoring the ecological resources of the old road of Tianezhou and the main stream of the Yangtze River. Planting water-lifting plants such as fragrant lotus and reeds, planting submerged plants such as black algae, bitter grass and foxtail algae, and building artificial fish nests can not only provide food for migratory birds, but also provide a better habitat for fish.
Tao Le, head of the Jiangbei base of the Baiji Dolphin National Nature Reserve in Tianezhou, Hubei Yangtze River: A reed planted in 2023, when the water level continues to rise in summer, this beach will be covered by the water level, and the fish will spawn, and it will attach to the root system of these plants, promoting the circulation of organisms.
Mao Junfeng, deputy director of the management office of the Baiji Dolphin National Nature Reserve in Tianezhou, Hubei Yangtze River: Through restoration, the living environment around the finless porpoise will be better. The more fish and grass, the more fish. The more small fish, the more birds. For example, in winter, there are more than 20,000 birds at the peak of birds, and there are many birds and fish, and finally a living environment of biodiversity is reached.
In parallel with the work of the protected area, it is a coordinated promotion from the state to the provinces and cities along the Yangtze River in the past three years. On March 1, 2021, the Yangtze River Protection Law of the People's Republic of China came into force. As the first special law on the Yangtze River basin, it puts forward higher requirements for the protection of the Yangtze River's biological protection, sewage treatment, flood control and disaster relief, and ecological restoration.
In the provinces and cities along the Yangtze River, the restoration of the ecological environment of the Yangtze River is placed in an overwhelming position. Sichuan, Guizhou, and Yunnan provinces have established a horizontal ecological compensation mechanism to jointly protect the ecology of the upper reaches of the Yangtze River; Wuhan, Hubei Province, has promoted the ecological management of the Yangtze River in depth to block the flow of urban sewage into the Yangtze River to protect the middle reaches; and downstream, the three provinces and one city in the Yangtze River Delta have coordinated management and joint prevention and control. At the same time, the provinces and cities along the Yangtze River also replenish the fish resources to the Yangtze River every year through breeding and release, so the number of endemic and rare fish in the Yangtze River is increasing. Such co-governance has quietly changed the ecological environment of the Yangtze River Economic Belt.
In 2023, experts from the Institute of Hydrobiology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences came to the Tianezhou Baiji Dolphin Sanctuary to conduct a detailed survey of fishery resources in the waters of the Yangtze River near the reserve.
Hao Yujiang, associate researcher of the Institute of Hydrobiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences: It was found that the number of fish is very large, and the community structure is also very healthy and complete, from small fish to large fish to predatory fish, the biomass is also very large, and from the perspective of water environment and water quality, there is a significant improvement compared with the original.
All these efforts by the protected areas and the experts are actually preparing for an important action.
In April 2023, four finless porpoises from the reserve were released into the Yangtze River after nearly two years of rewilding training, the first release of finless porpoises in China ex situ conservation.
Hu Lianghui, Director of the Management Office of the Baiji Dolphin National Nature Reserve in Tianezhou, Hubei Province: The environment of the Yangtze River has been getting better and better, and now it is very suitable for the finless porpoise. After this success, we will regularly release the finless porpoise into the Yangtze River.
At the moment when the finless porpoise jumped into the Yangtze River, everyone was quite reluctant.
Tao Le, head of the Jiangbei base of the Baiji Dolphin National Nature Reserve in Tianezhou, Hubei Province: We used to revolve around it every day, and there are very few opportunities to see it in the future, but the purpose of protecting the finless porpoise is also to let it eventually return to the Yangtze River.
Hao Yujiang, associate researcher of the Institute of Hydrobiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences: If the finless porpoise can be released into the Yangtze River and the natural recovery of the Yangtze finless porpoise population can be realized, it shows that our Yangtze River protection is gradually showing better results, and the mother river of the Yangtze River is rejuvenated.
The release is not the end, and everyone is still paying attention to the survival of the four finless porpoises.
Hao Yujiang, associate researcher, Institute of Hydrobiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences: From what we know so far, we think that several finless porpoises should have adapted to the environment of the Yangtze River, and it is likely that they have merged with the natural population of the Yangtze finless porpoise into a larger natural group, which really makes us more excited.
After three years of fishing ban, the Yangtze River is undergoing gratifying changes. According to the latest scientific expedition of the Yangtze finless porpoise in 2022, the population of the Yangtze finless porpoise is 1,249, the first time since monitoring data began in 2006.
It's not just the return of the finless porpoise that's exciting. In October 2023, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, the Ministry of Ecology and Environment, and the Ministry of Transport jointly issued the Communiqué on the Status of Aquatic Biological Resources and Habitats in the Yangtze River Basin (2022), which shows that the resources of herring, grass carp, silver carp, and bighead carp, as well as swordfish, have recovered significantly. The latest number of fish species monitored has reached 193, an increase of 25 species from before the ban in 2020, and the biological integrity index of the main stream of the Yangtze River, Poyang Lake and Dongting Lake has increased by two levels from the beginning of the index system in 2018.
Liu Huanzhang, researcher at the Institute of Hydrobiology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences: Before the fishing ban, the fish were mainly small individuals, but after the fishing ban, the average body length and weight have increased significantly. Its density, its total resources, is increasing. If it is protected like this, some rare species should also have a very good hope of recovery.
The 10-year fishing ban is just one step in protecting the ecology of the Yangtze River. With the simultaneous promotion of the protection of the Yangtze River, the water quality of the Yangtze River is also improving. From 2021 to 2023, the water quality of the main stream of the Yangtze River has been stable at Class II. From "fishing" to "protecting fishing", the public awareness of protecting the Yangtze River is increasing, and the Yangtze River, our mother river, is shifting from "recuperation" to "endless life".
Towards the dream and moving forward with the country
With the courage of a ten-year ban on fishing, the Yangtze River will continue to flourish, which is a great plan for the blessing of future generations. The realization of any dream will not happen overnight, and there will inevitably be setbacks and difficulties. The key is to have the spirit of not being afraid of difficulties and hardships. Since the beginning of the year, the special program "I Walk Forward with the Country" has told the struggle stories of many ordinary people, who are engaged in different jobs, but they all have this spirit. From their growth, we see a progressive China. From their stories, we can feel that every step of the country's progress is the dream of countless ordinary people like you and me. Running on the road of moving forward with the country, ordinary people can also have a brilliant life and make extraordinary contributions to their families and countries. In the new year, I hope you and I will continue to believe in the power of struggle, move towards our dreams, and move forward with the country.
Editor in charge: Zhang Jing