The Waterborne Transport Affairs Center of Hunan Province announced on September 24 that, Hunan has fulfilled the goals of its environment improvement plan for the ports and docks along the Dongting Lake and four major waters – the Xiangjiang, Zijiang, Yuanshui, and Lishui rivers. A total of 391 illegal docks were shut down, 254 ferries were withdrawn, and 101.77 km of shorelines were renovated.

In recent years, Hunan has been carrying out a special environmental improvement plan for the illegal ports and docks along the Dongting Lake and Xiangjiang, Zijiang, Yuanshui, and Lishui rivers, to improve ecological environment and optimize shoreline resources. In March 2020, Xiangtan City took the lead provincewide to launch the docks and ports environmental improvement actions, and spent four days completing the renovation of the old Xiangzhu Shachang Dock. Xinshao County of Shaoyang City shut down 7 illegal docks along the Zishui River and planted trees there. Along the Yuanshui River trunk, six illegal docks in Xiangxi Tujia and Miao Autonomous Prefecture, 21 in Changde City, and 6 in Yiyang City, were banned.

Pollution prevention and control for ports and docks has been enhanced, and environmental improvement measures in these places have been fully implemented, to help improve the ecological environment of the Yangtze River basins. For example, a giant "capsule"-shaped bulk-cargo warehouse at the old Chenglingji Port, the first of its kind along the Yangtze River, is in the spotlight. Micro-power dust removal facilities in the warehouse and enclosed belt transport channel between outdoor transfer stations were used to avoid dust and pollution. The bulk-cargo stock yard in the Xianing Port in Changsha City is in a trial operation, which can accommodate 60,000 tons of goods in an enclosed and non-pollution manner. In Xiangtan City, 3 modern sand distribution centers had been built, which can transport sand in an enclosed way and reach the four-level production sewage sediment standards.

Small-sized, backward, and disordered ports were eliminated, the efficiency of shoreline areas improved, and the port economy developed. The Changsha Port and Yueyang Port greeted freight peak after the fulfillment of the environmental improvement plan. In 2021, the Changsha Port handled more than 31.33 million tons of cargos, increasing by 19.17% year on year; and, the Yueyang Port handled 600,600 TEUs, up 18.07% over last year.

This article is from the Hunan Provincial Government www.enghunan.gov.cn.

Translator: Pang Yuehui

Chinese source: hunan.gov.cn