As the approaching of the 45th World Environment Day, Xiling District Party Committee and government, jointing hands with municipal environment protection bureau started an activity themed by “Protecting the mother river Yangtze and being ecological citizens” in Binjiang Park, taking the lead of the “ecological citizen” cultivation in Yichang.
“Yichang Experiment”, a part of the Three Gorges Ecological Economic Cooperation Zone, is the first national ecological treatment experimental area, started on 26th May. The three major projects, ecological citizen project, ecological integrated protection project and ecological industry development project marked the national strategic Yichang Ecological Economic Cooperation Zone entering the implementation stage.
Xiling District Party Committee and government began to concern how to protect the mother river and launch the “ecological citizen” project.
Li Shuangxi, the founder of Three Gorges Ant Volunteer Association saw foreigners cleaning their rivers in WeChat last November. He came up with an idea of cleaning the Yangtze River bank in Yichang. He kept picking litters along Yangtze River bank in Yichang from 6 to 7:30am every morning before work. He sent this action “getting up half an hour earlier everyday” on WeChat and more and more people joined his action to protect Yangtze River. 60 to 70 tons of litter has been picked till now. The members of Three Gorges Ant Volunteer Association are over 100 and the spontaneous volunteers are 400 to 500.
As cultivating ecological citizens, over 6000 old vehicles were eliminated, and over 100 coal-burning boilers were closed. Domestic sewage of 50000 residents was stopped from pouring into the river directly. Over 2000 law-enforcement personnel were dispatched. Over 200 companies were inspected, and 150 were ordered to be regulated in specific period. One provincial-level ecological village, two provincial-level green communities and five provincial-level green schools have been constructed.
Lu Bin, Xiling District Party Secretary said that, “the atmosphere of 'ecological citizen' cultivation in Xiling is forming comprehensively. The government agencies, social organizations and individuals come to the force jointly. Major treatment and protection project in key areas start from Xiling Gorge and Dongshan Area of Xiling District. It will be bound with the reassessment of National Health City and to implement the ecological citizen cultivation concretely.” (Journalist Tian Dongming, Correspondents Liu Mingqiang, Hu Xinyue)