Care needed in Grand Canal development
Print Edition
Chinese experts have called for prudence and coordination in protecting and developing the heritage of the Grand Canal of China, the world’s longest man-made waterway.
According to a plan issued in February by the general offices of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and the State Council, a cultural belt will be built along the canal’s existing main course and those used in recent history.
Wu Xiaohua, deputy head of the team that compiled the plan, said implementation should be firmly based on the concept of respecting, complying with and protecting nature.
“Efforts should be made to gradually improve water conditions in the river course after a long-term pre-phase deliberation,” said Wu, who is also deputy director of the Chinese Academy of Macroeconomic Research.
“We must make coordinated efforts to avoid drastically changing the current water and navigation capabilities.”
He also called for strict control on industries that have negative environmental impacts along the Grand Canal.
“We should also promote the integrated development of culture and tourism based on the canal’s unique resources and its well-developed water and land transportation,” Wu said.
Fan Zhou, director of the Culture Development Institute of the Communication University of China, said promoting culture and tourism should focus on the uniqueness of the canal while offering more diversified and tailored tourist services and improved infrastructure.
A smooth mechanism for coordination is also key to the work, said Wu, urging greater coordination at the national level and the establishment of a multi-regional and multi-sectoral coordinating mechanism.
The eight provinces and cities along the canal are among the most economically developed and urbanized areas in China.
Accounting for less than 10 percent of the national total land area, they have more than one-third of the country’s overall population and contributed nearly 45 percent to China’s economy in 2017.
The Grand Canal is almost 3,200km long in total, stretching from Beijing to Hangzhou.
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