Treat environment ’as our lifeline’, Xi says

President Xi Jinping said the local government is duty-bound to protect the ecological environment on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, especially in the Sanjiangyuan area, where the Yangtze, Yellow and Mekong rivers originate.

习近平主席说当地政府对保护青藏高原的生态环境责无旁贷，特别是长江、黄河、澜沧江的发源地三江源地区。

While joining a panel discussion on Thursday with lawmakers from Qinghai province, where Sanjiangyuan is located, Xi said that protecting the fragile ecology there is of utmost importance.

习主席上周四在三江源的所在地青海省参与于立法委员的小组讨论上说保护脆弱的生态至关重要。

"The ecological environment has irreplaceable value," Xi told the deputies. "We should treat it as our lifeline and protect it like the apple of our eye."

“生态环境有不可替代的价值，”习主席对与会代表们说。“我们应该像对待生命线和保护掌上明珠一样对待它。”

The Sanjiangyuan area, known as China’s "Water Tower", provides about 40 billion cubic meters of water a year for the lower reaches and supports a population of 600 million.

三江源地区，被成为中国的“水塔”，每年为下游提供着400亿立方水，支持着6亿人的需求。

China established the 366,000-sq-km Sanjiangyuan Nature Reserve in August 2000. About 4,000 meters above sea level, the reserve covers more than 40 percent of Qinghai.

2000年8月，中国建立了方圆36万6千平方公里的三江源自然保护区。海拔约4000米，该保护区覆盖了青海省超过40%的地区。

In December, the Central Leading Group for Comprehensively Deepening Reforms, headed by Xi, passed a bill to launch a national park in Sanjiangyuan, further increasing the area’s importance as a national focus of environmental protection.

去年12月，以习近平为首的中央全面深化改革小组通过了一项法案，启动三江源国家公园，进一步提高该区域作为国家生态保护重点的重要性。

One of the world’s most biologically diverse nature reserves, the area is home to more than 2,200 types of wild plants, 85 animal species and over 230 kinds of birds.

作为世界上最具生态多样性的自然保护区，该区域拥有2200种野生植物，85种动物物种和超过230种鸟类。

However, since the late 20th century, the source lakes have shrunk as a result of environmental damage caused by human activities and overgrazing.

然而，自从20世纪末，湖区由于人类活动和过度放牧造成的环境破坏而缩水。

Xi told the lawmakers that the ecological system is fragile there and the glaciers, lakes, rivers and wetlands in the region should be protected to guarantee that "rivers of clean water run eastward".

习近平告诉立法委员，这里的生态系统脆弱，冰川、湖泊、河流和湿地在这里应该受到保护，以确保“一江清水向东流”。

China has played an active role in making international rules related to climate change, and the Chinese government is fulfilling its obligations to environmental protection in a voluntary and proactive manner, Xi said.

中国在制定与气候变化相关的国际规定中扮演着重要的角色，中国政府正以自愿和主动的姿态履行其保护环境的责任，习近平说。

The draft of China’s 13th Five-Year Plan (2016-20), which is being reviewed by lawmakers at the annual session, has also highlighted environmental protection.

由立法委员在两会上审阅的中国第十三个五年计划草案也重点突出了环境保护。

For example, consumption of water per unit of GDP is set to fall by 23 percent by 2020, consumption of energy per unit by 15 percent and carbon dioxide by 18 percent, according to the draft.

比如，根据草案，到2020年，单位GDP用水量计划下降23％，单位能源消耗量下降15%，二氧化碳排量下降18%。

Luo Huining, a lawmaker and also a top official of Qinghai, said that Sanjiangyuan is the most sensitive place for global climate change and the ecology there is related to the water safety of China and the rest of Asia.

青海省高级官员和立法委员骆惠宁说，三江源是全球气候变化最敏感的地区，其生态和全中国以及亚洲其他地区的水安全息息相关。

The local government will relocate about 60,000 residents from the national park area for ecological restoration, he said.

为了生态重建，当地政府将重新迁置国家公园区域的6万人，他说。

"Our goal of establishing Sanjiangyuan national park is not to boost tourism, but to protect the ecology there," Luo said.

“建立三江源国家公园的目标不是为了发展旅游业，而是保护那里的生态，”骆惠宁说。

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来源:China Daily双语版爱语吧作者:Sylvia