Taizhou solves the problem of marine pollution control and actively explores the path to realize the value of ecological products
Take a boat from Jiaojiang Wharf in Taizhou City, Zhejiang Province, and drive 29 nautical miles to the east, and an island comes into view. The spring flowers are blooming, everything is magnificent, and Dachen Island is shining under the sun, which is attracting a wave of tourists.
Dachen Island is a national first-class fishing port, a provincial forest park and a provincial sea fishing base, the first batch of provincial forestry carbon sink pilot demonstration bases and national 4A-level tourist attractions, and the sea area around the island is the third largest fishing ground in Zhejiang Province, known as the "Pearl of the East China Sea".
Behind the honor, Jiaojiang District deeply practices the concept of "lucid waters and lush mountains are invaluable assets", takes multiple measures to solve the problem of marine pollution control, continuously deepens and expands the value realization channel of island ecological products, and strives to create a beautiful bay with "clean water, clean beaches, fish and gulls, and harmony between people and the sea". Today, this "Pearl of the East China Sea" is blooming with more dazzling brilliance.
Source governance + digital empowerment to solve the problem of marine pollution control
Strolling through Meihua Bay, which is located at the western end of Xia Dachen Island, the sky is clear, the water is blue and the shore is green...... A vibrant ecological picture unfolds. However, in the past, Meihua Bay sewage was discharged directly into the sea, and garbage floated in the sea.
In order to promote the comprehensive management of marine garbage in Dachen Island, Jiaojiang adheres to the overall planning of land and sea and systematic pollution control. In terms of source treatment, we have deepened the construction of "zero direct discharge" of sewage, renovated the sewage pipe network of 28 public construction units, 40 six small industries and 579 households in the market town area, and carried out rain and sewage diversion transformation of public construction plots, coastal ring roads, and central primary schools in Dachen Town, with a new pipe network of 50,000 square meters and a renovated pipe network of 400,000 square meters, so as to achieve "full sewage collection and treatment up to standard". Jiaojiang also expanded and upgraded the original 300T/D domestic sewage treatment facilities in Dachen Town, and simultaneously completed the upgrading of the sewage treatment station, and the effluent quality reached the quasi-surface water class IV water quality limit.
In addition to sewage, ship pollution and marine plastic pollution are also prominent problems in the marine ecological environment. In 2019, Jiaojiang pioneered the "Ocean Cloud Warehouse" smart pollution control model, laying intelligent hardware in the central fishing port and Dachen fishing port, which can classify and recover oily pollutants and waste lead-acid batteries, two types of marine pollutants, and open up the links of waste production, collection, operation, disposal, and supervision, so as to realize the closed-loop treatment of ship pollutants in the whole process.
After that, Jiaojiang continued to be at the forefront, combining the "Ocean Cloud Warehouse" with the digital platform "Fishing Worry" to achieve a clear picture of the accumulation and disposal of marine pollutants, and established a "three-color code" ecological protection credit evaluation mechanism to carry out intelligent management of each ship.
On the basis of effective treatment of ship pollutants, Jiaojiang has further expanded the scope of remediation of marine pollutants, focusing on the recycling and treatment of marine plastic waste, and exploring the "blue cycle" model. In short, through the model of "government guidance + market operation", relying on technologies such as blockchain and the Internet of Things, a process system of "international certification and value-added - market-oriented garbage collection - high-value resource utilization" of marine plastic waste has been built.
"The 'Blue Cycle' project has achieved the whole process of governance. Hong Yan, a member of the party group of the Jiaojiang Branch of the Taizhou Ecological Environment Bureau, said that the "collection, transportation, storage, disposal, and regeneration of marine waste" are interlocking, and a positive cycle has been formed through the overall policy, giving accurate and lasting treatment of marine plastic pollution.
Priority protection + ecological restoration, to create an ecologically beautiful island
Dachen Island has a majestic Jiawu Rock and is rich in fishery resources, but because of the frequent marine disasters in Taizhou, the coastline is seriously damaged. "When we carry out ecological restoration, we focus on exploring ways to maintain the original ecology of the landscape and show the cultural heritage of the island. Hong Yan said that relying on the advantages of the island, the local government follows the main line of protection priority and natural restoration, promotes the improvement and restoration of coastlines, islands and reefs, and creates a beautiful ecological environment of the island with "clear water, green shore, clean beach, beautiful bay and beautiful island".
Heavyweight projects followed: the Dachen Island Ecological Restoration Project with a total investment of 240 million yuan, with 120 million yuan of central financial awards and subsidies from the "Blue Bay", implemented and completed 13 key projects on the island, repaired 906 meters of sandy coastline, protected and strengthened the 2,500-meter-long Wushatou erosion coastline, built 3,000 meters of two coastal ecological corridors, renovated the coastline and built 467 meters of plank roads, and implemented 83.67 hectares of uninhabited island greening.....
