Zhonghua Village In China Transforms Former Quarry Into A Thriving Ecotourism Hub With Sustainable Development

Published on September 2, 2025

Southwest China’s Chongqing is renowned for its business development, move culture, and mountainous scenery. One of its astir awesome occurrence stories, however, is recovered successful nan agrarian heartlands alternatively than successful its engaged cities, wherever a once-desolate chromatic quarry has been turned into a thriving ecotourism destination. This revitalisation, which was accomplished done community-driven tourism projects and ecological restoration, has established a modular for sustainable improvement successful nan area. Zhonghua Village successful Beibei District is astatine nan bosom of this change, pinch innovative initiatives rewriting nan history of nan area and its inhabitants.

From Industrial Decay to Ecological Rebirth

Zhonghua Village’s history is rooted successful business exploitation. In nan early 2000s, nan onshore was leased for chromatic mining, and complete nan adjacent decade, nan quarry became an emblem of unchecked assets extraction. For years, it supplied limestone to nan region’s booming building industry, contributing to short-term economical gains but resulting successful important biology damage. The once-lush scenery was reduced to heavy pits and barren land, pinch small to show for nan assets extraction beyond nan scars it near behind.

However, by nan extremity of 2016, nan quarry was closed. This marked nan opening of a caller section for Zhonghua Village. With a keen consciousness of work for some nan situation and his community, Zhou Song, a section entrepreneur pinch a inheritance successful architecture, took nan reins of nan task aimed astatine restoring nan land. The caller imagination was clear: to reclaim nan land’s ecological equilibrium while processing it into a sustainable and vibrant agrarian tourism destination.

A Green Restoration Initiative

In early 2017, Zhou, alongside his creation team, launched an eager greenish restoration project. This progressive replanting nan area pinch a assortment of consequence trees, including peaches, plums, and different location type that not only helped rehabilitate nan onshore but besides provided economical opportunities for nan villagers. Over 20 hectares were transformed, replacing nan business scars pinch lush orchards and inviting greenish spaces.

The restoration was not conscionable astir planting trees—it was a broader effort to reintroduce biodiversity, trim ungraded erosion, and reintegrate nan onshore into nan section ecosystem. The task was successful statement pinch nan Chongqing Municipal Bureau of Ecology and Environment’s larger inaugural to reconstruct abandoned and closed mining areas. Across Chongqing, complete 7,000 hectares of onshore person been rehabilitated done akin efforts, showing really nan integration of ecological betterment pinch municipality improvement tin beforehand semipermanent sustainability.

The Birth of Jibai Villa and Rural Tourism

As nan onshore was gradually restored, nan adjacent shape of nan task took shape: nan creation of a agrarian tourism hub. In 2020, Jibai Villa opened its doors to nan public. This guesthouse, built utilizing eco-friendly materials and blending seamlessly pinch nan earthy environment, has go a awesome tie for tourists. Recognised arsenic a nationally rated A-level tourer homestay, it stands arsenic a awesome of really sustainable practices tin coexist pinch tourism.

Zhonghua Village is now location to a divers scope of tourism experiences. Visitors tin prosecute successful flower appreciation, consequence picking, and nan recently established mining study club, which provides acquisition insights into nan region’s business past. One of nan astir unsocial offerings is nan first-ever innkeeper training schoolhouse successful nan area, aimed astatine equipping locals pinch hospitality skills to further diversify tourism offerings.

A recently constructed 120-square-metre manner aesthetics centre offers yoga and Pilates classes, catering to nan increasing wellness tourism trend. Additionally, a stylish edifice and café, converted from erstwhile quarry guidance offices and workshops, now serves arsenic a societal hub for visitors and locals alike. This repurposing of aged infrastructure illustrates really business pasts tin beryllium transformed into taste and economical assets.

Economic Impact and Community Empowerment

The restoration and tourism improvement successful Zhonghua Village person brought astir important economical benefits. During highest seasons, nan tract draws up to 1,000 visitors daily, pinch yearly tourer numbers surpassing 100,000. This influx has generated gross exceeding 5 cardinal yuan (approximately $698,330), contributing importantly to some section and location economical growth. The occurrence of nan homestay is peculiarly noteworthy, pinch nan guesthouse capable to service up to 400 diners astatine a time, creating unchangeable employment for astir 30 section villagers.

On average, each section worker earns an yearly income of astir 50,000 yuan, a important betterment compared to their erstwhile livelihoods. The village’s corporate economical cooperative besides invested successful surrounding projects successful 2022, generating an further 150,000 yuan successful yearly income. This is simply a clear illustration of really agrarian communities tin use from ecotourism and sustainable development, pinch section group actively progressive successful nan economical revival.

Government Support and Infrastructure Development

The Chongqing municipal authorities has played a captious domiciled successful supporting this initiative. Key infrastructure developments, specified arsenic paved roads, thoroughfare lighting, and a show area for a play speciality market, person enhanced accessibility and created a much welcoming situation for tourists. These improvements are portion of a broader effort by section authorities to merge tourism pinch ecological restoration, ensuring that improvement is not only sustainable but besides beneficial to nan section community.

Zhou Song has besides praised nan section authorities for its forward-thinking approach, noting really nationalist investments successful infrastructure person paved nan measurement for backstage entrepreneurs to bring their ideas to fruition. This collaboration betwixt nan authorities and nan backstage assemblage has made Zhonghua Village a exemplary of agrarian revitalisation, wherever biology protection and economical maturation spell manus successful hand.

A Blueprint for Sustainable Rural Revitalization

The occurrence of Zhonghua Village represents a broader displacement towards sustainable improvement successful China’s agrarian areas. The village’s translator has caught nan attraction of biology experts and policymakers alike, showcasing really a blend of ecological restoration and responsible tourism tin thief reside humanities biology harm while creating caller economical opportunities for agrarian communities.

This translator besides aligns pinch China’s broader nationalist goals of agrarian revitalisation and greenish development. By investing successful sustainable tourism, Zhonghua Village has go a cardinal illustration of really erstwhile business sites tin beryllium reimagined and repurposed for nan use of some nan situation and section populations.

Looking to nan Future

Zhou Song has large plans for nan early of Zhonghua Village. With plans to found a hub for homestays that connection broad services for visitors, he hopes to further create nan site’s tourism offerings. In bid to found a self-sustaining rhythm of maturation and biology stewardship, nan nonsubjective is to tie successful much investors and visitors pinch an liking successful ecotourism, hospitality, and agriculture.

Zhonghua Village continues to show that moreover nan astir damaged landscapes tin beryllium turned into prosperous, sustainable tourer destinations that use nan satellite and its inhabitants arsenic much visitors move into this once-forgotten quarry.

[Image Source: iChongqing Official Website]