守護神農架The Conservation of Shennongjia

李立欣Li Lixin

神農架地處湖北省西北部，被譽為“地球之肺”，是世界上罕見的原始森林之一，也是中國首個被聯合國教科文組織人與生物圈自然保護區、世界地質公園、世界遺產三大保護制度共同錄入名錄的遺產地。神農架宛如一幅絕美的水墨畫卷，雖經歷了開發、再開發及再利用，但所幸，今天我們依然留住了它那最耀眼的底色——綠色，使它成為絢爛多姿的原生態旅游勝地。

Located in the northwest of Hubei Province，Shennongjia， one of the rare primitive forests in theworld， is hailed as the “Lungs of the Earth.” It is alsothe first heritage site in China to be concurrentlylisted in three major protection systems： theUNESCOs Man and Biosphere Reserve Programme，the Global Geoparks Network， and the WorldHeritage Site. The scenery there resembles a stunningChinese ink painting. Despite several rounds ofdevelopment and exploitation， fortunately， today westill retain its most enchanting base color — green，making it a splendid and diverse destination for ecotourism.

粗獷開發利用之“殤”The Tragedy of Ill-PlannedDevelopment and Exploitation

相傳，華夏始祖之一的炎帝神農氏在此地采嘗百草時，曾架木為梯以助攀援、架木為屋以避風寒、架木為壇跨鶴升天，神農架由此得名。千百年來，人們依靠神農架的豐饒物產養家糊口，生生不息。神農架山巒疊嶂，溝壑縱橫，河谷險峻，地貌復雜，在20世紀50年代之前未曾經歷大規模的開發和利用。

According to legend， one of the forefathers ofChinese civilization， the Yan Emperor Shennong，named the place after his activities in this area. Whilesampling hundreds of herbs here， he is said to haveerected ladders from wood to aid in climbing， erectedshelters from wood to protect against the windand cold， and erected a wooden altar to ascend toheaven on a crane. Shennongjia （with jia meaning “toerect”） derives its name from these legendary events.For thousands of years， people have relied on theabundant natural resources of Shennongjia to sustaintheir livelihoods， thriving generation after generation.However， this area， characterized by its overlappingmountains， crisscrossing ravines， perilous valleys，and complex terrain， had remained largely untouchedand undeveloped until the 1950s.

20世紀60年代，由于國家建設需要大量木材，人們開始對神農架進行開發。1970年，國家設立“神農架林區”，這是中國唯一以“林區”命名的省轄行政區。神農架因林建區，借林而興，開啟了“木頭經濟”時期?；貞浧甬斈甑拇肢E式開發，神農架國家公園管理局工作人員張建兵說：“ 近萬名工人響應號召，從南北兩個方向同時向神農架腹地推進，路修到哪里，就砍伐到哪里?！辈痪煤?，人們意識到砍伐森林會對生態環境造成嚴重的破壞，于是轉向大力發展小水電，利用神農架境內317 條河流來發電。但因河流發電會對神農架的地質地貌和水系造成嚴重破壞，小水電的開發也停止了。此后，人們又通過開采神農架礦產資源來發展經濟，由此進入了“石頭經濟”時期。但采礦造成了山體裸露，又引發了次生地質災害，開采被迫停止。人們說，“靠山吃山，靠水吃水”，但神農架人守著一座“金山”卻依然在受窮。

In the 1960s， due to Chinas large timber demandfor construction， development began in Shennongjia.In 1970， the state established the ShennongjiaForestry District， the only administrative region inChina named after a forest area. The prosperity oftimber industry marked the beginning of the “timbereconomy” period in Shennongjia. Reflecting onthe rough development of that era， Zhang Jianbing，a staff member of the Shennongjia National ParkAdministration， said， “Nearly ten thousand workersresponded to the call of the nation and went intothe heart of Shennongjia from both the south andnorth. Wherever the roads were built， thats wherethe trees were felled.” But it was soon realizedthat this deforestation was causing severe damageto the ecological environment. As a result， there?was a shift towards developing small hydropowerprojects， utilizing the 317 rivers in Shennongjia forelectricity generation. But this too was stopped， asthe hydroelectric development severely damagedShennongjias geological features and watersystems. Subsequently， people shifted to a “stoneeconomy，” mining Shennongjias mineral resources.However， this exposed the mountainsides andtriggered secondary geological disasters， leadingto the cessation of mining activities. When theold saying goes， “Live by the mountains and eatfrom the mountains， live by the water and drinkfrom the water，” the irony is that despite livingamidst abundant natural resources， the people ofShennongjia still faced poverty.

保護型旅游開發之“變”The Transformation TowardsConservation-Oriented Tourism

為了留住青山碧水，神農架人秉承“自然修復為主，人工修復為輔”的理念，開始了修復保護與旅游開發并舉的發展階段。1982年，“神農架自然保護區”成立，不久后，升級為國家級“森林與野生動物類型自然保護區”。1990年，神農架加入聯合國教科文組織世界生物圈保護區網。2000年，神農架全面停止天然林采伐——林場工人們放下伐木刀，變身護林員，守護這里的野生動植物。至此，神農架實現了由木頭經濟、石頭經濟向保護型旅游經濟發展的歷史性轉變。

To preserve the green mountains and clearwaters， the people of Shennongjia have adheredto the concept of “focusing on natural restorationwith human-induced restoration as a supplement，”initiating a development phase that balancesrestoration and protection with tourism development.In 1982， the “Shennongjia Nature Reserve” wasestablished， and it was soon upgraded to a nationallevel“Forest and Wildlife Type Nature Reserve.”In 1990， Shennongjia joined the UNESCO WorldNetwork of Biosphere Reserves. By 2000， Shennongjiacompletely halted the logging of natural forests — thelumberjacks put down their saws to become forestrangers， protecting the local wildlife and flora. So far，Shennongjia has achieved a historic transition froma wood and stone-based economy to a conservationorientedtourism economy.

