国产热热热精品,亚洲视频久久】日韩,三级婷婷在线久久,99人妻精品视频,精品九热人人肉肉在线,AV东京热一区二区,91po在线视频观看,久久激情宗合,青青草黄色手机视频

Business / Green China

Fish ecosystem on Yangtze 'on verge of collapse'

By Yang Yao (China Daily) Updated: 2013-08-16 01:42

Fish ecosystem on Yangtze 'on verge of collapse'

Landscape changes since 2005 along the banks of the Chishui River, a tributary of the Yangtze River, suggest the grave effects of human activity on the ecosystem of China’s longest river. [PHOTO BY WANG LEI / FOR CHINA DAILY]

Human activity along the upper reaches of the Yangtze River - such as building hydropower stations and excessive fishing - has pushed its aquatic ecosystem to the verge of collapse, a report released on Thursday warns.

Researchers suggested starting a fishing ban along the entire river and enacting a national law to protect the "mother river" of China, as its fishery resources are experiencing a severe recession.

The number of fish in four major species has shrunk from more than 30 billion in the 1950s to less than 100 million, and the number of breeds has been reduced from 143 to 17, according to the report released by the Yangtze River Fishery Resources Committee under the Ministry of Agriculture and the World Wide Fund for Nature.

The report is based on a 12-day scientific expedition in five provincial-level regions in June, in which 32 researchers from government agencies and NGOs participated.

It was the first expedition of its kind to study the upper reaches of the Yangtze River regarding wetlands, aquatic diversity and water environment, according to the WWF.

Besides the sharp decrease in the number of fish, some species, such as the finless porpoise, have already become extinct, said Zhao Yimin, head of the Yangtze River Fishery Resources Committee.

The plight along the river is not catching much public attention "as people can buy fresh fish from a wet market every day. They don't realize how serious the situation is", Zhao said.

"The source species are reducing, leading to unsustainable development of aquaculture and an increasingly fragile ecosystem."

Zhao said China's fishery resources will be drained soon if no immediate action is taken.

The report cited over-exploitation of hydropower and lax law enforcement as major reasons behind the dire situation.

On the Jinsha River, 25 hydropower plants are being, or will be built 100 km apart along the 2,308 km tributary of the Yangtze, according to the country's energy development plan.

Once completed, the plants will have power-generating capacity equivalent to four Three Gorges Dam projects.

"It will cut the river into sections, and completely change the aquatic environment, bringing a devastating impact to species and water quality," Zhao said.

According to environmental laws, a power plant has to pass an environmental impact assessment before construction starts. However, a majority of the projects go ahead without any assessment, Zhao said.

Previous Page 1 2 Next Page

Hot Topics

Editor's Picks
...
西吉县| 普安县| 清涧县| 扎鲁特旗| 宿松县| 新密市| 始兴县| 澄迈县| 常宁市| 南丰县| 嫩江县| 汉沽区| 镇巴县| 万盛区| 靖安县| 潞城市| 高台县| 商河县| 阿拉善盟| 民丰县| 什邡市| 岱山县| 孝义市| 桂林市| 北票市| 纳雍县| 平遥县| 岑巩县| 新巴尔虎左旗| 云梦县| 房产| 内乡县| 轮台县| 洮南市| 仁寿县| 三河市| 苍山县| 望谟县| 沙雅县| 西乌珠穆沁旗| 平果县|