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Here is the news. According to China's top economic planner, another 69 billion yuan Around US$9.65 billion in ultra-long special treasury bond funds will be allocated in October to support the country's consumer goods trade-in programme.
Jiang Yi, an official with the National Development and Reform Commission, said this will be the fourth and final batch of the year, and the country had already issued its third batch of ultra-long special treasury bond funds in the same amount.
The Ministry of Finance, together with the National Development and Reform Commission, has this year earmarked 300 billion yuan in such funds to back the Consumer Goods Trade-in Programme.
Zhou Chen, an official with the Commission, said that the economic performance in the first half of the year demonstrated strong resilience, with domestic demand contributing 68.8% to GDP growth. and continuing to serve as a driving force for expansion.
According to Zhou, the Commission will continue to promote the introduction and implementation of a series of measures to stabilise employment and the economy.
It will also strengthen economic monitoring, forecasting and early warning, regularly conduct policy research and preparation, as well as continuously improve the policy toolkit for stabilising employment and expanding domestic demand.
China's space agency has released the approved list for the ninth batch of lunar sample research applications, allowing successful applicants to borrow samples returned by the Chang'e 5 and Chang'e 6 missions.
A total of 30,881.8 milligrams of lunar samples will be lent to 32 research groups from 25 institutions.
That is according to the Lunar Exploration and Space Engineering Centre under the China National Space Administration.
The list includes universities such as Macau University of Science and Technology, Chengdu University of Technology, as well as the University of Hong Kong and the Hong Kong Polytechnic University. among others.
This list also includes institutions affiliated with the Chinese Academy of Sciences and the Chinese Academy of Geological Sciences.
China's Chang'e-6 mission collected 1,950 and 35.3 grams of samples from the far side of the Moon, the first time in human history.
Meanwhile, the Chang'e 5 mission retrieved about 1,731 grams of lunar samples.
In July 2021, China delivered the first batch of lunar samples to research institutions.
So far, the country has lent eight batches of lunar samples to institutions for research purposes.
Last month, China unveiled a series of research findings by Chinese scientists following studies of the samples collected by the Chang'e 6 mission.
In categories such as volcanic activity, the ancient magnetic field, water content and geochemical characteristics of the moon mantle.
A decade into China's National Park Reform Initiative, the country has made significant strides in restoring flagship wildlife populations and bolstering ecological stability.
That is according to the National Forestry and Grassland Administration.
Sun Hong-Yen, an official with the administration, said the national park system has shifted from single-element conservation to integrated management of mountains, waters, forests, farmlands, as well as lakes, grasslands and deserts.
Sun added that building a national park system is a complex and multifaceted undertaking. and that reforms involve restructuring the management system of nature reserves and innovating policies on natural resource management, land use, ecological compensation and community development.
According to the administration, Wild life populations have rebounded across several national parks.
The Giant Panda National Park has reconnected fragmented habitats, boosting the wild panda population from around 1,100 in the 1980s to almost 1,900 today.
In northeast China, Tiger and Leopard National Park restored migration corridors have helped Amur tiger and leopard numbers rise to around 70 and 80 respectively.
In Hainan Tropical Rainforest National Park, the rainforest ecosystem has gradually recovered, with the wild population of the critically endangered Hainan gibbon increasing from 35 to 42. making it the only gibbon species worldwide showing sustained growth.
Sun said that going forward, relevant authorities will further strengthen systematic governance, implement the optimization plan for nature reserves, and the Spatial Layout Plan for national parks, as well as take a prudent approach to establishing new parks and launch major projects for integrated ecosystem management and biodiversity conservation.
Crescent Spring, a famed desert oasis in northwest China's Gansu Province, has recorded its highest water level and largest surface area in over 20 years, signalling a major victory in ecological restoration efforts.
According to a report issued by the Provincial Geological Environment Monitoring Institute, the crescent-shaped oasis now stands at 3.8 metres deep and spans 2.12 hectares.
A dramatic recovery from the late 1990s, when the average water level dropped below one metre and the surface area was reduced to just 0.17 hectares.
Nestled among the towering dunes of Mingxia Mountain in Dunhuang, a key hub of the ancient Silk Road, Crescent Spring has been celebrated for at least two thousand years as a natural marvel, where shifting sands and clear waters coexist in harmonious balance, according to historical records.
The beautiful spring not only dazzles visitors, but also sustains Dunhuang's fragile desert ecosystem, with ground water from nearby rivers percolating through porous sands to offset evaporation.
Over the past decades, however, environmental changes and human activities have led to falling groundwater levels that pushed the spring to the brink of drying up.
The turning point came in 2011. when the State Council introduced a comprehensive plan for Dunhuang's water protection and ecological restoration with a groundwater replenishment project for Crescent Spring being its key part.
Huang Wenming, The service centre director of the Crescent Spring Scenic Area explained that the project aims to enhance groundwater replenishment by constructing infiltration dams along the Deng River.
Huang said that by prolonging water retention time through 12 permeable dams.
It raises the upstream water table to reverse the declining trend around Crescent Spring, ensuring this natural wonder remains forever vibrant.
Thanks to these efforts, the average water level of the spring has risen steadily, surpassing three metres in 2021 before reaching a new peak this year.
