China introduced its achievements of wetland conservation in the past 30 years at a side event titled "China's 30 Anniversary of Accession to the Ramsar Convention: Achievement and Outlook" held in Geneva during the 14th Meeting of the Conference of the Contracting Parties of the Ramsar Convention.
The event, hosted by China's National Forestry and Grassland Administration (NFGA), gathered nearly 100 representatives from the Secretariat of the Ramsar Convention, contracting parties and international organizations, who spoke highly of the effectiveness of China's compliance with the convention.
Li Chunliang, deputy director of the NFGA, said that over the past 30 years, China has taken a historic leap in wetland conservation through a combination of survey and monitoring, engineering planning, laws and regulations, scientific research and education.
According to official data, China's mangrove area has increased from 220 square kilometers in 2001 to 270 square kilometers, becoming one of the few countries in the world with a net increase in mangrove areas.
In the past decade, China has created and restored more than 800,000 hectares of wetlands, including 64 wetlands of international importance, 29 of national importance and 1,021 of provincial importance, according to the latest survey by the NFGA.
Since its accession to the Ramsar Convention in 1992, China has already established a system for wetland protection and restoration that incorporates laws and regulations, investigation and monitoring systems.
With the help of a government-led working pattern comprising departmental collaboration and social participation, China has designated 64 wetlands of international importance, with 13 cities having been awarded "International Wetland City" titles.
With achievements of completing more than 4,100 wetland protection and restoration projects, including more than 600 wetland natural reserves and 900 national wetland parks, China has been awarded twice the "Ramsar Wetland Convention Award" by the Secretariat of Ramsar Convention.
