Xiamen holds workshop on eco-friendly carbon sinks
A group photo of participants of the workshop on eco-friendly carbon sinks in the ocean and coastal wetlands held on April 16. [Photo provided to xmicc.org.cn]
A workshop on eco-friendly carbon sinks in the ocean and coastal wetlands was held on April 16 in the coastal city of Xiamen in China's Southeast Fujian province.
It drew over 40 experts and scholars from research institutes, universities, the China Geological Survey and National Geological Library -- as well as officials in the science and technology development department of the Ministry of Natural Resources or MNR -- to discuss research on the carbon neutrality of dry land, the ocean and coastal wetlands.
A carbon sink is an eco-friendly reservoir that builds up and stores carbon-containing chemical compounds over an indefinite period and that reduces CO₂ concentrations in the atmosphere. Globally, the most important carbon sinks are in vegetation and in the ocean.
Jiao Nianzhi and Dai Minhan, both academicians of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and professors at Xiamen University, together with other 16 experts, delivered speeches, respectively, at the workshop.
Cai Feng, director of the Third Institute of Oceanography at the MNR, gave a briefing on the institute's work on carbon neutrality in the marine sector.
Shan Weidong, an inspector with the MNR's science and technology development department, outlined the ministry's efforts to fulfill China's commitment to achieving peak carbon dioxide emissions by 2030 and carbon neutrality by 2060.
The department authority also called for joint efforts by experts and scholars to further understand carbon sinks in China, research various effective approaches to achieve marine carbon neutrality – as well as to facilitate the country's efforts to reach its peak carbon emissions and carbon neutrality targets by the deadline years.