China finds 15% to 20% of its species are endangered
Agence France-Presse Monday, October 6, 2003
BEIJING About 15 percent to 20 percent of animal and plant species in China are in danger of extinction, higher than the worldwide proportion of 10 percent to 15 percent, according to reports from government-run news outlets.
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According to statistics from the State Forestry Administration, more than 300 species of terrestrial vertebrate animals and about 410 species of wild plants are at risk, the Xinhua press agency said Saturday.
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Experts in ecology warn that by 2010, China will have 3,000 to 4,000 plant species on the brink of being wiped out, the report said.
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Because of the structure of the food chain, if one kind of plant disappears, 10 to 30 other organisms, dependent on the plant, could also disappear, the newspaper China Daily said.
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Insufficient forest resources, destruction of natural habitats and illicit poaching are putting strains on wild species, the agency quoted sources from the State Forestry Administration as saying. China, as a large country with multiple climate zones, has a particularly large number of different plants and animals. One hundred fifty-six of its endangered animal and plant species are among the world's 640 endangered species listed in the United Nations Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species, accounting for 24 percent of the total at risk.
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Species in China that have disappeared or are being exterminated now include more than 20 rare animals, like as the bronco and the Xinjiang tiger, China Daily said, and many others are in imminent danger.
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To save endangered species and improve the natural environment for them to grow, China has made efforts in recent years to plant trees and restore forests.
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It has so far turned 13.4 million hectares, or 33.1 million acres, of hillside farmland into forest land, according to the latest survey from the State Forestry Administration.
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In the past five years, the government has allocated 23.6 billion yuan, or $2.9 billion, to the project, of which 16.8 billion yuan was used to compensate farmers who contributed land. The government also offered funds for planting saplings.
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