<div><h4>Description</h4><p>The Asian Development Bank (ADB) proposed a project loan PRC (56216-001): South Dongting Lake Wetland Ecological Restoration and Sustainable Development Project. Dongting Lake with its wetland ecosystems is the second-largest freshwater lake in the People's Republic of China (PRC) (2,652 km2). Situated entirely within Hunan Province in the middle reaches of the Yangtze River basin, Dongting Lake is among the 200 global ecoregions and it is one of the highest priority wetlands identified in the PRC through ADB's flagship Regional Flyway Initiative (RFI). The lakes wetlands are divided into three administrative areas (municipalities) containing four nature reserves. Located in the southwest part of Dongting Lake downstream of the Three Gorges Dam, South Dongting Lake (SDL) was established as a nature reserve in 1991. In 2002, it was accredited as a Ramsar site (with an area of 168,000 hectares) and it became a provincial nature reserve in 2018. About 90% of SDL is located in Yuanjiang city, accounting for 40% of its municipal land area.</p><h4>Impact</h4><p><p>Ecological and environmental restoration in Dongting Lake improved (The Yangtze River Protection Law of the People's Republic of China, 2020)</p></p></div>

Hunan South Dongting Lake Wetland Ecological Restoration and Sustainable Development Project

China, people's republic of: hunan south dongtinglake wetland ecological restoration and sustainabledevelopment projectproject name hunan south dongting lake wetland ecological restoration and sustainable development projectproject number 56216-001country economy china, people's republic ofproject status proposedproject type modalityof assistanceloansource of funding amountloan: hunan south dongting lake wetland ecological restoration and sustainabledevelopment projectordinary capital resources us 150.00 millionoperational prioritiesop2: accelerating progress in gender equalityop3: tackling climate change, building climate and disaster resilience, and enhancing environmentalsustainabilityop4: making cities more livableop5: promoting rural development and food securityop6: strengthening governance and institutional capacityop7: fostering regional cooperation and integrationsector subsectoragriculture, natural resources and rural development agricultural policy, institutional and capacitydevelopment - agricultural production - fishery - land-based natural resources management - water-basednatural resources managementwater and other urban infrastructure and services urban flood protectiongender effective gender mainstreamingdescriptionthe asian development bank adb proposed a project loan prc 56216-001: south dongting lake wetlandecological restoration and sustainable development project. dongting lake with its wetland ecosystems isthe second-largest freshwater lake in the people's republic of china prc 2,652 km2. situated entirelywithin hunan province in the middle reaches of the yangtze river basin, dongting lake is among the 200global ecoregions and it is one of the highest priority wetlands identified in the prc through adb's flagshipregional flyway initiative rfi. the lakes wetlands are divided into three administrative areasmunicipalities containing four nature reserves. located in the southwest part of dongting lakedownstream of the three gorges dam, south dongting lake sdl was established as a nature reserve in1991. in 2002, it was accredited as a ramsar site with an area of 168, hectares and it became aprovincial nature reserve in 2018. about 90 of sdl is located in yuanjiang city, accounting for 40 of itsmunicipal land area.project rationale andlinkage tocountryregionalstrategydongting lake in the yangtze river basin. dongting lake is the people republic of china's prc secondlargest freshwater lake, with a core area of about 2,625 square km. it is located in the middle reaches of theyangtze river in the northeast of hunan province. it bears the important function of regulating and storingthe water of the yangtze river with which it forms a complex hydrological river-lake system. identifiedamong the 200 global ecoregions, dongting lake represents an important staging, wintering and feedingground for migratory waterbirds in the east asian-australasian flyway. it comprises two national naturereserves nrs in the east and west dongting and two provincial nrs in the south dongting and henglinglake, with a total area of 432, hectares . dongting lake plays an irreplaceable role in ensuring climateregulation and ecological security in the middle and lower reaches of the yangtze river. it provides keyecosystem services to people living in the region, including soil fertility, drinking water, freshwater foragriculture, and waterways for transport. the livelihoods of 16 million people nearly 20 of hunan's totalpopulation depend on it.dongting lake is an internationally important wetland and was one of the highest priority wetlandsidentified in the prc through adb's flagship regional flyway initiative rfi. the lake is administrativelysubdivided into three ramsar sites with east and west dongting lake interconnecting through southdongting lake sdl which is where the project is located. the sdl nature reserve was accredited as aramsar site in 2002, with a total area of 168, ha and it is extremely rich in biodiversity. it is animportant spawning and feeding ground for fishes, and a wintering habitat for migrating waterflows and raremigratory birds worldwide. sdl is home to 35 species of national protected animals, including 11 species offirst-class protected animals, such as the pere david's deer, the yangtze finless porpoise, and the blackstork, and 11 species of national second-class protected animals. about 90 of sdl nature reserve islocated in yuanjiang city. qionghu lake is an urban national wetland park of which 51.83 is a protectedarea located in yuanjiang city at the intersection of sdl and west dongting lake nature reserve. itincludes seven lakes, of which five are in yuanjiang city. the yuanjiang river is densely distributed, withnine main rivers. together with the seven lakes, they form a complex and interconnected river networksystem in the dongting lake plain, which eventually converges into the yangtze river through the sdl andeast dongting lake. protecting the river-lake system is critical to safeguarding the sdl basin's ecologicalsecurity.weak interagency coordination and planning for south dongting lake basin management. the hunan sdlnature reserve administration issued a master