Origin of Paddy Fields and Functions for Environmental Remediation in the Urbanized Areas of Yangtze River Delta - Environmental Contamination: Health Risks and Ecological Restoration - page 410

is. about. 3150.×.10 9 . RMB.. Shanghai. is. the. most. severely. affected. area,. with.
direct.inancial.losses.of.145.×.10 9 .Yuan.and.2754.×.10 9 .Yuan.of.indirect.losses.
(CCTV.2007);.therefore,.it.is.vital.that.certain.urbanized.areas.of.paddy.ields.
in.the.Yangtze.River.Delta.are.protected.
Minimizing the Heat Island Effect for Urban and Rural Areas
Dramatic. increases. in. the. number. of. high-rise. buildings. and. skyscrapers.
(more. than. 2000. built. during. the. past. 10. years,. and. more. than. 100. among.
them.being.taller.than.100.m).(Bureau.2005),.wide.roads,.private.cars,.air.pol-
lution. as. well. as. reduced.green.lawn.areas.and.trees.per.capita,.and.rapid.
expansion. of. modern. living. (rapid. rise. in. electronic. equipment. used. in.
daily.life).by.the.urban.population.are. all.contributing.causative. factors.to.
the. heat. island. effect.. It. is. now. becoming. an. increasingly. apparent. trend.
for.the.Yangtze.River.Delta..During.the.summer,.the.temperatures.of.down-
town.Shanghai,.Nanjing,.and.Hangzhou.and.14.other.medium-sized.cities.
were.3°C-5°C.higher.than.their.suburban.areas..According.to.the.broadcast.
on. May. 24,. 2010,. by. CCTV. News,. the. temperature. of. downtown. Chengdu.
was.8°C.higher.than.its.suburban.area.where.no.economic.and.urbanization.
developments.have.taken.place.(CCTV.2010)..The.rapid.and.signiicant.losses.
of. rice. cultivation. areas. in. both. the. Yangtze. River. Delta. and. the. Chengdu.
Plain.may.be.primarily.responsible.for.the.heat.island.effect..Thus,.the.pro-
tection.of.certain.areas.of.looded.rice.ields.(also.referred.to.as.basic.farm.
land). around.urban. areas. is.necessary,.which. is. not.only. for. food. security.
but.also.for.minimizing.the.heat.island.effect.in.both.urban.and/or.suburban.
areas.
Biodiversity System and Clean Air
Biological.diversity,.landscape,.culture,.and.food.in.higher.urbanized.areas.
are.essential.to.the.improvement.of.citizens'.daily.life,.where.clean.air.is.also.
an.important.factor.to.consider.when.determining.the.quality.of.life..During.
the. urbanization. process,. the. lawn. areas. and. tree. numbers. per. capita. are.
reduced;.therefore,.the.integration.of.paddy.ields.in.urban.areas.can.poten-
tially.have.many.beneits..These.include.beautiful.aesthetic.landscapes.and.a.
wide.range.of.biodiversity.in.vegetation,.animals.(birds.and.beasts),.insects.
(worms.and.moths),.aquatic.creatures.(frogs,.ishes,.loaches,.arthropods,.etc.).
as.well.as.artiicially.raised.cultured.ducks,.all.of.which.may.transform.the.
region.into.a.place.of.interest.for.tourists.
The.biological.diversity.of.paddy.ields.can.also.have.signiicant.impacts.
on.insects.and.disease.control.from.a.plant.pathology.and.entomology.point.
of.view.(News.of.Hainan.University.2010,.Yu.et.al..2004)
Dust.pollution.is.another.problem.for.urban.residents.when.air.quality.is.
concerned,.as.there.are.many.ongoing.construction.projects.in.the.outlying.
urban.areas..Therefore,.the.ignition.of.dust.needs.to.be.avoided.at.all.costs.in.