China Development Bank ramps up support for Yangtze River protection

Ships sail through a section of the Xiling Gorge, one of the Three Gorges along the Yangtze River, in Zigui county of Yichang, Central China's Hubei province, Nov 29, 2020. [Photo/Xinhua]

BEIJING, Jan. 5 (Xinhua) -- The China Development Bank (CDB), one of the country's policy banks, provided nearly 100 billion yuan (14.51 billion U.S. dollars) of loans in 2022 for the protection and ecological restoration of the Yangtze River, the bank said on Thursday.

Upon completion of the projects funded by the loans, the sewage and garbage treatment capacity along the river will increase by 3.94 million tonnes per day, while 1,205 km of river will have been regulated and dredged, according to the bank.

Besides the loans, the bank also issued 12 billion yuan of green bonds in 2022 for the protection and restoration of the ecological system in the Yangtze River basin, it said.

The CDB said it will continue to support the key projects in sewage and garbage treatment in urban areas, industrial pollution control, and environmental protection and ecological restoration of rivers and lakes.