Management
Wetlands serve many functions in support of both human and wildlife production and vegetation growth. Destruction of wetlands can have both natural and anthropogenic sources; the latter of which are much more common along the Yellow River near Sanmenxia City. The primary causes of destruction of wetlands and areas along the Yellow River include the construction of dams, urbanization, overuse of water supplies, and mismanagement of natural resources. The construction of the Sanmenxia Dam in the 1950's led to an extremely high increase in sedimentation up river. Overwhelming silt loads began to outweigh benefits of construction, and subsequently caused multiple issue upriver ranging from loss in farm and cropland, to severe flooding and loss of wildlife, vegetation, and habitats. Sedimentation along the Yellow River is primarily a function of its proximity to the Loess Plateau, where soil erosion occurs at a rate greater than almost anywhere in the world (Gates, et al). Management of soil erosion along the Yellow River have included both structural conservations (e.g. check dams and cultivated terraces) and ecological conservation (e.g. conservation of forested lands) down slope. Practices such as these were done in an attempt to lessen sedimentation and the subsequent impacts on the surrounding evironment. |
Image of Sanmenxia City and recreation area. Phot by Zhilin Li.
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Conservation
Since 1995, the Sanmenxia municipality has established the Sanmenxia Swan National Wetland area to become a protected wetland and serve as sanctuary for vegetation and local wildlife; more notably however, as refuge for the migration of Whooper Swans. A 2002 project implemented by the city municipality to enlarge the city’s Shanzhou Park culminated into creating the provinces first protected wetland, and turned it into Swan Lake State Urban Wetland Park. This was done to create suitable habitats for Whooper Swans and consists of three primary parts: 1) Shanzhou Park 2) Swan-watching zone and 3) the ecological forest along the Yellow River.
In 2007, the wetland was officially recognized as the only urban wetland in Henan province. Subsequently, the city was awarded the name “Home of Swans” by the China Wildlife Conservation Association (CWCA) in March 2010. Since 2008, the Sanmenxia City municipality has invested 150 million yuan (or $23.55 million U.S. dollars) in projects that support tourism, infrastructure, and natural landscape development and protection (China Daily, 2015). The goal of these projects are to acquire capital from tourism for further projects and to develop and implement programs that support the revitalization and status of the urban wetland and surrouding watershed. Since the 1990's, continuous progress has been made by the city municipality to delagate funds for local wetland conservation. With proper management and an increase in urban wetland awareness, this trend may very well continue (and hopefully expand) to surrounding areas and ultimately increase the amount and productivity of urban wetlands in China. |
Image whooper swans. Photo by Zhilin Li, 2016.
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Webpage created for ES 767 Wetland Environments of Emporia State University. Instructor: Dr. JS Aber 2016.