In addition to restoring Crescent Spring, the project also supports the region's water storage, flood control and wetland development, contributing to improvements in the local ecosystem.
Thanks to these concerted efforts, the local ecosystem has seen significant improvements, injecting new vitality into the tourism industry.
According to the Local Culture and Tourism Bureau, from January to June this year, the scenic area welcomed some 1.26 million visitors, up 3.2% year on year.
This is SpaceCast. A recent study has resulted in the unveiling of the southernmost dinosaur tracks ever found in China, thereby providing new insights into ecosystems across southern China in the Mesozoic era.
Led by paleontologist Xing Lida, an associate professor from China University of Geosciences, Beijing, and Mo Jinyou, a researcher from the Guangxi Museum of Natural History.
The discovery has been published in the journal Earth History. and biodiversity.
The findings of this study extend the known range of dinosaur footprints in China to the shores of the Beibu Gulf, about 21 degrees north latitude, and located in what is now South China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region.
The tracks, uncovered in 2021 during high-speed railway construction at a village in the city of Dongxing, consist of seven theropod footprints on a 4-square-metre rock slab, indicating that some carnivorous dinosaurs had left these traces in this southern China coastal area.
According to Xing, Type A tracks, which are relatively well preserved belong to medium-sized theropods with a likely length measured from nose to tail of 3 to 4 metres.
With a robust third toe, V-shaped toe divergence and clear heel impressions, these tracks resemble those from Chongqing in southwest China, suggesting a close connection with the agile, predatory dinosaurs of the Sichuan Basin.
Type B tracks, though less distinct, indicate a much larger predator, potentially exceeding 6 meters in length. measured from nose to tail.
Moore said this discovery confirms the presence of apex predators in Guanxi during the middle-late Jurassic.
However, the limited number of tracks and a lack of detailed toe pad impressions make precise classification challenging.
The study also compared 14 fossil sites in Guangxi to those in the Sichuan Basin in southwest China, revealing similar dinosaur species from the middle-late Jurassic period.
This suggests a close geographic connection between these two regions in ancient times.
In addition, the study also highlighted a high level of consistency between the early Cretaceous fossils from Guanxi's Xinlong Formation in the Napai Basin in Fusui County and those found in Thailand's Kokkruat formation, lending credence to the existence of a shared southern biogeographic province in southern China and Southeast Asia during the late early Cretaceous period.
Xing said that this discovery not only pushes the known boundaries of dinosaur distribution in China, but also strengthens the prehistoric connection between southern China and Southeast Asia.
Additionally, it offers tangible evidence for reconstructing ancient environments, climates, and ecosystems.
You're listening to Special English. That is the end of this edition of Special English.
To recap, I'm going to read two of the news items again at normal speed.
Please listen carefully. According to China's top economic planner, another 69 billion yuan around US$9.65 billion, in ultra-long special treasury bond funds will be allocated in October to support the country's consumer goods trading programme.
Jiang Yi, an official with the National Development and Reform Commission, said this will be the fourth and final batch of the year, and the country had already issued its third batch of ultra-long special treasury bond funds in the same amount.
The Ministry of Finance, together with the National Development and Reform Commission, has this year earmarked 300 billion yuan in such funds to back the consumer goods trade-in programme.
Zhou Chen, an official with the Commission, said that the economic performance in the first half of the year demonstrated strong resilience, with domestic demand contributing 68.8% to GDP growth, and continuing to serve as a driving force for expansion.
According to Joe, the Commission will continue to promote the introduction and implementation of a series of measures to stabilise employment and the economy.
It will also strengthen economic monitoring, forecasting and early warning, regularly conduct policy research and preparation, as well as continuously improve the policy toolkit for stabilising employment and expanding domestic demand.
This is Special English. A decade into China's National Park Reform Initiative, the country has made significant strides in restoring flagship wildlife populations and bolstering ecological stability.
That's according to the National Forestry and Grassland Administration.
Sun Hongyan, an official with the administration, said the national park system has shifted from single-element conservation to integrated management of mountains, waters, forests, farmlands, as well as lakes, grasslands and deserts.
Sun added that building a national park system is a complex and multifaceted undertaking, and that reforms involve restructuring the management system of nature reserves and innovating policies on natural resource management, land use, ecological compensation and community development.
According to the administration, wildlife populations have rebounded across several national parks.
The Giant Panda National Park has reconnected fragmented habitats boosting the wild panda population from around 1,100 in the 1980s to almost 1,900 today.
In northeast China Tiger and Leopard National Park, restored migration corridors have helped Amur tiger and leopard numbers rise to around 70 and 80 respectively.
In Hainan Tropical Rainforest National Park, the rainforest ecosystem has gradually recovered, with the wild population of the critically endangered Hainan gibbon increasing from 35 to 42, making it the only gibbon species worldwide showing sustained growth.
Sun said that going forward, relevant authorities will further strengthen systematic governance, implement the optimisation plan for nature reserves, and the Spatial Layout Plan for National Parks, as well as take a prudent approach to establishing new parks and launch major projects for integrated ecosystem management and biodiversity conservation.
That is the end of today's programme. I hope you'll join us every day to learn English at a slower pace.
