In search of the elusive snow leopard

Drivers fix the punctured tire of the Land Cruiser. [Photo by Yang Yang/China Daily]

We were on the fifth day of a 10-day trip to the Three-River-Source National Park, the first of its kind in China. Approved by the government in 2015, China's national park system aims first and foremost to preserve regions with ecosystems and natural heritage unique to China. Under the national park system, mountains, rivers, woods, fields and lakes are managed by a single department instead of five different departments. The national park, in addition to being charged with preservation, will be open to scientific research, education and moderately developed tourism.

The Three-River-Source National Park, as the name indicates, contains the sources of three big rivers, the Yangtze River, the longest river in China, the Yellow River, the second longest river in China, and the Lancang River that runs into Vietnam, the Mekong River.

The park, covering 123,100 square kilometers, about the size of Greece, is home to not only mountains, rivers and unique plants and wild animals, but also aboriginal people. More than 60,000 people in 16,000 households in 53 villages that belong to 12 towns live mainly on the husbandry. There are 2,400 households that live in poverty.

As a result, preserving the natural environment is just a part of the work of national park authorities. How to improve the lives of those within the park and have them join in the preservation of the national environment is also important for the system so humans can live harmoniously with wild animals.