The blue waves are rejuvenated to the sea. "A series of projects are progressing one after another, which is not only conducive to restoring the island's natural coastline, improving near-shore water quality, and enhancing the ability to resist natural disasters such as typhoons, but also fills the gap that there is no leisure beach on Dachen Island and promotes the development of leisure tourism on Dachen Island. Hong Yan said.
Along the Dachen Ring Road, there are lush mountains and forests as far as the eye can see. Looking at the whole area of Dachen, the forest area is 9,970 acres, the forest volume is 9,057 cubic meters, and the forest coverage rate is 60%...... The ecology is getting better and better, and the environment is getting more and more beautiful, which is due to the fact that Jiaojiang takes the protection of island forest resources as the main body, strengthens vegetation restoration, implements 3,931 acres of precious colored forests and forest vegetation restoration, and creates colorful Dachen and forest oxygen bars, with a per capita green space area of more than 25 square meters.
To build an ecologically beautiful island, Jiaojiang not only promotes the restoration of the coastline and strengthens the restoration of vegetation, but also strengthens the conservation of biodiversity. Chicken coop is the main production area of large yellow croaker, which has been overfished, resulting in the depletion of wild yellow croaker resources. In recent years, Jiaojiang has been committed to the restoration of fishery resources, continued to build the Dachen Island Marine Ranch Demonstration Zone, and invested about 30 million yuan to build 426 artificial reefs and reefs, with a reef scale of 105,000 cubic meters. In addition, 259 million fish species such as large yellow croaker, black sea bream and cuttlefish were selected to be restocked and released to restore marine fishery resources.
"Zero-carbon" energy supply + co-governance and sharing, broadening the road to enriching the people on the island
Put into operation the country's first island "green hydrogen" demonstration project, promote the all-electric sea and land transportation, and build an all-electric aquaculture farm...... Dachen Island is gradually becoming an island carbon neutrality demonstration area with ecological priority, intelligent support, coordinated development, and win-win results.
As one of the first batch of low (zero) carbon pilot towns in Zhejiang, Dachen Island has taken "green hydrogen" as the direction of development in recent years to further promote the construction of a carbon neutrality demonstration zone. At present, there are 34 wind turbines on the island, creating a wind-based production model, with an annual power generation capacity of 60 million kilowatt hours and an annual reduction of 45,000 tons of carbon dioxide emissions.
How to convert the island's carbon sink resources into tangible benefits for the people? Jiaojiang is actively exploring the path to realize the value of ecological products. On October 27, 2023, the first marine blue carbon (shellfish) transaction in Zhejiang Province, the carbon asset transaction of the Dachen Island Mussel Aquaculture Carbon Sequestration Project, was completed in Jiaojiang District.
"In order to do a good job in the practice of marine blue carbon, we conducted systematic investigation and sampling in the Dachen sea area and land in the early stage, and comprehensively assessed and demonstrated the storage and value of marine blue carbon in Dachen Island through a combination of model derivation and on-site monitoring. Li Zhanming, a member of the party group and deputy director of the Jiaojiang Branch of the Taizhou Ecological Environment Bureau, told reporters that the carbon asset transaction involves the carbon sink generated by mussel farming in Dachen Town from 2016 to 2023, and the carbon sink accounting is carried out by the "Double Carbon Dachen Digital Platform", which is the key core project of the Dachen Town Government in the package of projects in the "Dachen Island Carbon Neutrality Demonstration Island Construction Project".
It is reported that the auction of the "Dachen Island mussel breeding carbon sequestration project carbon assets", created by all mussel farmers in Dachen Town, the auction will also be obtained by Taizhou Jiaojiang Dachen Island Huimin Tourism Development Co., Ltd. as the carrier of the Dachen Island Mutual Wealth Fund, feedback to each farmer.
In addition, Jiaojiang Rural Commercial Bank has introduced financial services such as "blue carbon loan", "blue carbon deposit" and "blue carbon credit" to establish an inclusive system of blue carbon credits. "We will enhance the credit of carbon sink contributors and corporate loans for carbon trading, fully meet the business needs of enterprises, up to 50 million yuan, and in terms of loan interest rates, combined with the application of marine blue carbon, we will give a discount of 5% off the highest same interest rate, as low as LPR loan interest rate. Chen Zhaoxing, chairman of Jiaojiang Rural Commercial Bank, said that at the same time, the "blue carbon credit" account was also designed for the people who participated in the carbon contribution of Dachen Island to enjoy the results of "double carbon".
Embarking on a new journey, Jiaojiang will anchor the goal of "Modern Island Construction Demonstration Zone", continue to carry forward the spirit of reclamation, and take the opportunity to obtain the title of Provincial Model of Healthy Zhejiang Action and the Bronze Award for Reform Breakthrough in Zhejiang Province, and outline a new low-carbon ecological map of "clear and smooth water, beautiful green scenery on the shore, and harmony between people and water" with water as ink, effectively increase the sense of gain and happiness of the people, and write a new chapter in the governance of the beautiful bay.
