Two generations keep a green dream alive in SW China’s Yunnan

Wang Shigui, a ranger, and his wife check the growth of trees in the forest on Huamu mountain in Luliang county, Qujing, southwest China’s Yunnan Province, on March 12. (Xinhua/Jiang Wenyao)

The forest on Huamu mountain in Luliang county, Qujing, southwest China’s Yunnan Province, is where Wang Shigui, a 65-year-old ranger, works and a lookout tower on the top is where Wang and his wife live in the mountain.

The forest, with an area of 7,400 mu (493 hectares), is located over 30 kilometers away from Luliang county and at an elevation of more than 2,300 meters. The couple is responsible for monitoring potential fires and guarding the woods.

In the 1980s, Huamu mountain was afflicted by stony desertification. Then, eight farmers took the lead in planting trees in a bid to transform the barren mountain, encouraging more and more people to join the afforestation force and creating wider coverage of greenness.

Wang has stuck to his post for 24 years, which results in the couple spending more time with the lush mountain and less with their children. However, eight predecessors become a constant source of inspiration for them to prevail over difficulties and forge ahead.

What makes the senior couple proud most is that the forest on Huamu mountain has never seen a fire in the past 24 years. “I just want to stay here, safeguarding the precious legacy left by the older generation,” Wang said.