Wildlife photographer Chang奚 posted on Weibo about the news of Kunming Zoo's relocation, drawing wide attention (photo)

Note:

Xie Zhinong's Weibo: http://t.sina.com.cn/xizhinong included in: http://www.7weibo.com/7weibo/1419.html At 10:36 am yesterday, well-known wildlife photographer Xie Zhinong posted a blog on his real-name Sina Weibo account saying that Kunming Zoo is going to be relocated. After the post was made, netizens who are concerned about Kunming Zoo forwarded, replied, and commented on it one after another. Why relocate? What will the original site be used for? How to ensure the damage to animals caused by relocation is minimized? While netizens expressed their desire to keep the zoo, many old Kunming residents also expressed their reluctance to part with the zoo. Lawyers said that the relocation of the zoo should widely solicit public opinions.

Kunming Zoo carries the memories of many old Kunming residents, and many people do not want this news to be true. Does Kunming Zoo really need to be relocated? If it has to move, how should it be moved? If you have any opinions or suggestions, you can call 5353000 and talk to us. You can also tell us your stories with Kunming Zoo, or show us some old photos of Kunming Zoo.

The blog post about the relocation of Kunming Zoo

has attracted hundreds of netizens' attention

Xie Zhinong posted a blog saying: I was shocked to hear that Kunming Zoo is going to be relocated. Nowadays in Kunming, Dianchi Lake is polluted, the city is cemented, and only Yuantong Mountain (Zoo) and Cuilake remain as the pitiful green spots, are they going to be taken away too?! Omnipotent Weibo, please help Kunming people!

This blog post has drawn the attention and forwarding of hundreds of people, most of whom oppose the relocation. When the reporter contacted Xie Zhinong by phone, he said that Kunming Zoo carries more than just one generation's memory. The zoo is originally a non-profit venue, if animals are relocated to places farther from the city, how many people will still go to see them? In addition, animal relocation will inevitably lead to animal deaths, it's like an elderly person who has been living in one place for a long time, if he moves to another place, how long can he live? This is common sense.

What are the reasons to relocate Kunming Zoo? Xie Zhinong said that he posted this message on Weibo to seek help, because it will be too late when the elephants are loaded onto the truck.

The zoo is a countable oasis for children living in the urban jungle, it must be preserved! Most netizens who learned of the news hope to keep the zoo. However, some netizens believe that Kunming Zoo should move out of the downtown area, at least the animals should move. A well-known local netizen Bianmin said on Weibo: Yuantong Mountain Zoo should be relocated. It is located in a bustling area, the land is small, and the animals cannot rest peacefully. As the animal kingdom, Yunnan's such a small zoo is not appropriate.

More than 20 interviewed tourists

all hope it won't move

At noon yesterday, the winter sun of Kunming lazily covered the entire Yuantong Mountain. Inside Kunming Zoo, tourists were coming and going continuously. There were curious children, young couples looking at leopards, and elders reminding their grandchildren not to miss the monkeys looking in the mirror. For the issue of the zoo being relocated, the enthusiastic tourists were still unaware and unwilling to believe.

"I brought my son here to see tigers during the holidays," Ms. Zhou said. Her family lives in the northern district of Kunming, she has already brought her son to Yuantong Mountain to see tigers three or four times. But every time they come, her son sees tigers, elephants, and monkeys, and he gets very excited. This is also a part of his childhood life. "Of course we don't want the zoo to move."

Seventy-five-year-old Grandma Zhu said that Kunming Zoo has become inseparable from old Kunming residents like her. She recalled that in the 1950s and 60s, the scale of the zoo was not as big as it is now, there were only animals at the main gate, and the entrance fee was only two cents, later it rose to five cents. Seventy-year-old Mr. Li still clearly remembers that at that time, only bus number 4 passed through Yuantong Mountain, and the back road of Yuantong Mountain was still farmland. Back then, Kunming city was very small, and there were not as many people visiting the zoo as there are now. But whenever relatives came from Dali, he would bring them to visit the zoo. Many people from the provinces and cities had never seen many animals. When asked about the relocation of the zoo, Mr. Li immediately said "impossible." He thinks that Kunming Zoo is the only zoo in the city center, it is convenient to take buses, and the entrance fee is affordable. He used to often bring his grandson to the zoo to see animals, now that his grandson has grown up, he and his wife often exercise in the park. If it is relocated to the suburbs, many elderly people may not go anymore.

The reporter interviewed more than 20 tourists in Kunming Zoo, and each tourist hoped that it would not move.

About 3 million visitors per year

Employees also do not want to move

"We have heard about it before," said an employee who has worked in Kunming Zoo for many years and did not wish to disclose his name.

When the reporter asked the employee about his attitude towards this matter, he said: "Of course we do not want the zoo to be relocated. Mainly because Kunming Zoo is a national science popularization education base, as a named base nationwide, it is important to facilitate the public to visit and let more people receive educational entertainment. Here it can be considered as a living animal museum, allowing children to learn a lot of scientific knowledge in the most intuitive way." Moreover, Kunming Zoo receives about 2 million visitors annually just through ticket sales, plus annual passes and free admissions, the total number of visitors per year is approximately 3 million, ranking in the top 5 among all zoos nationwide in terms of annual visitor volume. Its geographical location determines the popularity of the park.

