Eco-compensation in Qinghai Province: Experiences and Future Priorities

Hou Baojian, director of Qinghai Development and Reform Commission, introduced the practices and prospects of ecological compensation in Qinghai Province. Qinghai is the origin of the Yangtze River, the Yellow River, and the Lancang River. As the headwaters of these rivers, the province is known as the water tower of the People’s Republic of China. The  Sanjiangyuan National Nature Reserve has a crucial ecological status as an important national ecological security barrier. Under Qinghai’s unique plateau environment, ecotypes are unique, diverse, and vulnerable. Assessment of the Sanjiangyuan natural ecological protection and construction project found that ecological degradation in the Sanjiangyuan region has been gradually contained, with positive impacts on vegetation and forest cover, water supply, and biodiversity protection.  It also registered improvements in income, production, and quality of life of farmers and herdsmen. Qinghai’s main ecological protection practice is to actively explore methods to establish a standard, long-term eco-compensation mechanism.