Tianjin's Ninghe district has been prioritizing the establishment of an integrated "sky-ground" biodiversity monitoring system this year. Efforts have been made to strengthen wetland and biodiversity management, leading to a continuous improvement in the habitat for wild animals to thrive and reproduce.

The "sky-ground" biodiversity monitoring system in the Qilihai Wetlands

The Qilihai Wetlands, in Tianjin's Ninghe district, covers 149.28 square kilometers. The daily patrol and management of the area are crucial tasks for the restoration and protection of the wetlands.

In February, the Qilihai Management Committee used front-end sensing devices such as bird video monitoring, acoustic devices, electronic boundary markers and drones to establish an integrated monitoring system named "sky-ground". This has developed a three-dimensional monitoring capability with high resolution, coverage and efficiency for water, air quality, and wildlife. Information and data are shared with Tianjin University and the Tianjin Municipal Water Bureau to enable the continuous tracking and assessment of the distribution and changes in relevant indicator data.

In addition, the Qilihai Management Committee recently signed a cooperation agreement with Traffic Control Technology Co, Ltd, on the "low-altitude + wetland inspection" project. Leveraging the advantages of drones and cutting-edge technology, a drone patrol network will be established within the Qilihai Wetlands for round-the-clock, comprehensive, automated and normalized patrol management.

"The intelligent monitoring system has led to more effective protection of Qilihai. We have observed an increase of over 1,000 oriental white storks this year compared with previous years," said Tian Xiujing, director of the Qilihai Management Committee.