守護神農(nóng)架The Conservation of Shennongjia

李立欣Li Lixin

神農(nóng)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(lián)合國教科文組織人與生物圈自然保護區(qū)、世界地質(zhì)公園、世界遺產(chǎn)三大保護制度共同錄入名錄的遺產(chǎn)地。神農(nóng)架宛如一幅絕美的水墨畫卷，雖經(jīng)歷了開發(fā)、再開發(fā)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(tài)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(fā)利用之“殤”The Tragedy of Ill-PlannedDevelopment and Exploitation

相傳，華夏始祖之一的炎帝神農(nóng)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(fēng)寒、架木為壇跨鶴升天，神農(nóng)架由此得名。千百年來，人們依靠神農(nóng)架的豐饒物產(chǎn)養(yǎng)家糊口，生生不息。神農(nóng)架山巒疊嶂，溝壑縱橫，河谷險峻，地貌復(fù)雜，在20世紀(jì)50年代之前未曾經(jīng)歷大規(guī)模的開發(fā)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(jì)60年代，由于國家建設(shè)需要大量木材，人們開始對神農(nóng)架進行開發(fā)。1970年，國家設(shè)立“神農(nóng)架林區(qū)”，這是中國唯一以“林區(qū)”命名的省轄行政區(qū)。神農(nóng)架因林建區(qū)，借林而興，開啟了“木頭經(jīng)濟”時期?；貞浧甬?dāng)年的粗獷式開發(fā)，神農(nóng)架國家公園管理局工作人員張建兵說：“ 近萬名工人響應(yīng)號召，從南北兩個方向同時向神農(nóng)架腹地推進，路修到哪里，就砍伐到哪里。”不久后，人們意識到砍伐森林會對生態(tài)環(huán)境造成嚴(yán)重的破壞，于是轉(zhuǎn)向大力發(fā)展小水電，利用神農(nóng)架境內(nèi)317 條河流來發(fā)電。但因河流發(fā)電會對神農(nóng)架的地質(zhì)地貌和水系造成嚴(yán)重破壞，小水電的開發(fā)也停止了。此后，人們又通過開采神農(nóng)架礦產(chǎn)資源來發(fā)展經(jīng)濟，由此進入了“石頭經(jīng)濟”時期。但采礦造成了山體裸露，又引發(fā)了次生地質(zhì)災(zāi)害，開采被迫停止。人們說，“靠山吃山，靠水吃水”，但神農(nóng)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(fā)之“變”The Transformation TowardsConservation-Oriented Tourism

為了留住青山碧水，神農(nóng)架人秉承“自然修復(fù)為主，人工修復(fù)為輔”的理念，開始了修復(fù)保護與旅游開發(fā)并舉的發(fā)展階段。1982年，“神農(nóng)架自然保護區(qū)”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(qū)”。1990年，神農(nóng)架加入聯(lián)合國教科文組織世界生物圈保護區(qū)網(wǎng)。2000年，神農(nóng)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(nóng)架實現(xiàn)了由木頭經(jīng)濟、石頭經(jīng)濟向保護型旅游經(jīng)濟發(fā)展的歷史性轉(zhuǎn)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(jù)一位網(wǎng)友回憶，20世紀(jì)80年代，他去神農(nóng)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(zhuǎn)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(huán)境。由此，很多村民也從曾經(jīng)的狩獵者轉(zhuǎn)變?yōu)樯值氖刈o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(nóng)架采取的保護型旅游開發(fā)已見成效。游客們呼吸著飽含負(fù)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(lǐng)略大自然造就的奇跡與生命之美。人們一邊聆聽著優(yōu)美動人的傳說，一邊感受著原生態(tài)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(tài)家園之“韌”The Persistent Protection of theEcological Homeland

神農(nóng)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(dá)喜馬拉雅山、北抵漠河、南至西雙版納范圍內(nèi)的諸多動植物種類，是世界上中緯度地區(qū)植被最完整的地區(qū)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(jīng)年累月的不懈努力，在高科技信息化管護網(wǎng)絡(luò)的助力下，創(chuàng)造了神農(nóng)架40 多年無火災(zāi)發(fā)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(nóng)架自然保護區(qū)的網(wǎng)絡(luò)監(jiān)控中心全年無休。中心負(fù)責(zé)人通過北斗導(dǎo)航巡護手機向巡山的護林員詢問情況，當(dāng)聽到“這里一切正?！钡幕貜?fù)時，便立刻轉(zhuǎn)接下一個監(jiān)測點。在這里，空中有無人機，山上有監(jiān)控，路上有火警探測頭，林內(nèi)有巡護，人人都是護林員。為了更快地促進生態(tài)修復(fù)，神農(nóng)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(nóng)架的森林覆蓋率得以很好地恢復(fù)，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(tài)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.