Guangdong Strengthens Wildlife Protection with New Notice

Guangdong Forestry Bureau and 14 other departments have jointly issued the “Notice on the Implementation of the Wildlife Protection Law of the People’s Republic of China.” The notice aims to strengthen departmental cooperation, establish a wildlife joint law enforcement coordination mechanism, and promote the protection and sustainable development of wildlife resources.

The notice is divided into seven parts and will be effective from August 8, 2024, to December 31, 2028. It emphasizes the importance of coordination and cooperation among departments to protect wildlife resources and severely crack down on criminal acts that damage these resources.

The notice also highlights the need to strengthen the application of information technology, establish and improve archives of wild animals and their habitats, and form a wild animal resource survey and monitoring system. Additionally, it emphasizes the importance of accelerating the formation of a natural conservation area system with national parks as the main body and promoting the on-site protection of wild animals.

The notice requires localities to strengthen the management and patrol of wild animals and their habitats, strengthen the management of important habitats for terrestrial wild animals and bird migration corridors, and adopt various methods to implement ecological restoration in a planned manner for important habitats for terrestrial wild animals according to local conditions.

Furthermore, the notice emphasizes the need to strengthen publicity and education on wildlife protection laws and regulations and popularize scientific knowledge. It also requires localities to establish a compensation mechanism for terrestrial wildlife damage and encourage and guide insurance institutions to carry out wildlife damage compensation insurance business.

Guangdong Province has recorded 1,052 species of terrestrial vertebrate wild animals and 6,658 species of higher plants. The notice aims to further improve the protection mechanism of wild animal and plant resources in the province, which is conducive to weaving a solid biodiversity “protection network.”

The relevant person in charge of the Provincial Forestry Bureau stated that Guangdong Province will continue to strengthen coordination and cooperation among departments, punish and crack down on illegal and criminal acts that damage various types of wild animal and plant resources throughout the chain, and promote the construction of a plant ex-situ protection system led by the South China National Botanical Garden and dominated by regional botanical gardens and native botanical gardens.