Haikou in Hainan province has pioneered its efforts to preserve ecosystems. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn] Haikou, the capital of China's southernmost Hainan province and a renowned tourist city famous for its charming coconut trees and warm sunshine, is transforming itself into a destination that also features rich and lush wetlands, thanks to enviable progress made in the restoration of its local ecosystems. For locals, it's all been good. The Meishe River, known as Haikou's mother river, is now a favorite place for retired worker Lao Zheng and his friends to hang out. We rarely came to the river in previous years, because many parts were terribly smelly, he said. Now you can see egrets flying overhead. There are lots of people around and the other day we even saw a couple of people taking a nap under the nearby banyan trees, he said. A number of new wetlands including the Meishe River National Wetland Park and Wuyuan River National Wetland Park emerged to become new attractions for tourists and nearby residential communities last year, as a result of the major ecological restoration drive made by the city government in recent years. silicone rubber wristbandssilicone lymphedema braceletcustomize your own bracelet24 hour silicone wristbandsjelly band silicone medical alert bracelet
A camera used to identify drivers or pedestrians who blew through red lights is pictured in Shenzhen city, South China's Guangdong province, April 23, 2018. [Photo/IC] Shenzhen is using facial recognition technology to identify traffic violators and levy fines as it builds toward its goal of being a smart city. Forty sets of surveillance devices, installed mainly at intersections with high traffic volume, officially lit up on Tuesday. The electronics police will pay special attention to people in certain industries - couriers, for example - as well as people who have had their driver's licenses revoked, according to the city's traffic police. Four types of violations - running a red light, failing to observe traffic signals, nonmotorized vehicles running on roads and driving without a license - will be closely monitored. A total of 58 cases related to jaywalking and 67 cases involving nonmotorized vehicles on roads were detected on the first day. The violators will be notified via text message and fined depending on the severity of the violation. The move is Shenzhen's latest push to make use of high technology in municipal governance. Earlier, the city had launched programs using facial recognition technology to regulate vehicles. With the rapid development of facial recognition technology, Shenzhen has achieved a breakthrough in expanding traffic regulation from only vehicles to pedestrians, said Xu Wei, head of Shenzhen's traffic police. The city plans to expand the surveillance network by adding at least 200 sets of facial recognition devices by the end of this year, he said. Shenzhen, which is home to a number of technology companies, such as Huawei, Tencent and DJI, has been taking efforts to integrate advanced technology into its traffic system. In April last year, the traffic police installed a set of surveillance cameras at a key intersection, using facial recognition technology to identify jaywalkers. Photos were compared with those in a police database. The pictures and personal information of the traffic violators were displayed on large LED screens at the intersection. Most people appear to embrace the move, saying it could reduce irregularities and promote social progress. The measure is a constraint to people who have little consciousness of traffic rules. In the long term, fewer people will violate the rules and our society will become better, said Lin Zhiwei, a 56-year-old Shenzhen resident. Some also raised concerns over the risk to privacy by displaying violators' information on a public screen. Displaying photos and information of violators publicly could lead to a problem with privacy. The authorities need to attach high importance to that, another Shenzhen resident said. Other Chinese cities are also using facial recognition technology. Last month, a suspect was arrested after being detected in a crowd of 60,000 people attending a music concert in Nanchang, Jiangxi province.
