China designates 25% of its territory for environmental protection

China has designated 25 per cent of its onshore territory “ecological conservation” areas, limiting development and human activities in order to improve the environment and conserve resources.

The Ministry of Ecology and Environment was tasked with identifying areas in need of protection a decade ago, when the government acknowledged that decades of "irrational development" had put its ecological safety under severe strain.

Cui Shuhong, a director from the ministry's Nature and Ecology Conservation Department, told a news conference on Wednesday that "red lines" had been drawn around zones that served a major ecological function, and areas that were sensitive and vulnerable along with important regions for biodiversity.