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Earth Day 2023: China's investments and results
April 22 marks Earth Day. /earthday.org
April 22 marks Earth Day. /earthday.org

April 22 marks Earth Day. /earthday.org

April 22 marks the annual Earth Day, the world's largest environmental movement and one that dates back to the 1970s.

This date is also designated as International Mother Earth Day by the United Nations.

This year's theme is "Invest in Our Planet," calling for global action from governments, institutions, businesses and people. According to the official website, earthday.org, this year's Earth Day marks the first time in its decades-long history that a theme has been carried over from the previous year.

China, as the world's second largest economy, has the responsibility to take part in the global effort to build a shared future.

A status report on the country's environmental protection industry published in 2022 revealed that more than 3.2 million people in China have made environment protection their career. The industry's total income reached 1.95 trillion yuan ($280 billion) in 2020, contributing 4.5 percent to the national economy despite being impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Moreover, China has been using advanced technology to protect the environment, such as launching Earth observation satellites that establish a remote-sensing system on the environment. With the data collected, the Chinese government can plan the country's ecological efforts accordingly, making more use of limited resources.

China's efforts to protect wetlands are also worth noting, with 13 cities accredited by the Ramsar Convention as international wetland cities, the most among all countries.

Watch: China's wetlands from 400,000 meters above

On Saturday, the country's natural resources authority announced "red lines" to identify crucial ecological zones covering 3.15 million square kilometers where strict protection measures will be enforced.

In the fight against climate change, China has waged a rooftop "green war" by installing solar panels on buildings to achieve distributed photovoltaic power generation, generating more clean electricity and requiring less coal for power. In 2022, the country's newly installed PV capacity exceeded 87 gigawatts, with distributed PV adding 51.1 gigawatts, up 74.5 percent year on year.

As Earth Day continues to urge global action, China's investments and results demonstrate its commitment to a shared future with a sustainable environment.

(With input from Xinhua)

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