Hechi celebrates World Wetlands Day

An official introduces the local national wetland parks and points out the importance of urban wetlands to residents in Hechi, Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region on Feb 2. [Photo/hcwang.cn]

Hechi of Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region celebrated the 22th World Wetlands Day on Feb 2.

With a theme of "Wetlands for a Sustainable Urban Future", the 2018 World Wetlands Day is focused on urban wetlands and raising public awareness of their value.

Hechi is blessed with rich wetland resources covering more than 47,685 hectares.

The city has made more effort in their protection work in recent years. Three pilot national wetland parks totaling 1,974.88 hectares have been approved in Du'an Yao autonomous county, Donglan county and Nandan county.

Around 1,000 people got involved in the activity this year in Hechi by giving out 2,000 printed items, making posters and hanging banners to publicize the city's wetland resources and make people aware of their need for protection.

An urban wetland is a significant ecological infrastructure which contributes to green and sustainable city development through flood prevention, protection against soil erosion and climate modification. As wetlands are a main water supply, the importance of their protection cannot be overstated given burgeoning urban populations.