plan 2018-2027 for management, conservation, andrestoration in the nature reserve. however, i the plan is outdated and does not include cross-sector sitemanagement for functional coordination among sectors i.e., natural resources, forestry, and wetland, waterresources, and environmental protection; ii local stakeholders, including surrounding communities,residents, civil society organizations, and the private sector, are not engaged in wetland management; big data technology for real-time monitoring of the ecological environment and early warning systems arenot adequately deployed; iv the local government does not have the tools to integrate natural capitalinvestment into policy, planning and financing for wetland management.climate and land use changes as drivers of ecological insecurity. despite its recognized ecologicalimportance, rapid economic development compounded with climate change impacts had notable impacts onthe health of the wetland ecosystem in the sld basin. key drivers of habitat loss and general decline in thehealth of the wetlands include: i the planting of poplar trees both in the nature reserve core zone and onthe islands with the nature reserve. ii land use changes, conversion of wetlands to croplands, andagricultural nonpoint source nps pollution in the rural areas of sdl; decreasing urban water quality,poor ecological connectivity in the river-lake system, sediment accumulation and flooding; iv altereddischarge characteristics and increased sediment loads due to the construction of the three gorges damupstream in 2003. furthermore, temperature warming and changing precipitation patterns are the twoprimary climatic drivers of wetland ecosystem and hydrological changes observed in sdl. during2007-2020, the water temperature in the yuanjiang river increased considerably. projected climate changeis likely to exacerbate this trend. between 2020 and 2039, annual maximum temperatures could risebetween 0.9 and 1.1 oc in hunan province. such pronounced warming would aggravate heatwaves anddrought conditions and undermine the water purification functions of the sdl. moreover, annualprecipitation could increase by nearly 15 under the higher emissions scenarios, which is likely to increasethe intensity of droughts and floods.limited investment for ecological restoration and climate resilience. the dongting plain is highly populated,and most of the population is rural. historically, the economy has relied on crop agriculture and fisheries.one of the most thriving sectors in the sdl basin is the shipbuilding industry in yuanjiang city. although theindustrial and agricultural sectors are striving to shift to low-carbon production, incentive mechanisms forpollution prevention and low-carbon investment are still lacking. a sector that remains underdeveloped isecotourism.limited knowledge on wetland management and climate change adaptation. despite the sdl's ecologicalsignificance, i government officers and protected area and patrol personnel have limited capacity forwetland conservation and restoration in sdl nature reserve and surrounding areas; ii fishermen andfarmers lack the skills for transitioning to low-carbon production; and communities are not fully aware ordo not have adequate tools to recognize the livelihood opportunities that healthy ecosystem services canprovide.ecological restoration and climate-resilient development approach. restoring wetland and freshwaterecosystems while building long-term climate resilience is the proposed project's approach. identified projectmeasures will enhance resilience by reducing exposure and sensitivity to climate risks and strengtheningthe adaptive capacity in the sdl basin. the project will be focused to improving the protection andsustainable management of sdl and the species it supports and it will be the first major investment projectfor the rfi and significantly contribute to adbs nature positive agenda.the project will incorporate lessons from adb-financed projects on ecological protection and lakeenvironmental protection in prc's hunan province. lessons from other adb-financed projects on biodiversityconservation and green financing mechanisms in other prc provinces will also inform the project design.past experiences and lessons include i eco-compensation programs to incentivize local farmers andhouseholds to adopt eco-farming and wetland-friendly farming practices; ii institutional strengthening andinteragency coordination for effective and basin-wide wetland and freshwater ecosystem protection; useof nature-based solutions nbs to improve conservation and restoration practices; iv design of incentivemechanisms to promote private sector investment in low-carbon and climate-resilient solutions.impactecological and environmental restoration in dongting lake improved the yangtze river protection law ofthe people's republic of china, 2020outcome resilience and ecological security of freshwater ecosystems and livelihoods in the sdl basin increasedoutputs institutional capacity for dongting lake integrated wetland management enhancedgeographical location dongting lakesafeguard categoriesenvironment ainvoluntary resettlement bindigenous peoples csummary of environmental and social aspectsenvironmental aspectsinvoluntary resettlementindigenous peoplesstakeholder communication, participation, and consultationduring project designduring project implementationresponsible adb officer cardascia, silviaresponsible adb department east asia departmentresponsible adb divisionenvironment, natural resources agriculture division,eardexecuting agencies yuanjiang municipal governmenttimetableconcept clearance 22 sep 2023fact finding 13 may 2024 to 21 may 2024mrm -approval -last review mission -last pds update 07 feb 2024project page https:.adb.orgprojects56216-001mainrequest forinformationhttp:.adb.orgformsrequest-information-formsubject=56216-001date generated 19 april 2024adb provides the information contained in this project data sheet pds solely as a resourcefor its users without any form of assurance. whilst adb tries to provide high quality content,the information are provided as is without warranty of any kind, either express or implied,including without limitation warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose,and non-infringement. adb specifically does not make any warranties or representations asto the accuracy or completeness of any such information.source url: https:.adb.orgprojects56216-001main

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