Experts call for railway to avoid pandas

Source: Xinhua  |   2008-11-3  |     NEWSPAPER EDITION

EXPERTS have advised that the more expensive option for a new railway should be chosen to minimize the impact on panda habitats.

The experts made the recommendation in an environment impact statement on the planned 435-kilometer Chengdu-Lanzhou railway, linking Chengdu, capital of southwest Sichuan Province, with its counterpart Lanzhou, in northwest Gansu Province.

Construction of the railway is scheduled to begin before the end of this year. The railway designer, the China No. 2 railway survey and design institute, said the route would follow the Minshan mountain system, a region encompassing four world heritage sites including the Sichuan Wolong great panda habitat.

The design has offered two alternatives. In the first, the railway would go from Dujiangyan to Jiuzhaigou, which would "largely promote tourism in west Sichuan Province, as well as economic development there."

However, under that design, the railway would cross 14 kilometers of ecological protection sites, including the panda habitat and three other world heritage sites. The designer has recommended the second option, which detours Dujiangyan and "least affects the panda habitat" by using a deep tunnel and bridges.