Increasing high-std farmlands boosts modern agriculture in Hai'an

Hai'an, a county-level city in Nantong, East China's Jiangsu province, will build 446,000-mu (2973.33 hectares) of high-standard farmlands this year, according to local authorities.

The move is aimed at boosting the development of the modern agriculture industry in the county and increasing the grain output in 2023.

High-standard farmlands that have been equipped with improved agricultural facilities have made farmers less susceptible to the effects of extreme weather, said Gu Weijin, who runs a family farm in Qutang town.

According to Gu, such facilities allowed the county to reap a bumper harvest despite the severe drought last year.

In 2022, Qutang town started to build 13,800-mu of high-standard farmlands in the villages of Fumin, Wanyang, Xinghua, and Qunxian. The project is currently entering its final stage.

Authorities have also made efforts to reduce agricultural non-point source pollution during the building of high-standard farmlands. For example, impermeable channels have been built in the 4,000-mu high-standard farmlands in Pinjian village.

In addition, three diversion channels have been built in the farmlands to connect a wastewater reclamation pool, which is expected to help farmers save over 30 metric tons of compound fertilizer every year.

According to local authorities, the county last year built 530,000-mu of high-standard farmlands and 5,000-mu of water-saving ones.