Fascinating changes in 25 yrs as Scottish photographer revisits Binhai New Area

Encompassing an area of over 121 square kilometres, Tianjin Port lies roughly 60 kilometers east of downtown Tianjin. It includes several dedicated sections handling a growing amount of container traffic; bulk cargoe as areas for coal and iron ore along with cruise liners catering for the local burgeoning demand (something that should grow substantially again after international COVID-19 travel restrictions are eased). The port stretches north to south along the Bohai coastline, and straddles the Haihe River where it reaches the sea.

In central Tianjin tourists are carried by sightseeing boats along stretches of the Haihe to marvel at the illuminated modern skyline and bridges of the city’s central area, far upriver from its massive port. The Haihe however has played a vital role not just for Tianjin itself but also for the entire Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region and indeed Northern China. Port facilities near its mouth can be traced back to the Han Dynasty (206BC-220AD). The Haihe acted as a water link between the Grand Canal, the Bohai and ultimately the world’s oceans. However, the river was prone to sand buildups or ‘bars’ near its mouth, preventing access of larger vessels upriver. At Tanggu (close to today’s Tianjin Port), larger ships would discharge cargoes onto smaller river boats for onward transfer to the main city area, to the Grand Canal and onward to Beijing. Tanggu by the 1860’s was developing into one of China’s earliest international trading ports.

However, the policies of ‘Reform and Opening Up’ were by the early 1980’s creating a massive expansion of trade to and from China, and the facilities around Tanggu proved inadequate to service the demand. A totally new port was required, one that continues to expand today. Its connections now are worldwide, and it is a primary logistics and shipping hub of Northern China as well as a core element for the development of the BNA (Binhai New Area) Given my background as a geographer, my academic studies often featured ports. Yet, as I stood there recently, looking across the waters of today’s Tianjin Port, I was trying to comprehend something on a scale grander than anything I had previously encountered. The investment in port handling equipment that I could see was not only massive but obviously there to cater smoothly for anticipated future growth.

A pleasant distraction to my thoughts was to watch in fascination the docking nearby of a smaller container vessel being moved into position by tug boats. Ropes were thrown from the ship for the dock workers to secure it before unloading could commence. Another boat followed slowly behind, while in the distance possibly one of the world’s largest such boats was already berthed and undergoing a rapid turnaround, ready to sail again.

I could easily have spent an entire day at Tianjin Port but much more awaited me within nearby areas of Binhai.

Binhai New Area is an amalgam, dating from November 2009, of several key zones into one large administrative district. It includes TEDA (Tianjin Economic-Technological Development Area), an early free trade zone set up in late 1984, again in response to the emergence of ‘Reform and Opening Up’. In October 1996, on a first visit to TEDA, I noticed that areas of land were being reclaimed from salt pans -- historically Tianjin was a major player in Eastern China’s salt trade. Even then, in 1996, infrastructure was building up with new expressways and wide roads, and power stations were being constructed amidst remnants of fish farms and small villages. Today what started out as TEDA has matured into a modern living community with few traces of what I saw 25 years ago.

Yujiapu is a part of Binhai I have visited several times. Envisaged as an area for trade and finance its layout and planning incorporates international ideas. Amidst its modern architecture there is plenty of greenery, creating an excellent environmental feel particularly alongside the Haihe River which flows around the peninsula on which Yujiapu has been constructed. The waters help with promoting the concept of a Manhattan-style skyline.