Time to shift
"All small hydropower plants on the Nujiang will be halted, and will not start development again," Li Jiheng, Party secretary of Yunnan, said in early March during the annual legislative session of the National People's Congress in Beijing.
Meanwhile, Li vowed to promote a plan to designate "China's Grand Canyon" as a national park. "Tapping into such a place should begin with protection," he was quoted as saying by the China News Service on January 25.
"The root cause of the policy change is that the development pattern - immoderate use of resources generating excessive production capacity - has come to a dead end amid economic downturn," Ma Jun, director of the Institute of Public and Environmental Affairs and author of China's Water Crisis, told the Global Times.
Yu Xiaogang told the Global Times that the central government has laid increasing emphasis on environmental protection, quoting President Xi Jinping's remarks as an example: a "green mountain" is a "golden mountain."
In addition, the anti-corruption drive has hydropower companies tightening their grip on massive investments, considering the probe into China Three Gorges Cooperation and the fall of Bai Enpei, the Yunnan Party chief between 2001 and 2011 who touted the hydropower project, Wang told the Global Times.
Development in another way
Environmentalists seem to have won a landmark triumph in the decade-long argument over the dams after the government pledged to halt the construction of small dams on the Nujiang.
"Instead of immediate suspension of dams, our victory refers to the fact that we delayed the government's decision and waited for a turning point created by the changing times, as the voice of environmentalists is weaker than that of giant hydropower developers and the government," Wang said.
"Years of several pioneers' perseverance, including Mu Guangfeng, an inspector at the Department of Environmental Impact Assessment under the Ministry of Environmental Protection, former premier Wen Jiabao and Yu, should be remembered for retaining a possibility that the next generation is able to appreciate the sublime beauty of Nujiang River and the valley," Ma said.
Although a national park is a constructive alternative to water infrastructure, the shifted focus has still created unease among environmentalists, who are worried that the park may turn into a cash cow, triggering rampant tourism development.
"Once park development begins, a massive influx of tourists and hotels, coupled with road construction, is likely to harm the environment in the long term," said Kang Xue, deputy director of Beijing-based environmental NGO Friends of Nature, told the Global Times, citing the problems that have been seen at other tourist attractions including poor sewage treatment and waste management.
Kang asked the provincial government to publicize a clear definition and planning documents regarding the national park before pushing development forward, to control the environmental impact.
According to a feasibility study report provided by the Forestry Department of Yunnan, a national park should focus on protecting and showcasing various resources worth State-level protection, unlike nature reserves, which mainly aim to preserve representative ecosystems, rare and endangered wild fauna and flora as well as natural relics.
In general, national parks sit between strictly protected nature reserves and scenic spots that are completely open to the public.
Areas open to tourists are required to make up no more than 5 percent of a park's total acreage while the percentage of park land given over to reserved areas should be over 25 percent, said the department, adding that the province had eight national parks by the end of 2015.
The marginalization of local residents by the intense involvement of large businesses is another of Yu's worries.
"The national park should not be entirely controlled by the government and large enterprises," Yu said, proposing community-based tourism in which villagers are properly paid, their culture and customs are respected, and they decide what the tourists do and see.
As local villagers are forbidden to hunt and fell trees in national parks, some residents living near such parks were encouraged to find work in park maintenance, such as patrolling the area, picking up trash and leading tours, whereas some opened businesses, selling local specialties and handicrafts, according to the department.
About 5 to 10 percent of the parks' operating income was allocated for supporting community development, the department added.
Sensitivity remains
In spite of the rising importance that Beijing attaches to environmental protection as detailed in the 13th Five-Year Plan (2016-20), the Chinese president's and the provincial head's steadfast statements, hydropower projects remain a touchy topic in Yunnan.
The government avoids giving clear answers to questions about the future of the large hydro plants. The National Development and Reform Commission, the Ministry of Water Resources, the provincial department of water resources in Yunnan declined the Global Times' interview requests.
The provincial energy administration "suggested" that the publicity department refuse to be interviewed, explaining in a statement that drafting of the policy on developing and managing medium and small plants is still underway.
