Hong Kong taps into the kindness of strangers

River and forest ranger

Water shortages have mostly been eradicated in Hong Kong because people at the source of the Dongjiang have sustained and stabilized the supply of clean water.

Gong Longshou was born and raised in Hugang village, about 4 kilometers from Sanbai Mountain in Anyuan county. The 60-year-old former soldier has been a forest ranger since 1980, protecting the woodland from poachers.

In the 1980s, he earned less than 100 yuan a month. In addition to patrolling the woodland, he conducted doorto-door checks to ensure villagers were not felling trees.

He promoted awareness of forest protection, and whenever he found people felling trees illegally, he reported them to the police because fewer trees would reduce the forest's ability to conserve water.

In the 1970s, village elders told Gong that the river supplied water to Hong Kong.

"Chinese people should care for and help each other," he said. "People in Hong Kong are my compatriots. As a son of the mountain, protecting the hill and the river is my responsibility and also my honor."

For their part, the people of Hong Kong have made donations to the mainland's education system as a way of thanking the local people for protecting the water supply.

Since 2007, the Federation of Hong Kong Shenzhen Associations has donated funds to Tianxin Wulong elementary school, Tianxin Xinhuai elementary school and Anyuan No 1 Middle School in Anyuan county.

It has also established scholarships for students who gained places at universities.

Meanwhile, the Hong Kong Yanai Foundation also donated 10 million yuan to build Siyuan primary school in the county.

Gong hopes more Hong Kong people will visit the mountain source of their mother river, and he wants to visit them, too.

"Hong Kong must be a prosperous city and people there must be very warm," he said.

Nowadays he faces fewer challenges in protecting the forest because the local people are more aware of the importance of conservation, while higher living standards mean they do not need to cut down trees to build houses.

On the other side of the river source, in neighboring Huichang county, the people who moved out of Qingfeng village have been adapting to their new location.

Xie Jiawan said it's easier for children to access education, and the school is only a 10-minute walk from their homes.

The government has laid a sealed road to their homes and installed street lamps and sewer pipes.

The improvements have marked a great change in the life of the community because previously the residents struggled along a mud road.