據一位網友回憶，20世紀80年代，他去神農架叔叔家走親戚時，能看到叔叔狩獵捕獲的狼、豹、熊等野生動物，還能吃到一些野味；但到了90年代就很少再有人捕獵野生動物了。這離不開護林員的努力——他們從一個村莊宣講到另一個村莊，從一個山坡巡視到另一個山坡，用行動轉變村民的觀念。漸漸地，村民也意識到，只有守住綠色的森林，才能給生活在這里的3 000多種植物、1 000多種動物提供良好的棲息環境。由此，很多村民也從曾經的狩獵者轉變為森林的守護者。

A netizen recalled that in the 1980s， whenvisiting his uncles house in Shennongjia， he couldsee wild animals like wolves， leopards， and bearsthat his uncle had hunted and even taste some gamemeat. However， by the 1990s， the hunting of wildanimals had greatly reduced. This change was largelyattributed to the efforts of the forest rangers — theytraveled from village to village， patrolling fromone hillside to another， changing villagers mindsetthrough their actions. Gradually， the villagers realizedthat maintaining the green forests was essential forproviding a good habitat for over 3，000 species ofplants and more than 1，000 species of animals livingthere. As a result， many villagers transformed fromhunters into protectors of the forest.

多年來，神農架采取的保護型旅游開發已見成效。游客們呼吸著飽含負氧離子的空氣，沿著九曲十八彎山路心情舒暢地漫行，移步換景，欣賞沿途的奇樹、奇花、奇洞、奇峰，領略大自然造就的奇跡與生命之美。人們一邊聆聽著優美動人的傳說，一邊感受著原生態旅游獨有的奇幻魅力。

Over the years， the conservation-oriented tourismdevelopment adopted in Shennongjia has shownpositive results. Visitors breathe air rich in negativeions， leisurely stroll along the winding mountain roadswith “nine bends and eighteen turns，” experiencingchanging landscapes at every step. They admire theextraordinary trees， flowers， caves， and peaks along theway， appreciating the miracles and beauty of life createdby nature. While listening to beautiful legends， peopleexperience the unique enchantment of ecotourism.

守護生態家園之“韌”The Persistent Protection of theEcological Homeland

神農架總面積為3 253 平方千米，其中動植物種類繁多，囊括了東到日本中部、西達喜馬拉雅山、北抵漠河、南至西雙版納范圍內的諸多動植物種類，是世界上中緯度地區植被最完整的地區之一。為了守護這一珍稀的生命家園，森林守護者們憑借堅韌不拔的毅力，通過經年累月的不懈努力，在高科技信息化管護網絡的助力下，創造了神農架40 多年無火災發生的奇跡。

Shennongjia covers an area of 3，253 squarekilometers， hosting a diverse range of flora and fauna.It includes species found from central Japan in theeast， the Himalayas in the west， Mohe in the north，and Xishuangbanna in the south， making it one of themost complete vegetation areas in the worlds midlatitudes.To protect this rare habitat， forest rangershave demonstrated unwavering determination andrelentless effort over the years. Assisted by a hightech，information-based management network， theyhave achieved the remarkable feat of averting any fireincidents in Shennongjia for over 40 years.

神農架自然保護區的網絡監控中心全年無休。中心負責人通過北斗導航巡護手機向巡山的護林員詢問情況，當聽到“這里一切正?！钡幕貜蜁r，便立刻轉接下一個監測點。在這里，空中有無人機，山上有監控，路上有火警探測頭，林內有巡護，人人都是護林員。為了更快地促進生態修復，神農架濕地、林地及腹地的原住民們作出了極大的犧牲，他們移居至異地，無怨無悔。在所有人的共同努力下，神農架的森林覆蓋率得以很好地恢復，提升至96%。

The network monitoring center of theShennongjia Nature Reserve operates yearround.The person in charge communicateswith patrolling forest rangers usingsmartphones equipped with the BeidouNavigation System. Upon receiving aresponse of “all good，” they immediatelyswitch to the next monitoring point. InShennongjia， drones patrol the skies，cameras keep watch on the mountains， firealarm detectors line the roads， and rangersroam the forests — everyone contributesto forest protection. To further expediteecological restoration， the indigenousresidents of Shennongjias wetlands， forests，and hinterlands made significant sacrifices.They relocated without complaint or regret.Thanks to everyones collective efforts， theforest coverage in Shennongjia has beenrestored to an impressive 96%.

森林守護者們的堅守和努力為子孫后代留下了一片綠洲，一片人與自然和諧共處的生態家園。

The dedication and hard work of these forest protectorshave left future generations with a green oasis， a homeland witha tenacious ecological system， for the harmonious coexistenceof humans and nature.