Mountain ecotourism reaches peak

Changbai Mountain boasts the most intact forest ecosystem in the northern part of the Eurasian continent, serving as a rare "ecological museum" and "genetic gene bank "for the world.

With a forest coverage rate of 87.7 percent and up to 120,000 negative oxygen ions per cubic centimeter — more than 100 times the United Nations' fresh air standard — Changbai Mountain offers unparalleled ecological benefits.

Located at the same latitude as the Alps and the Rocky Mountains, the region is renowned for its powdery snow throughout winter, thanks to consistently frigid temperatures. This makes Jilin one of China's top ski destinations.

"We firmly grasp high-quality development as our top priority, emphasizing the principles of ecological industrialization and industrial ecology," said Gao.

"We are focusing on creating five major destinations with international perspectives, standards and management."

Leveraging the favorable climate and ecological resources of Changbai Mountain, the zone aims to establish a summer resort and leisure destination, an ice-and-snow tourism destination, a hot spring health resort, an ecological and cultural destination, and a mountain sports destination.

By promoting activities such as outdoor exploration, rock climbing, cycling and camping, the zone offers routes for enthusiasts, including cycling, hiking and off-road driving.

"Emphasizing visitor needs as the fundamental starting point, we are vigorously cultivating and enhancing new cultural and tourism experiences," said Gao.

"We have created unique cultural performances and shopping streets by blending the performance of Legend of Powder Snow with the experiential shopping core of Jin Dynasty Ancient Street."

The region has also introduced products, such as low-deuterium mineral water from Changbai Mountain, cracked spore powder of lingzhi mushrooms, blueberry juice and birch sap, to capitalize on its ecological value.

The Changbai Mountain Protection and Development Zone is optimizing protection and restoration mechanisms for its top-tier ecological systems.

"We prioritize the protection of Changbai Mountain's ecology and biodiversity, enhancing conservation awareness, developing high-quality protection plans, strengthening technological support and intensifying the protection of unique ancient trees," said Gao. "Efforts are continuously made to improve forest fire prevention and suppression capabilities, creating a robust ecological security network."

"We are committed to strengthening supervision of nature reserves and ecological protection boundaries, fortifying the ecological barrier in Northeast Asia," he said. "We aim to make Changbai Mountain a model of national ecological civilization construction."

Han Junhong contributed to this story.

zhouhuiying@chinadaily.com.cn