The reporter learned from the Taizhou Bay Cluster Area Branch of the Taizhou Planning Bureau that in recent years, the Taizhou Bay Cluster Area has been striving to create a sponge city model, making the city like a sponge that absorbs, stores, infiltrates, and purifies water during rain, preventing urban waterlogging, and releasing stored water for use when needed. The prototype of a brand-new sponge city is emerging.

Because the cluster area is located in a coastal tidal flat area, it is the discharge area at the end of the river network, with a fragile ecological environment. In addition, the long coastline is greatly affected by storm surges, making it most prone to water accumulation and waterlogging. At the same time, as an enterprise cluster area, it also faces water pollution treatment issues, so the idea of a 'sponge city' emerged.

With some curiosity and excitement, the reporter recently visited the cluster area to experience the charm of this 'sponge city'.

The factories in the eastern new district of the Taizhou Bay Cluster Area are different from ordinary factory areas. Almost every factory here has a huge reservoir. According to reports, when the factory area was being built, the sponge city function of drainage and waterlogging prevention was already incorporated into the construction as required. Normally, these ponds serve as landscape features, but during flood weather, they can prevent the factory area from being submerged, because the accumulated water in the entire factory area will be directed into these ponds at the first opportunity. In addition to reservoirs, the factory area also has designs such as sunken green spaces, ecological parking lots, and rain gardens, through which rainwater will be purified.

In addition to sponge factories, the eastern new district has also built sponge roads. Along the edge of the motor vehicle lanes on Qinglongpu Road where they border the green belt, there are many adjacent drainage outlets. Through these outlets, accumulated water flows into the green belt, where it is first filtered and absorbed by tree roots, thus avoiding sewer blockage and pollution caused by sewage, debris, and sediment.

On the inner side of the green belt, there is a non-motorized lane and a sidewalk. These road surfaces are not made of ordinary cement but of water-permeable materials. According to reports, the permeable sidewalk from top to bottom consists of permeable bricks, medium sand, permeable concrete, and permeable graded crushed stone. When it rains, most of the water will directly infiltrate down, and this part of the water will be stored underground. In dry weather, the water inside will slowly evaporate upward, keeping the ground moist and suitable.

It is understood that since 2015, the cluster area has been working on the construction of a 'sponge city'. There are 113 recent construction projects in the eastern new district, involving ten major categories such as sponge-type buildings and communities, sponge-type industrial areas, sponge-type municipal roads, sponge-type parks and green spaces, urban water systems, and drainage and waterlogging prevention. The total investment related to 'sponge city' facilities is approximately 4.933 billion yuan.

At present, the 'sponge city' planning and design of the cluster area has been fully implemented, and more than 40 sponge projects of various types are being constructed in an intense and orderly manner, such as the sponge park which is under full construction.