Expo Faces

    Making a splash for the environment


    By Qian Yanfeng (China Daily)
    Updated: 2010-08-09 08:06
    Large Medium Small

    Making a splash for the environment

    A fan of swimming, Bao Zhengbin greets supporters during his drill in the Yangtze River at Wuhan city, Central China’s Hubei province on July 1, 2010. Bao, one of many swimming fans in Wuhan, will begin his big challenge on July 7 of swimming 1,200 kilometers along the Yangtze River to Shanghai. The 56-year old said he has dreamed of swimming from Wuhan to Shanghai for 44 years. [Photo/Asianewsphoto] 

    SHANGHAI - A 56-year-old man completed a marathon 32-day, 1,200-km Yangtze River swim from Wuhan to Shanghai on Sunday to draw attention to heavy pollution in the waterway.

    Bao Zhengbin, a 12-time record breaker of Popular Sports in China, a national competition designed for amateur athletes, said he is aiming to use Expo 2010 Shanghai to promote environmental protection.

    Related readings:
    Making a splash for the environment Tianjin's eco-city is a model for Beijing
    Making a splash for the environment Tianjin embraces an eco-friendly burial
    Making a splash for the environment Hubei Week set to showcase eco-friendliness
    Making a splash for the environment Eco tour to the villages in north Anhui

    He said he has wanted to swim from Wuhan to Shanghai since childhood, after the scenery along the Yangtze River enchanted him during a trip.

    The Expo was the ideal occasion for him to fulfill this dream, he said.

    But swimming 40 km a day battling rapids, waves and heavy rain was not easy. Bao said he suffered from constant leg cramps, fatigue and cold after spending hours in the water every day, but was in good health when he arrived at Shanghai's Chongming Island on Sunday. He also had to watch out for ships on the river.

    "I'm feeling quite well," he said after finishing his swim.

    But of all the risks he faced, nothing compared to his fear of the water quality in the Yangtze River, which has been "deteriorating rapidly due to heavy pollution".

    "So many ships and factories along the river are dumping waste water into it," he said.

    He said the river was so polluted and pungent he could not stay in the water for too long. "It was also terrible to think that sometimes I had to drink the water to quench my thirst," he said.

    He noticed countless chemical plants and steel and iron companies that not only "ruin the beautiful scenery of the Yangtze River, but also pose threats to the water quality", he said.

    "It is urgent that both the government and public should realize how our current mode of economic development is unsustainable," he said.

    "Isn't it enough that we've seen so much damage to the environment and its devastating impact on our lives?"

    As part of his mission to raise public awareness on environmental protection, Bao used his own money to print 200 copies of an album of photos that he took and collected from the media about environmental degradation. He distributed the books in the 32 cities he stopped along his journey.

    This was not Bao's first effort to call attention to water pollution in the Yangtze River. Three years ago he exposed secret drainage outlets of riverside companies in Wuhan, which he discovered while swimming in the river.

    His action won the attention of local authorities, which later punished or closed many of the exposed enterprises.

    "I'm not pursuing fame," he said. "My only wish is to put out the message that we should take better care of our mother river and the environment. We cannot afford to lose any more."

     

    Video
    Say it in Shanghai-Lesson 18
    INK paints a new picture of China-US collaboration at the Expo
    Expo: Shenzhen's painting village
    Say it in Shanghai-Lesson 17
    Say it in Shanghai-Lesson 15
    more
    Voice
     

    Copyright 1995 - 2010 . All rights reserved. The content (including but not limited to text, photo, multimedia information, etc) published in this site belongs to China Daily Information Co (CDIC). Without written authorization from CDIC, such content shall not be republished or used in any form. Note: Browsers with 1024*768 or higher resolution are suggested for this site.
    国产在线无码精品电影网| 亚洲?V无码乱码国产精品| 亚洲gv天堂无码男同在线观看| 一区二区中文字幕| 九九久久精品无码专区| 亚洲精品无码久久久久久| 日韩乱码人妻无码系列中文字幕| 69久久精品无码一区二区 | 一本大道久久东京热无码AV | 午夜人性色福利无码视频在线观看| 国产区精品一区二区不卡中文| 国产羞羞的视频在线观看 国产一级无码视频在线 | 最近免费中文字幕mv电影| 中文字幕理伦午夜福利片| 成人免费无码H在线观看不卡| 国产又爽又黄无码无遮挡在线观看| а天堂8中文最新版在线官网| 亚洲精品人成无码中文毛片 | 中文字幕无码不卡免费视频| 国产AV无码专区亚洲AV毛网站 | 成人无码一区二区三区| 日日摸日日碰夜夜爽无码| 亚洲精品~无码抽插| 暴力强奷在线播放无码| 久久无码专区国产精品发布| 无码人妻少妇久久中文字幕| 91中文在线观看| 中文字幕一区在线观看视频| 91中文字幕yellow字幕网| 亚洲欧美综合在线中文| 中文字幕亚洲情99在线| 中文字幕无码乱人伦| 中文字幕人妻无码系列第三区| 亚洲AV无码不卡在线观看下载| 国产精品xxxx国产喷水亚洲国产精品无码久久一区 | 国内精品人妻无码久久久影院| 日韩av无码中文字幕| 色AV永久无码影院AV| 久久精品无码一区二区三区免费| 精品无码国产自产拍在线观看蜜| 亚洲国产成人精品无码久久久久久综合|