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China and Canada share a common challenge: to meet the growing
demand for natural resources while ensuring their wise and sustainable
use and maintaining a healthy ecosystem.
This challenge opens the door to sharing expertise in such areas as: biodiversity conservation; wetland conservation; sustainable agriculture and livestock production; flood prevention and water resource management; sustainable forestry; and sustainable management of nature reserves. |
Canada is steward of 25% of the world's wetlands, 15% of forests
and 9% of renewable fresh water.
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The management of natural resources and the broader challenge of sustainable development are tough issues. Through the Action Plan, Canada and China have made an ongoing commitment to address sustainable development in partnership.
While the two countries have been working in cooperation for some time, the following initiatives have been launched over the past two years:
- Biodiversity Protection and Community Development in Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region (IMAR) — This project will help the IMAR-Environmental Protection Bureau and related government organizations to manage nature reserves. Pilot activities will show how local communities in and around the reserves can earn a living through the sustainable use of natural resources without compromising biodiversity.
- Sustainable Agriculture Development in IMAR — Farmers and herders in the IMAR grasslands are learning more about sustainable agriculture and livestock production through this project. Four demonstration sites are being created to focusing on ways of rehabilitating denuded grasslands and sustaining rangeland for livestock production, as well as transferring minimum tillage techniques and small-scale minimum tillage technology.
- Study on Sustainable Management Policy of China's Nature Reserves — The conflict between biodiversity conservation and economic development in China poses serious problems for the country's sustainable development. Officials and experts from both countries proposed changes to existing policies and procedures for 15 nature reserves to harmonize the two objectives. The resulting recommendations are contributing to the implementation of China's Agenda 21 and Biodiversity Action Plan.
- Designing Complementary and Supporting Policies for the Implementation of China's National Forest Protection Plan — China's National Forest Protection Plan, while much needed to preserve the forest resources, has imposed severe constraints on local economies and the timber supply. The Public Policy Options Project is helping to raise awareness of the need to adopt complementary policies, enhance policy research, and promote sustainable forest management in China. The supporting policies will target the development of communities affected by the logging ban and the preparation of a sustainable national strategy for timber supply.
- Forest Fire Management Training — Twenty-two senior Chinese forest fire managers took a one-month comprehensive training course on fire management. Participants got "hands-on" experience and were exposed to a wide range of Canada's leading-edge fire management technology, tools and equipment.
- Reforming Urban Utilities: Shanghai Municipal Waterworks — With China's changing economy, the public use of water has become a major part of the public urban economy. To help China manage the use of this resource more efficiently, Canada provided policy options for reforming and developing services to supply water in Shanghai.
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