In Xitou Town, Yangxi County, Yangjiang City, Guangdong Province, across 402.66 hectares of blue sea, a stretch of "offshore forest" has quietly risen from what was once barren tidal flats. Since the project broke ground in May 2025, the team of the Yangxi County Mangrove Wetland Ecological Restoration System Governance Project of CCCC Fourth Harbor Engineering Co., Ltd. (CCCC Fourth Harbor Engineering) has overcome difficulties over seven months and greened the tidal flats with a love for the ocean, planting up to 80,000 mangrove seedlings per day at peak and building an ecological barrier of nearly 300 hectares of mangroves, creating the "Yangxi Speed" of mangrove construction.

"We must build a solid ecological barrier of mangroves and leave a valuable asset for sustainable development to future generations," said Zeng Zhengwan, project manager of CCCC Fourth Harbor Engineering, expressing the original aspiration and mission behind the project's initiation.

In November 2024, the project team sounded the drum for preparations, advancing at full speed the handling of sea area use certificates, environmental impact assessment approval, geological surveys, and scheme optimization. Zeng Zhengwan took the lead in tackling difficulties and breaking through bottlenecks, coordinating with local authorities to secure special funds, forming a dedicated team to clear approval blockages, and working with multiple departments including the coast guard, environmental protection, and natural resources to build a collaborative mechanism. It took only four months to complete the environmental impact assessment for a large sea area, nearly halving the conventional cycle, and the team achieved "acceleration" in project preparation with efficient execution.

In communication and coordination with local villagers, the project team proactively addressed villagers' demands, patiently resolving matters such as fishery compensation and impacts on production and daily life, winning broad recognition and support from the villagers. "The project must not only pursue progress and ensure quality but also warm people's hearts. Only when local residents truly feel the benefits brought by the project and know that this is a good deed benefiting future generations can our work be considered truly done," said Huang Xiaochu, deputy project manager of CCCC Fourth Harbor Engineering.

Mangrove construction is a head-on confrontation between builders and nature, and even more a courageous charge against difficulties and obstacles. "The irregular semi-diurnal tide is the biggest challenge for construction. With each daily rise and fall of the tide, effective working time is only three to four hours, and for more than ten days each month outdoor construction is impossible due to tides and wind waves. The schedule is tight and the challenges are great!" said Zhao Xiong, deputy project manager of CCCC Fourth Harbor Engineering, speaking frankly about the construction difficulties.

Advancing despite difficulties and tackling challenges against the odds. The project team tailored a "tidal operation method": at high tide, transport construction materials using transport boats and floating platforms, and operate waterborne equipment such as cutter suction dredgers and pile-driving vessels for underwater work; at low tide, concentrate forces on land-based procedures such as cofferdam construction, tidal flat leveling, and seedling planting. For the 3,195,600 cubic meter reclamation and island-building project, the team innovatively adopted a model of "mainly cutter suction backfilling, supplemented by amphibious excavator backfilling." Eighteen cutter suction units operated around the clock, completing up to 50,000 cubic meters of reclamation soil per day at peak, continuously setting new construction progress records.

To protect the foundation for mangrove growth, the project team built a dual protective barrier: a 3,137-meter double-layer anti-pollution curtain between the mangrove planting area and the native forest, and a 5,796-meter continuous anti-pollution curtain around the outer perimeter of the offshore pine piles, building a "protective wall" for seedling growth. During construction, 2.7 million seedlings needed to be planted within a short period, with a survival rate requirement of no less than 85%. The project team visited multiple locations for investigation and research, ultimately selecting highly adaptable seedlings from Leizhou. Using a combination of manual labor and drones, they planted up to 80,000 seedlings per day at peak, completing the planting target on schedule and overcoming the challenge of seedling cultivation with practical results.

Through the efforts of the project team, on the once barren tidal flats, 25 ecological islands are now arranged in picturesque disorder, 298.26 hectares of mangroves are thriving, 42,796 meters of beach protection works safeguard the coastline, and a 780-meter ecological seawall winds through and connects the green barrier. Waterbirds such as egrets and grey herons inhabit and forage here, and marine creatures such as fish, shrimp, and crabs swim freely, full of vitality. An ecological picture of forest and sea supporting each other and all things living together is unfolding across the land of Yangxi.

At present, the project has been listed as a typical mangrove ecological restoration project in the province and has become a benchmark project for ecological protection in Yangxi County. In the future, Xitou Town will rely on this mangrove ecological resource to build supporting projects such as an ecological research and learning base and an ecological sightseeing corridor, promoting the transformation of ecological benefits into economic benefits.

"Project completion is not the end. Over the next three years, we will continue to track the growth of the mangroves, dynamically optimize maintenance measures, and protect this wetland with persistent tenacity," said Zeng Zhengwan, full of confidence as he looked at the thriving mangroves.

Source: CNR