Concerted efforts restore Xinjiang salamander from brink of extinction

STORY: Concerted efforts restore Xinjiang salamander from brink of extinction DATELINE: Aug. 26, 2022 LENGTH: 00:01:43 LOCATION: URUMQI, China CATEGORY: ENVIRONMENT SHOTLIST: various of the nature reserve in Xinjiang's Wenquan Countyvarious of ranodon sibiricusvarious of Xinjiang salamander scientific research and education centervarious of people visiting the research center and observe the amphibians closely STORYLINE: The population of critically endangered ranodon sibiricus in northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region has recorded a steady increase in recent years, thanks to conservation efforts such as artificial breeding and strengthened monitoring and patrol. According to a nature reserve in Xinjiang's Wenquan County, the major habitat of the species, the population of the primitive amphibian with an evolutionary history dating back to the age of dinosaurs has risen from around 1,700 in 2015 to over 3,000 to date. The species, also known as Xinjiang salamander, was discovered in the count

NE China turns sandy land into oasis in 70 years

STORY: NE China turns sandy land into oasis in 70 years DATELINE: June 5, 2022 LENGTH: 00:01:25 LOCATION: SHENYANG, China CATEGORY: ENVIRONMENT SHOTLIST: various of sandstormsvarious of people planting treesSOUNDBITE 1 (Chinese): HOU GUI, Villager of Liujia VillageSOUNDBITE 2 (Chinese): LI ZHIDAN, Party Secretary of Aerxiang Town in Zhangwu Countyvarious of forests and animals STORYLINE: Zhangwu County in northeast China's Liaoning Province has been converting its sandy land into an oasis thanks to 70 years of greening efforts. To combat desertification, local villagers have spent decades planting trees. Hou Gui is one of them. His afforestation effort started in 2001. Since then, he has planted more than 200,000 trees on 2,400 mu (160 hectares) of sandy land. SOUNDBITE 1 (Chinese): HOU GUI, Villager of Liujia Village "It takes generations of people's efforts to achieve the result. I plan to rearrange this forest in the next five to 10 years. In my design, each forest belt will be 60 meters wide with