Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
centuries, much of the native flora of the area has been taken over by introduced species,
destroyed by wars or land clearing, or flattened by farmlands, orchards, villages, and other
by-products of urbanization. Even in the more remote rural areas, a high proportion of the
native species have been replaced by oak, aspen, and birch. By the time 1949 rolled around,
Beijing had been stripped to just 3.2 percent of forest coverage.
For the last 60 years, however, the city has been trying to rectify the problem. Mao Ze-
dong appreciated greenery, and in the 1950s he took it upon himself to initiate a campaign
to promote tree and flower growing across the country. In 1981, the fourth session of the
Fifth National People's Congress put in place a resolution that stipulated that every able-
bodied citizen between the ages of 11 and 60 needed to “volunteer” to plant three to five
trees every year. This doesn't necessarily mean the citizens are personally heading out with
shovels and seeds to do a bit of gardening. Instead, they can pay a small amount to an
approved tree service to plant trees on their behalf. Today, the Beijing Tianjin Anti Dust
Storm Project continues the push. In truth, there are many sandstorm belts around China,
but Beijing, being the capital, had the privilege of being chosen to be the guinea pig for this
radical reforestation scheme. Consequently, over the last several decades, billions of trees
have been planted; grasslands, watercourses, and ecological parks are being managed; and
around 500,000 residents farming on eroded land have been relocated. Green cover has now
reached more than 26 percent in the municipality. In addition to this, the government has
also put in place regulations to protect urban trees—cut down a tree that's “larger than a
building” or older than 100 years of age without prior permission from your district plant-
ing bureau and you could cop a fine of around RMB500.
