Under the blue sky and white clouds, the horse farm in Maqu county in Gannan Tibetan autonomous prefecture presents a picturesque scene. [Photo/Gansu Daily]

During the 14th Five-Year Plan period (2021-25), Gansu province has achieved remarkable progress in environmental protection, as announced by the Department of Ecology and Environment at a press conference on Oct 15. 

Air quality has improved consistently. In 2024, the average concentration of fine particulate matter (PM2.5) in the province dropped to 25.7 micrograms per cubic meter, better than the national average and ranking second in Northwest China and 10th nationwide. 

Notable results have been achieved in water environment management. Focusing on key river basins such as the Yellow River and the Yangtze River, Gansu has advanced the treatment of black and odorous water bodies, industrial park wastewater, and the standardized protection of drinking water sources. The remediation rate of river outfalls has reached 98.8 percent, while water quality in all drinking water source protection zones at the county-level and above meet the required standards.

Ecological protection and restoration have been solidly advanced. The ecological environment in the Qilian Mountains continues to improve. Juyan Lake in the east Heihe River Basin has not dried up for 20 consecutive years, and the water area of Qingtu Lake has been restored to 27.65 square kilometers. The province has designated 12.55 million hectares of ecological protection redline area, and established 55 nature reserves at national and provincial levels. The biodiversity protection has achieved new progress, with the number of key protected wild animal and plant species increasing to 108.

Substantial progress has been made in green and low-carbon development. By the end of 2024, the province had completed cumulative quota trading of 15.02 million metric tons in the national carbon market, with a transaction value of 925 million yuan ($129.81 million). Projects such as the Dunhuang solar thermal power generation and forestry carbon sink initiatives in Qingyang and Zhangye are expected to achieve an average annual reduction of 644,500 tons of carbon dioxide, generating over 50 million yuan in average annual revenue.