As late autumn descends, the Huahu Lake in Ruoergai County, Aba Tibetan and Qiang Autonomous Prefecture, Sichuan Province, transforms into a breathtaking scene. The lake becomes a poetic haven for migratory birds, which indulge in foraging before embarking on their annual journey southward.

The Ruoergai Wetland, where the Huahu Lake is situated, is the largest alpine peat wetland in China. It contributes 30 percent of the water volume to the upper reaches of the Yellow River, fulfilling crucial ecological roles such as a water conservation area for the Yellow River basin and a barrier for the plateau ecosystem. In the early years, the Ruoergai Wetland experienced varying degrees of degradation and shrinkage, leading to a reduction in its water conservation capabilities. With the implementation of a series of ecological conservation and restoration projects, the wetland has regained its vitality, expanding both in vegetation height and wetland area, and has become a paradise where wildlife plays and thrives.

Such changes exemplify Sichuan's solid progress in recent years in advancing with a holistic and systematic approach to conserving and improving mountain, water, forest, farmland, lake, grassland, and desert ecosystems. Through the high-quality implementation of major initiatives such as the Ruoergai "Mountain and Water" Project, over six million mu (approximately 400 thousand hectares) have been restored ecologically. The province also ramps up efforts to enhance the diversity, stability, and sustainability of ecosystems, thereby contributing to the development of ecological shields along the upper reaches of the Yangtze and Yellow Rivers.

Holistic Planning: Advancing Comprehensive Governance Through Unified Strategy

Ruoergai Grassland Wetland spans across both the Yellow and Yangtze River basins. Sichuan is implementing a holistic conservation and restoration project for mountain, water, forest, farmland, lakes, grassland, and desert ecosystems at the Ruoergai Grassland Wetland (hereinafter referred to as the Ruoergai "Mountain and Water" Project) in the upper reaches of the Yellow River. The project has a total investment of 5.255 billion yuan, with 2 billion yuan provided as central government grants. It encompasses four counties: Aba, Ruoergai, Hongyuan, and Songpan.

"The project adheres to holistic planning, considering the upper reaches of the Yellow River in Sichuan as a unified entity for strategic planning. This approach creates an ecological conservation and restoration framework that includes 'one core, two sources, and six areas,'" clarified a relevant leading official from the Provincial Department of Natural Resources. The official explained that the "one core" denotes the central area of the Ruoergai Grassland Wetland; the "two sources" refer to the Yellow River's source region and the crucial tributary source area in the upper reaches of the Yangtze River; and the "six areas" include the river basins of the Heihe, Baihe, Jiaqu, Bailong, Minjiang, and Dadu rivers.

On the basis of the established framework, the project adheres to the principle of integrating "watershed characteristics, ecological functions, and ecological issues" to systematically and scientifically advance ecological conservation and restoration initiatives from their source. It has initiated ten major categories comprising 39 specific projects, as well as detailed the construction content, performance targets, responsible implementing agencies, and provincial oversight departments, among other tasks. To guarantee the project's scientific execution, an expert technical team comprising over 80 specialists from six fields has been assembled, offering comprehensive scientific guidance and continual assessment of the ecological restoration efforts throughout the project's duration.

In Aba County, Aba Prefecture, the unpredictable and shifting behavior of the Jiaqu River, a first-order tributary of the Yellow River, used to cause great distress for the pastoralist family of Gongbencuo in Jialuo Town. "During the flood season, the river's water level would rise, frequently spilling over its banks and inundating the nearby pastures."

Nowadays, after the Jiaqu River's ecological bank protection program, a sub-project of the Ruoergai "Mountain and Water" initiative, the Jiaqu River has become "well-behaved". Through a series of ecological restoration measures, the program prevents sediment from entering the river, further stabilizing the bank slope, conserving water sources, reducing bank erosion and water and soil loss, and alleviating grassland degradation.

Ecological Restoration Plus: Exploring the Integrated Development of Ecology and Industries

Ecological restoration is a significant endeavor. Sichuan is intensifying its exploration of the "ecological restoration +" model. Beyond merely restoring and managing the ecological environment, Sichuan aims to leverage ecological restoration as a robust support for high-quality development.

In Banchang Gou, Shimian County, Ya'an City, following over 50 years of asbestos mining and nearly two decades of disuse, the region has been restored to its original lush mountain hues. The once-scrapped steep mountain slopes, cluttered with mining debris, have undergone an artificial transformation. These slopes have been meticulously reconstructed into a series of stepped terraces, poised to be reborn as a mining-themed park in the coming future.

This initiative is one of the sub-projects under the Giant Panda National Park (Sichuan Ya'an Area) Historical Legacy and Abandoned Mine Site Ecological Restoration Project (hereinafter referred to as the Giant Panda National Park Historical Legacy Mine Site Restoration Project). In 2022, the initiative was successfully selected as a national demonstration project. It aims to effectively connect and restore the giant panda habitat and ecological corridors, eliminate geological safety hazards, increase vegetation coverage, and more, all through the implementation of mine ecological restoration efforts. As of now, all six sub-projects of the Giant Panda National Park Historical Legacy Mine Site Restoration Project are fully underway, covering an area of 15,100 mu (approximately 1,007 hectares) dedicated to ecological conservation and restoration efforts.

Revegetation is just the first step in ecological restoration. The mine site restoration project focuses on amplifying ecological restoration efforts, enhancing the area's landscape beauty while introducing new environmental and social values, in a bid to convert once-shunned abandoned mines into cherished assets that are universally admired and valued. The Giant Panda National Park Historical Legacy Mine Site Restoration Project is currently actively exploring the "ecological restoration +" model. This approach builds upon the foundational work of mine ecological restoration and aims to fully tap into regional characteristic resources such as the giant panda, red tourism, and the Ancient Tea Horse Road. The project is dedicated to exploring and promoting a new, integrated development model that intertwines ecology with industry, culture, and other fields.

In the Ruoergai "Mountain and Water" Project area, a parallel exploration of the "ecological restoration +" model is underway. In response to challenges such as the region's reliance on a single industry and the difficulties in harmonizing economic development with ecological protection, this project focuses on capitalizing on the wetlands, grasslands, and other unique ecological resources, fostering eco-industries, including plateau-specific agriculture and animal husbandry, and advocating for the establishment of diverse industrial chains to realize the transformation of ecological values, such as "ecology + photovoltaics", "ecology + modern forage and yak industry", and "ecology + cultural and natural landscapes". The project endeavors to establish a demonstration zone for the distinctive grassland industries in the upper reaches of the Yellow River, thereby exploring a path to harmonious development that balances ecological conservation with regional economic growth.