Final Report - Asian Development Bank

20 Main Report
(i) establishing co-management to enhance relations with villagers living in and around
Nature Reserves;
(ii) establishing biological corridors to counter impacts of highways and railways;
(iii) strengthening management of nature reserve along highways to counter illegal entry
by villagers and livestock and blockage of wildlife movements by fences installed to
protect natural forests;
(iv) enhancing the administration and increase investment in nature reserves (particularly
Zhouzhi Laoxiancheng National Nature Reserve);
(v) improving management of tourism; and
(vi) diversifying village commercial enterprises.
27. While deforestation and biodiversity loss have slowed in many parts of the Qinling
Mountains, the damage has already been done. The success of the Project depends on changing the
underlying causes of degradation which determine the trends in biodiversity conservation.
28. The PRC ratified the Convention on Biological Diversity (5 January 1993), and has
implemented many of the required actions required by the convention to achieve ratification. The
system of nature reserves in the Qinling Mountains has been expanded particularly in eastern areas,
and the financing and management of the 27 national nature reserves in the Qinling Mountains have
been significantly improved in the past few years 10 .
29. The PRC Government has given considerable attention to the problems and challenges of
biodiversity conservation in the Qinling Mountains. The Qinling Mountains are listed as one of the
eleven most critical regions for biodiversity conservation in the PRC 11 , and the State Environmental
Protection Agency (SEPA) nominated the Qinling Mountains Ecosystem Function Conservation Area
(QMEFCA) as a national pilot program in 2001 and the SEPB has submitted a Provincial Approval to
adopt QMEFCA to SEPA for national ratification in March 2007.
30. The PRC Government has given particular attention to the Qinling Mountains’ biodiversity.
The most prominent example is the Qinling Panda Focal Project which is led by the World Wildlife
Federation (WWF). The Qinling Panda Focal Project emphasizes cooperation with non-traditional
conservation forces such as national and regional government projects and economic development
activities and represents an extended commitment by WWF to support the SFD to strengthen
conservation in the Qinling Mountains.
31. Conservation of biodiversity has been successfully strengthened through the expansion of
Protected Areas, which have effectively been doubled from less than 250,000ha in 1993 to more than
540,000ha in 2006. The majority of these areas however are Panda reserves. Non-panda reserves
totaled less than 50,000ha in 1993, increasing to only 100,000ha in 2006. The creation of corridors
linking reserves has added a further 70,000ha.
32. The creation of protected areas was achieved through the existing institutional arrangements
for the targeted land. As such, the Protected Areas are not only scattered geographically but also
across a range of sector and administrative agencies. In the short term the benefits of the creation of
these Protected Areas has far outweighed the costs of this fragmentation. Many nature reserves
introduced a wide range of new management techniques and approaches including the use of
participatory management systems and collaborative management which continues to operate
successfully. A major constraint, however, has been the ability of nature reserves to implement their
full work plans due to funding shortages. Various estimates indicate that most Protected Areas only
receive 30% of their required funding. In an attempt to fill the gap, many enter into commercial
operations often at the expense of the conservation values they are responsible for conserving. This
under funding has a negative impact on the public perception of Nature Reserve Staff, which in turn
reduces the attractiveness of pursuing employment opportunities in conservation. A combination of
10 This is the current number based on the PPTA’s most recent consultations. This number covers 19 that are
administered by the SFA and Forestry Departments and Bureaus at the provincial and local government levels,
and 6 smaller nature reserves managed by other government agencies such as Water resources and the
Environmental Protection Bureau,
11 China’s Biodiversity: a Country Study. 1998 State Environmental Protection Administration, Beijing. 476pp.