China takes pains to turn barren South China Sea islet into green treasure

China has gone to lengths to weave its success story in Xishazhou, or West Sand, in the heart of the South China Sea, turning the once barren outpost into a green treasure with more than ten years of ecological conservation efforts by Sansha City, south China's Hainan Province, according to a documentary produced by China Global Television Network (CGTN).

The tree-planters have overcome inclement weather like strong winds and waves, and adverse natural conditions including sandy soil and lack of fresh water to have successfully grown trees on 90 percent of the small island so far.

The new documentary of the CGTN on the South China Sea ecological conservation will be aired on July 8, 2024.

Titled "Greening the Blue," the 30-minute documentary also shows how a rescued sea turtle returns home, coral gardens are replanted, and sand beaches are turned into green islands in the South China Sea as a result of conservation efforts over the past more than 10 years.

China has set a target of defining at least 150,000 square kilometers of marine areas for protection by 2030 in its Biodiversity Conservation Strategy and Action Plan (2023-2030).

China takes pains to turn barren South China Sea islet into green treasure

China takes pains to turn barren South China Sea islet into green treasure

China takes pains to turn barren South China Sea islet into green treasure

As the week-long National Day holiday entered its fifth day on Saturday, many holidaymakers across China have embarked on return trips by train, car and air, bringing holiday traffic flow to another peak.

Data from the Ministry of Transport showed that China is expected to deliver over 284 million cross-regional trips on Friday, with more than 17.95 million trips made by railway.

Since the beginning of the holiday travel rush on Sept. 29, the national railway network has already transported over 100 million passenger trips, with daily passenger flow consistently exceeding 17 million trips.

As the return passenger flow gradually increased starting Saturday, regional departments across the country have enhanced efforts to ensure transportation services during the period.

Expressways continued to see dense traffic across the country, especially in the metropolises of Shanghai and Guangdong Province's Guangzhou, as well as Changsha City of central China's Hunan Province and Suzhou City, east China's Jiangsu Province.

Meanwhile, the country's civil aviation sector is expected to transport more than 2.32 million passengers on the same day, up over 5 percent compared with the previous day.

China sees peak return trips as National Day holiday winds down