Is China interested in the natural environment of the Tianshan Mountains? A study

In my latest material, I mentioned the scientific paper “Spatial patterns of species diversity and phylogenetic structure of plant communities in the Tianshan Mountains, arid Central Asia.” I would like to tell the Headquarters community more about it. The study was conducted by Chinese scientists, and it is, in fact, an outstanding piece of field research. It was funded by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (NSFC). In other words, it received extremely serious state support.

It took me several days to study the research and verify the facts presented in it using independent sources. It is difficult! But it is genuinely very good work. As I understand it, they simply could not have done it poorly — the Party would not have forgiven them. The state takes the use of public funds quite seriously there.

Of course, I would note the following:

A) It is very unfortunate that countries of the former Soviet Union do not conduct scientific studies of this kind. Apparently, very few people are interested. As always, China is the one that sees the real benefit and direct strategic interest — take note of this, because it matters. The same happened with rare-earth resources, which the Middle Kingdom monopolized before they became a global trend and triggered worldwide competition. In exactly the same way, China is ALREADY carrying out the most in-depth scientific research into wildlife conservation — ahead of everyone else.

B) The study was conducted not only in the Chinese part of the Tianshan Mountains, but across the entire mountain belt. Someone is taking a strategic view of the future protection of this exceptionally rare refuge for wildlife! There is, of course, a touch of sarcasm in this question, but might it actually be easier to negotiate with the Middle Kingdom on the creation of Territories of Full Ecological Tranquility in the future?

As for the study itself:

— It confirms that the glacial refugia of the Western Tianshan are centers of biodiversity. Areas that survived the glacial periods, primarily the Ili Valley region, contain significantly more plant species than territories recolonized after the retreat of the glaciers.

— It covered almost the entire Tianshan mountain system. The scientists surveyed 17 research sites and 35 sample plots, recording 92 plant species from 81 genera and 32 families, making it one of the largest field assessments of plant communities in the Tianshan Mountains.

— The study specifically examined the preservation of species diversity throughout the history of the planet, including periods of climate change and glaciation. Species richness was found to be most strongly associated with the location of glacial refugia, as well as elevation and temperature conditions.

— The study shows that plant communities throughout the Tianshan Mountains share a common origin. After the glacial periods ended, the major plant lineages spread from the western refugia along the mountain system, which is why different parts of the Tianshan retained a broadly shared evolutionary “foundation.”

— It is also interesting that the scientists place particular emphasis on the Western Tianshan, describing it as a “museum of biodiversity.” The authors conclude that the western refugia are not so much modern centers of new species formation as long-term sanctuaries where ancient biodiversity was able to survive the climatic changes of the Quaternary period.

I am attaching the scientific paper itself for anyone who would like to broaden their knowledge further. And I assume I am not the only one who now has additional questions? Questions concerning China, which until now has been the only country to act in a timely way with regard to long-term plans. It would be foolish to deny this. China is extremely far-sighted.

[p_link url='https://pavel-pashkov.com/uploads/images/attachments/d377d01928cc119aa1511a519048bb71.pdf' size='1.7 MB' target="_blank"]Read the study (PDF)[/p_link]

I would closely monitor the future funding of projects of this kind. There are two possibilities: either the Middle Kingdom is interested in control over glaciers and freshwater sources, or it is the first country to be planning a complete transformation of the protected-area system.