A few years ago I visited China both as a tourist and on business. Owing to a standing invitation I had from a wildlife colleague who was involved in Panda conservation, I found myself photographing and attempting to paint two of the most endearing creatures in the animal kingdom – both of which are classed as “endangered”- the Giant and the Red Panda.
A secondary reason for visiting China at that particular time and doing the trip mostly by boat down the Yangtse River, was to see the Three Gorges of Xiling, Wu, and Qutang before it was too late. I say late because of what’s called the Three Gorges Dam which will be the largest and most powerful hydro-electric project in the world. Towering 610 feet high and stretching 1.3 miles wide, the dam will create a reservoir that extends nearly 400 miles upstream (nearly half the length of California) and forever changing the landscape of one of the most beautiful regions in China.
So it seemed a good time to try and see this wonderful landscape before it perhaps changed for ever and record what I saw with the camera and on canvas if I could manage it.
Area of Dam water projected
I’ll not go too deeply into the positives and negatives of this project, suffice to say that it’s costing an absolute fortune ($33 billion) and is controversial to say the least. But some salient points are as follows -
I know that re-location of at least 1½ million people will be one result – something like 13 cities, 140 towns and 1300 villages will disappear, submerged under the giant lake. One concern which comes up (and that is an apt phrase) is the 265 billion gallons of raw sewage normally dumped into the Yangtze annually and currently flushed downstream and out into the ocean. When the dam is completed the sewage will back up in the reservoir.
Three Gorges Dam under construction
This fact coupled with the 1,600 odd factories and abandoned mines that will also be submerged, environmentalists predict that toxins associated with industry and mining will create a hazard for the animals and people who depend on the river for survival.
Another negative is the fact that the Yangtse is one of the largest sediment carriers in the world and no proven way now to control it.
On the positive side it is said the it will produce the same power as 15 Nuclear Power Stations and save millons of tons of fossil fuel burning and reduce the carbon emisions and the ghastly environment air polution that is suffered in much of China. It is also said that it will prevent the floodings that have occurred (215 in the last 2000 years which were catastrophic) – in 1988 around 4000 people died, 14 million homeless and an economic $14 million loss to the country.
Due to be submerged?
And pollution certainly needs to be tackled as we experienced this first hand – in Chengdu the air quality was so poor that you could not see across the street for a thick green coloured poisonous fog which made your eyes constantly water and burned your throat. It was utterly appalling and – here’s the stinger – it was not uncommon.
On the great new road construction towards Tibet on the border (at a cost of millions) what with thousands of trucks belching fumes carrying tons and tons or concrete and supplies, you simply had great difficulty in breathing it was so bad. Not for any economic reasons either this road or for tourism, but as a method of getting troops fast into Tibet.
I am highly doubtful about any serious intent of the Chinese political machine in regards pollution control, wildlife conservation or humanitarian issues or indeed their own people’s welfare. But that’s just my opinion.
But anyway we went on the boat and travelled up the Yangtse River and away from the polluted areas and up through the Three Gorges.
We passed literally hundreds of archeological sites, temples and fascinating buildings on the way, many of which of course would be submerged (1300 known sites will be lost forever). Other temples you could see along the river bank had white lines painted representing the expected height of the water after the dam was completed.
Ferry in the Gorges
Temple - maybe only the top will remain?
The marvellous gorges themselves of course, steep and ravine like and very deep would be changed, the drama lessened and the views of hundreds of years would soon become a just a picture or a painting, but no more.
And now to Pandas.
Giant Panda painting
We went overland for over 3 hours from Chengdu up that dreadful industrial polluted nightmare where the new Tibetan highway was being built. And after what seemed many many miles we detoured off towards the mountains and the Panda Breeding and Rehabilitation Centre at Wolong.
Here up higher the air was clearer and the mists were early morning classic Chinese, Nepal, Tibet paintings type of mystical mists, composed of water vapour not poison and wonderful to see.
It’s no surprise that it’s here that the rehabilitation Centre was built, close to the natural habitat of the Panda and away from the billions of people and humanity.
“This painting shows a 3 year old Giant Panda about 15ft up a tree, where he sat for an hour, so was the perfect sitter. You won’t see older Pandas up trees as they’re too heavy and really don’t fancy it much!”
Just like their pictures and cuddly toys, they are beautiful and when young are just like big Teddy bears waiting to be picked up by anybody willing to play. In Wolong Centre a few tourists take the opportunity of playing with then (for a fee) and it’s just as much fun for the adults as it is for children.
The serious side of course is that they look after abandoned cubs, often found in the forests and brought in by villagers, their parent either fatally injured, hunted or unable to feed. However the main purpose of the Centre is to oversee mating and also impregnation of female Pandas and prepare the new Panda babies for release into the wild.
It can be a long and tricky job, though their success rate is very very good.
Tragedy struck not too long ago on the 12th May 2008 with the violent earthquake in the area and much of the centre was destroyed. Panda enclosures were collapsed and one Panda Mao Mao was killed when a wall collapsed on top of her. Six workers were also killed in the quake and some other Pandas were missing for a time. The WWF and Panda trusts everywhere and it has to be said the Chinese Government itself worked and are working hard to rebuild the centre.
However with many of the captive Pandas suddenly homeless it was quite an effort to collect them and 27 I think were transferred to the Bifeng Gorge Base of China Panda Protection and Research Center, which is about an hour away by road. It is a new centre and ideally situated in prime Panda country, so hopefully these guys will be fine.
I was there a few years before the earthquake and it was very interesting. I took many photographs and sketches of Giant and Red Panda at every opportunity. One of my paintings was entered into a National Chinese Wildlife Art Competition in Beijing later that year and it won one of the categories. I had entered three pictures and the other two were awarded Order of Merits, so pretty successful all round.
Another picture, this time a PhotoArt Giant Panda found its way to the UK Giant Panda Trust and hangs in the Directors office I understand. Also some of the pictures were sold via AllPosters and occasionally I got a cheque or two in the post which can’t be bad for a photo-cum- art-cum-graphic-print!
All in all it was a great trip – seeing the country itself, travelling the Yangtse River, the marvellous Three Gorges, Beijing and the Forbidden City and a few of the Red and Giant Panda reserves and Centres along the way.
But the lasting impression is still the Panda – that wonderful lovely big furry Teddy Bear.
