Displaced people enjoy better lives

Lijiang migrants from reservoir areas in Taoyuan township in Yongsheng county, Yunnan province, have got their lives back on track in relocation sites, thanks to a series of government measures.

The mass exodus of 20,587 people from 5,372 families started in 2012 to make way for the Ludila hydropower project, one of eight such projects planned on the middle reaches of the Jinsha River.

The residents have been resettled in four towns and 11 villages in Yongsheng county.

“There were serious environmental hygiene issues when we first relocated here,” said Rui Xiangming, an official in charge of managing engineering construction in the resettlement office of Yongsheng county.

A farmers’ market and sewage treatment station have been built in each town.

Small landfills were also set up in the 11 villages to facilitate centralized waste treatment. Sewage systems were upgraded, and clean water was made accessible to all the residents.

Greening projects are under way, including 38.2 million yuan ($5.5million) to finance tree-planting and landscaping projects in the towns, and a 20.16-million-yuan to be spent on the villages.

“We are enjoying a well-off life here, even better than before in terms of living conditions and environment,” Li Xuexiang, a resident, said.

The 200-billion-yuan investment in the eight hydropower projects is likely to produce 20.58 gigawatts of hydropower capacity, as much electricity as the massive Three Gorges Dam project.

Jinsha River, an upstream branch of the Yangtze River stretching from Yushu in Qinghai province to Yibin in Sichuan, is rich in hydropower resources.

Edited by Mark Ray