Project Scope and Relationship to China's Agenda 21

This project seeks to further the sustainable development of the Yanqi Basin, through a strategy emphasizing wetland ecosystem improvement and recovery, Bosteng Lake water quality and its biodiversity protection. The project is based on the sustainable development and capacity building objectives of programme area 14C of China's Agenda 21, and will contribute to a number of related programme areas including conservation of land, water, energy, and biodiversity resources, and the improvement of human settlements (programme areas 12B, 15A, 16B,18A).

1. Background

Bosteng Lake is situated in the Bayinguoleng Mongolian Autonomous Prefecture ("Bazhou") in Xinjiang, on the northern fringe of the Takelamakan desert. Kuerle, the capital of Bazhou, lies near the Lake, and China's Xinjiang oil base is situated in the area. The Bosteng Lake is also the water source supply area of the Green Corridor as well as a class one white swan nature reserve. Bosteng Lake lies in the area of the Yanqi basin, a well-known important agricultural region in Xinjiang. Bosteng Lake, with its 3 billion m3 of storage capacity, is undoubtedly the lifeblood of the local economy. At the same time, the level of pollution and of water quality of Bosteng Lake will be decisive in determining the viability of the Green Corridor. Therefore, preserving Bosteng Lake is essential to prevent the deterioration of the ecological environment and desertification in Bazhou.

In the 23 years from 1958 to 1981, Bosteng Lake has shrunk and the wetland around it has retreated. Moreover, water quality is steadily deteriorating. It is clear that both water quality and water quantity in Bosteng Lake have suffered serious degradation.

In the last 30 years, the water level of the Lake has dropped by 3.54 metres, the area of water reduced by 120 km2, and the water storage capacity decreased by 3 billion m3. The salinization of Bosteng Lake is also serious due to the deterioration of wetland and a great amount of farmland drainage. Industrial waste water and domestic sewage is drained directly into the Lake, resulting in an increase in the mineral content of lake water by 0.385 g/l to 1.8 g/l in the 25 years from 1958 to 1981, with a level of 1.6 g/l at the present time. Thus, what was originally a fresh water lake has evolved into a slightly saline lake. The organic pollution of the lake water is also serious, with pH value reaching 8.69. The area of reed has been significantly reduced and growth of the natural community declined. The area of reed wetland has been reduced from 558.4 km2 in 1958 to 300 km2 in 1988, a reduction of about 40%. Of the remaining, a total of 80% has been affected by deterioration. Reeds yields have been reduced from 250 thousand ton/year to 60 thousand ton/year. The diversity of life-forms in the lake and on the lake-side wetland has been greatly threatened and many rare and precious wild animals have become extinct.

Some studies have been conducted on the Lake, including a study on reed resources, land use and soil conservation plans for Bazhou, research on eutrophication in Bosteng Lake (The Seventh Five-Year Plan key project), study on the water/salt balance in Yanqi basin, survey of aquatic resources in Bosteng Lake, etc.

2. Objectives

• Long-term Objective
  • Determine control measures, applied technologies and engineering measures suited to China and other developing countries to control salinization of rivers and lakes in arid and semi-arid areas and reduce the mineral content of the water in Bosteng Lake to below one g/l.

• Immediate Objectives
  • Establish the control measures, technical standards and policies for restoring the water quality of Bosteng Lake
  • Formulate an effective action plan with suggestions for enforcement
  • Establish engineering demonstration areas for restoring the ecology around Bosteng Lake
  • Develop protection technology and demonstration engineering projects for restoring the wetland ecology
  • Carry out research on natural purification technology for farmland waste water and organic industrial waste water
  • Set up an eco-environment control information system for Bosteng Lake
  • Formulate plans for preserving the biodiversity of Bosteng Lake

3. Activities

• 3.1 Develop techniques and formulate standards and policies for controlling the saline balance of Bosteng Lake.
  • Develop water/salt balance and engineering measures:
    • Establishment of a saline balance control model
    • Engineering measures for regulating the salinity of Bosteng Lake water
    • Establish alkaline-removal standards for farmlands and macro control policy for the saline balance in the Bosteng Lake basin

• 3.2 Design Bosteng Lake lake-side wetland engineering projects and demonstration engineering measures.
  • Formulate layout plan for wetland ecological engineering
  • Screen plant varieties for removing salinity and pollutants
  • Design ecological engineering technology projects to removing salinity and pollutants
  • Design lake-side wetland ecological engineering projects
  • Take actions on the management of wetland ecological engineering:
    • Selection and utilization of supplementary water resources
    • Hydrophyte recovery techniques
    • Technique for saving the wetland ecological environment
    • Operational management of wetland ecological engineering

• 3.3 Coordinate the development of basin exploitation and the preservation of water quality in Bosteng Lake.
  • Map out basin land use plan
  • Calculate salinity output loading in developing basin farmlands
  • Study the relationship between farmland drainage and the water quality of Bosteng Lake
  • Formulate an optimized coordination plan for the sustainable development of the basin
  • Establish a basin exploitation and environmental control model

• 3.4 Formulate Green Corridor preservation plan.
  • Conduct survey of Green Corridor water source supply capacity
  • Formulate a Bosteng Lake water management plan
  • Formulate a Green Corridor ecological preservation plan

• 3.5 Establish the Bosteng Lake eco-environment control information system.
  • Investigate the baseline environmental conditions of Bosteng Lake and its basin
  • Study the relationship between the lake water environment, diversity of wetland organisms and social/economic development and changes of natural environment, including:
    • Relationship between human activities and the saline balance
    • Relationship between human activities and the deterioration of wetland
    • Rational exploitation and lake wetland eco-environment protection
    • Formulate a Bosteng Lake eco-environment (including wetland life-forms diversity) protection plan
    • Formulate an eco-environmental improvement measures and engineering plan
    • Conduct ecological protection zoning

  • Formulate a lake eco-environment protection plan including:
    • Bosteng Lake eco-environmental protection laws, regulations and management techniques
    • Setting up administration organs and their functions
    • Bosteng Lake environmental protection laws and regulations
    • Macro decision-making system

• 3.6 Train 3-4 persons as the key members for lake basin control, saline balance and control, and ecological engineering planning and implementation.

  The implementing agency will be the National Environmental Protection Agency, and local government.

  The duration of the above activities will be four years.

4. Inputs

• 4.1 Chinese inputs
  • Project management
  • Transport, office facilities and equipment for domestic experts and other working personnel, and necessary equipment available in China
  • Equipment and related instrumentation needed for lake water quality recovery engineering

• 4.2 International cooperation
  • Joint research
  • Cooperation for joint exploitation and construction
  • Import of necessary instruments and equipments
  • International funds

5. Benefits

Implementation of the project will restore the eco environment of degraded reed wetland (73.2 km2) and preserve the habitats of wild animals and birds, thereby preserving wetland diversity. It will also improve the water quality of Bosteng Lake and preserve lake water resources. The mineral content of Bosteng Lake, in the light of the long-term objective, will be maintained at below 1 g/l. Water quality will reach the China national surface water quality standard Class II, ensuring water quality conditions necessary to promote the sustained economic growth in the region.

The project will regulate the balance of water capacity in arid areas and improve regional climate. The sale of reed, will generate substantial income, and following project completion, the annual benefit will be approximately US$ 2 million in the short-term and up to US$ 5 million in the long-term.

The Bosteng Lake basin is an area which is short of water. The protection of this lake can guarantee sustainable economic growth and the preservation of the Green Corridor.