China OKs three action plans to build pilot zones for a Beautiful China

The State Council, China's Cabinet, has approved the issuance and implementation of three action plans to construct pilot zones for a Beautiful China in major areas of the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region, the Yangtze River Delta region, and the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area.

The action plans, aligned with the requirements for high-quality development, focus on addressing deep-seated contradictions and issues that constrain ecological conservation and environmental protection, Pei Xiaofei, spokesperson for the Ministry of Ecology and Environment, told a news conference in Beijing on Friday.

Jointly released by the ministry and other relevant departments, the action plans aim to strengthen regional collaboration in green development, deepen joint protection and coordinated governance of the ecological environment, and lead efforts to achieve fundamental improvements in the ecological environment, Pei said.

He added that these efforts will support consolidating the role of the three regions as driving forces for high-quality development and making significant new progress in building a Beautiful China.

The action plan for the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region outlines a strategic approach to building a pilot and demonstration zone for Chinese modernization. It aims to lead in making breakthroughs in improving ecological and environmental quality, optimizing industrial and energy structures, and exploring innovative regional collaborative governance.

Key focuses include enhancing air pollution prevention and control for greater efficiency and effectiveness, improving climate change adaptation capabilities, and creating a demonstration zone for coordinated pollution and carbon reduction, alongside ecological restoration efforts in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region.

The action plan for the Yangtze River Delta region emphasizes that the region, by closely focusing on the two key aspects of integration and high-quality development, will take the lead in making breakthroughs in developing green productivity and implementing joint protection and coordinated governance of the ecological environment.

It highlights the unification of regional legal standards, zoned control of the ecological environment, and intelligent governance, aiming to establish a model zone in the Yangtze River Delta region where high-level protection drives high-quality development.

The action plan for the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area proposes that the region leverage the institutional advantages of "one country, two systems" to take the lead in making breakthroughs in improving ecological and environmental quality, reforming and innovating in green finance, and deepening open cooperation.

It aims to build a modern ecological and environmental governance system, fully leverage its radiating and driving effects, and jointly construct a beautiful, integrated, and innovative bay area in the region.

Pei said the ministry will work with relevant departments and regions to promote the orderly implementation of the action plans, fulfill all the objectives and tasks for the construction of the pilot zones, and jointly drive the construction of pilot zones for a Beautiful China to achieve tangible results.

Efforts will be made for the rapid development of a set of practical and institutional innovations that can be replicated and promoted, he added.