An aerial view of Jinhua, East China's Zhejiang province. [Photo/jhnews.com.cn]
Jinhua, East China's Zhejiang province, has been focusing on improving its natural environment over the past 10 years.
The concentration of particulate matter (PM2.5) in urban areas dropped from 70ug per cubic meter in 2013 to 27ug/m3 in 2021. The proportion of days with good air quality in the city reached 95.1 percent in 2021, up from 57.1 percent in 2013.
In 2022, the city was named among the fourth batch of clean air demonstration zones in the province.
In addition, the city has undergone consistent improvement in water quality.
China has a five-tier water quality system for surface water, with Grade I being the best. Grade III is the minimum threshold for drinking water.
In 2012, most of the seven river sections in the city did not reach Class III water quality. Among them, Jinhua River, Dongyang River, Nanjiang River, Wuyi River and Puyang River were main sections of the Qiantang River.
Thanks to years of efforts, by 2021 the city's 47 main stream surface water sections had achieved at least Grade III for six consecutive years.
"Clear river water and beautiful scenery have not only created a comfortable living environment for the people, but also presented them with a pleasing visual experience," said Zhang Jiajian, director of the water ecological environment division of the Jinhua ecological environment bureau.
With the improving environment, Jinhua has seen the reappearance of Pan'an peach blossom-shaped jellyfish and Lanjiang saury.