The staff member also said that it was rumored that there might be concerns about Kunming Zoo being located in the city center, fearing zoonotic diseases, so it was proposed to relocate to the Hongxing Agricultural Field site in Taiping, Anning. The planned allocated area is 1000 mu, with some flat land and some mountainous terrain. However, the new relocation site is 27 kilometers away from the main urban area of Kunming, and it also needs to pass through toll booths, with a round-trip toll of 20 yuan for cars. Therefore, the new relocation site is certainly less convenient than the current location. The staff member said that the number of visitors may significantly decrease after the relocation, making it inconvenient for visitors to go. As employees of the zoo, they still hope that Kunming Zoo can be retained.

Afterward, the reporter went to the Kunming Zoo office to verify this matter. The head of the office said that many media outlets had called them to confirm, but since this matter belongs to a major event, the zoo has not been authorized to make any statements.

Reply from Kunming Municipal Garden Bureau

There is this intention

No formal government approval yet

Yesterday, the reporter called Kunming Municipal Garden Bureau regarding the relocation of Kunming Zoo. A staff member said: "It can be said that there is this intention, but currently preparatory work is being done, as to where to move and when to move, it has not been determined." The reporter asked: "What does preparatory planning refer to?" The staff member answered: "Planning, for example, rebuilding the zoo in a certain place requires planning, a plan, and a construction time. There are many procedures involved, and it is estimated that when the location is determined, our bureau plans to hold a hearing or solicit opinions, but these have not been determined yet."

Regarding the use of the original site after the relocation of Yuantong Mountain Zoo, the staff member replied: "Since there are some historical and cultural elements within the park, such as the Ming Dynasty city wall, etc., it is impossible for it to be abandoned after the relocation. We need to manage it, or other places need someone to manage it, because green spaces are being built everywhere now."

Director Zhang Jiaren of Kunming Municipal Landscape and Gardening Bureau said that there has been no formal government approval yet, and decisions will be made according to the government's decision.

Lawyer's opinion

Relocation of the zoo

Should widely solicit public opinion

In early 2003, Zhejiang Huzhou Jinqing Investment Development Co., Ltd. once approached Kunming Zoo, hoping to take over the large and medium-sized animals of Kunming Zoo in the form of leasing animal operating rights, and move the animals inside the park to the Yunnan Wildlife Park operated by the company for independent operation, with a lease term of 60 years. In addition to安置60 employees of Kunming Zoo, the company would also pay 3 million yuan in rent to Kunming Zoo every year, which would be used as wages and benefits for more than 300 employees and retirees of Kunming Zoo, but eventually both parties failed to reach an agreement.

Regarding the relocation of Kunming Zoo, Lawyer Li Chenguang from Yunnan Lingyun Law Firm said that as a special park conducting comprehensive protection of wild animals in the urban green space system, the zoo is a demonstration site for protecting biodiversity and an important part of social public welfare undertakings. According to the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development's "Opinions on Further Strengthening the Management of Zoos", the feasibility of building and relocating zoos should be argued based on the principle of public welfare of zoos, and strictly controlled. The argumentation should widely solicit public opinions, and the results should be disclosed to the society through more than two public media. The final argumentation results should be filed with the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development by the provincial construction (landscape greening) department. If relocation is indeed necessary, the public welfare nature of the zoo cannot be changed after relocation, nor can the nature of the original site of the zoo as a park green space be changed.

In addition, the "Opinion" clearly stipulates that it is strictly forbidden to occupy parks green spaces under the pretext of transforming or relocating zoos; for those who occupy zoo land for commercial development, they must be rectified within a time limit, and the park green space nature of the land must be restored.

Trace back

The past and present of Kunming Zoo Kunming Zoo, also known as Yuantong Mountain Zoo, is located on Yuantong Mountain at the northern end of Qingnian Road in the northeast of the urban area.

In 1953, Yuantong Mountain built a zoo. In July, the wild animals kept at Daguan Tower were officially transferred to the zoo, totaling 7 animals of 6 species (i.e., black deer, bear, monkey, owl, fox each 1, peacock 2). On January 1, 1954, the zoo officially opened. Now it exhibits more than 200 kinds of Yunnan specialty animals and rare animals from home and abroad, and is one of the top ten zoos in China.

Yuantong Mountain, one of the eight scenic spots in Kunming, is shaped like a willow leaf, long east-west and narrow north-south, with a total area of about 26 hectares, and is the most content-rich and most visited park in the urban area of Kunming. Among them, flower tide, animals, and ancient temples are particularly attractive. (Chief Reporter Zhuxunhang of Metropolis Times, Reporter Yangyan)

Author: Yang Yan (Source of this article: Kunming Information Port)