The Ministry of Agriculture instructed the government of Jiangsu
Province on July 11 to organize a panel of experts to study a
controversial proposal to open a shipping route through a dolphin
nature reserve.
The province's Maritime Affairs Bureau (MAB) submitted a report
to the provincial government in January supporting the construction
of shipping route between the Yangtze River's main course and the
northern branch of its Changzhou tributary to meet increased demand
for shipping transportation.
This would cross Zhenjiang Dolphin Nature Reserve, home to a
species of dolphin called baiji or white-flag dolphin classified as
"critically endangered" by the International Union for Conservation
of Nature and Natural Resources, meaning it is thought to face an
extremely high risk of extinction in the wild in the immediate
future.
On July 5, an MAB official said the southern branch of the
Changzhou tributary, the current major shipping route, is on the
crossing spot of the Yangtze River and Beijing-Hangzhou Grand
Canal. Heavy transportation pressure and its narrow and curving
course often cause collisions?-- eight with grave casualties
and losses last year alone.
This section has become a bottleneck for transportation on the
Yangtze River and Grand Canal, but the northern branch is wider and
could improve transportation efficiency.
"This would speed up the extinction of the baiji," said Hua
Yuanyu, a professor at Nanjing Normal
University's School of Life Sciences.
According to Hua, if the route opens it will affect the dolphins
greatly. They use sonar for echolocation and communication, which
would be confused by shipping. Their major cause of mortality now
is getting caught in fishing gear.
The population of baiji is less than?100 and they are
classified in China as a "Protected Animal of the First Order."
Hua said protecting the river's ecology would bring more
long-term benefits, whereas a new shipping route would soon become
jammed again with rapid development.
He said shipping management should be improved by limiting small
boats, particularly those without safety equipment, to lessen
transportation pressure.
Fan Xiangguo, director of the Ministry of Agriculture's Fishery
Bureau, said on Monday that further research and observation of the
baiji was needed.
The Jiangsu government has asked for opinions on the issue from
the provincial economy and trade commission, ocean and fishery
bureau and safety supervision bureau, but their positions are as
yet unknown.
A new shipping route cannot be established unless the provincial
government revokes the status of Zhenjiang Dolphin Nature Reserve,
said Liu Wei, chief of Jiangsu Ocean and Fishery Bureau's Resources
and Environment Department.
Zhenjiang's municipal government said it hoped to use other
measures such as dredging the southern branch and enhancing
shipping management instead of opening a route through the nature
reserve.
The baiji, Lipotes vexillifer, is a species unique to
China and the most endangered species of dolphin in the world.
(Legal Daily, translated by Li Shen for China.org.cn,
July 14, 2005)