China Daily Global Edition (USA)
Terraces cultivate global recognition
UNESCO World Heritage designation lauds world wonder’s blend of culture and ecology. reports.
The Honghe Hani Rice Terraces rise up the Ailao Mountains from the Honghe River’s southern bank. They span four counties in the Honghe Hani and Yi autonomous prefecture in southeastern Yunnan province.
This man-made wonder was inducted into UNESCO’s World Heritage List on Saturday at the World Heritage Committee’s 37th session in Phnom Penh, Cambodia.
The nominated area and buffer zone is in Yuanyang county, which covers 461 square kilometers and displays the most concentrated and best-developed terraces in three valleys.
The 82 villages in the area house 80,000 people from the Hani and six other ethnic groups.
The more than 1,300-yearold terraces cascade from a summit 2,000 meters above sea level to the mountain’s base. In some places, there are as many as 3,700 terraces flowing down the slopes. The steepest drop at 45 degrees.
“The Hani rice terraces are not just a natural splendor but also the most harmonious masterpiece of man and
China began preparing the World Heritage application and domestic designations in 2000 to protect the world wonder.
In 2007, the local government and application office determined technical standards to be followed within all the villages to control development and construction.
Some abandoned terraces outside the nominated area and buffer zone have been recovered.
Improvements have been made to local living standards. For instance, livestock have been centralized, rather than dwelling in houses.
A monitoring center has been running for a year to study more than 10 ecological dimensions, such as forests and climate. The center has helped blunt the threat from alien species, such as the South American crayfish, which invaded the fields three years ago.
Red rice contains up to 18 amino acids and is being sold outside the Ailao Mountains. More than 90 trademarks have been registered to protect intellectual property rights.
The local government is working with Tsinghua University’s School of Architecture to develop guidelines for construction that maintain the mushroom houses’ extrinsic characteristics with improved interior functions.
In accordance with local people’s wishes, the government will subsidize the houses’ construction but allow residents to build them according to the guidelines. Three houses have been built in this way, and more are planned.
This May, the State Council designated the property as a State Priority Protected Site.
From October, only electric vehicles will be allowed to drive in the area.
“The Honghe Hani Rice Terraces’ protection must receive all stakeholders’ support,” says State Administration of Cultural Heritage deputy director Tong Mingkang.
The government will offer farmers subsidies to encourage them to continue cultivating the paddies. Otherwise, it is feared nearly all locals might abandon them to work in the tourism industry.
More detailed and sustainable eco-tourism strategies are being developed to alleviate increased tourism’s pressure.
Farmer Li Yousheng, from Yuanyang county’s Dayutang village, says he now understands better than ever why protecting the terraces is important.
“The World Cultural Heritage designation shows the magnitude of our guardianship of the Hani lifeblood,” the 53-year-old says. Contact the writer at zhangzixuan@chinadaily. com.cn.
“Therefore, most about harvests.”
Zhang belongs to an association dedicated to preserving Hani terrace culture.
She explains her ethnic group worships nature, gods and ancestors.
In February, they celebrate the Angmatu Festival to offer sacrifices to the agriculture god and other deities. It is the overture to spring plowing.
They butcher pigs and deliver pork to every household, symbolizing the bounty from the gods.
A two-day Long Street Banquet is also hosted. Every family brings the best food to share.
Dishes are made of the terraces’ products, such as loach and salted duck eggs. Red rice is ground into flour to make noodles, tofu and crackers.
The transplanting of rice seedlings begins after Angmatu. In June, Hani butcher cattle and swing to worship heaven and pray for a good harvest.
If the harvest does come by fall, the Hani butcher pigs and chickens to thank their ancestors. They visit friends, host weddings or build houses during that time.
April is the only month without a Hani festival.
Puffing from a handmade bamboo water pipe, Lu says the rice terraces have not changed in his lifetime. He strongly supports their World Heritage designation.
“Hani customs are passed down from our ancestors and cannot be lost in our hands,” he says.
“The World Heritage listing will increase the government’s attention to our culture, to our language, costumes, farming and ritual sacrifice, so they can be passed down.”
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