Huzhou prospers through coordinated sustainable development

A comprehensive monitoring and evaluation of high-quality sustainable development in Huzhou, Zhejiang province, has yielded progressive results, highlighting the city's effective leveraging of its ecological advantages into economic development while concurrently fostering positive ecological effects.

The evaluation, conducted by the Moganshan Geospatial Information Laboratory, integrated various data sources such as remote sensing, basic geographic information and socioeconomic data.

"Traditional notion holds that economic development inevitably comes at the cost of environmental degradation," said Yang Mu, lab expert and member of the evaluation team.

"However, using credible data and scientific indicators, our study demonstrates that the development pattern of Huzhou is aligned with the United Nations' 2030 Sustainable Development Goals, indicating that high-quality development and sustainable development complement each other," Yang added.

The results highlighted Huzhou's achievements in carbon reduction, pollution mitigation and green development. The proportion of forested areas has continued to rise and maintains at a high level, while the population's exposure risk to urban air pollution has seen a substantial decline.

In addition, the results showed the rise in service convenience of public toilets and coverage of essential health service, while noting a narrowing gap in urban-rural hospital accessibility.

"Green development has fostered greater spatial equity and enhanced social inclusivity, creating a virtuous cycle of 'improved environmental quality — optimized facility provision — elevated resident well-being'," Yang said.

Huzhou now demonstrates coordinated regional development, with a spatial pattern taking shape characterized by the western region spearheading growth, the central region advancing in a coordinated manner, and the southern and eastern regions undergoing steady transformation, he added.

He cited Yucun village in Anji county, the birthplace of the Two Mountain Theory, as an example. Once plagued by heavily polluting industries and mining activities in 2010, the village chose long-term development over short-term profits, shuttered polluting industries and embraced green alternatives. Today, the village is thriving with ecotourism, organic farming and homestay businesses, showcasing that environmental protection and economic growth can go hand in hand.

Data from Huzhou's statistics bureau showed that the city's economy has witnessed rapid growth in recent years, with its regional gross domestic product reaching 421.34 billion yuan ($58.67 billion) last year, a year-on-year growth of 5.8 percent.