Wise use of coastal wetlands: 10-year reclamation vs. 3-year eco-governance in the Tiaozini Wetland, Jiangsu, China

A rapid shift from reclamation to conservation in just three years yielded significant benefits for biodiversity and ecotourism in the Tiaozini Wetland, surpassing a decade of reclamation efforts. This study highlights how adaptive eco-governance—combining top-down policies with bottom-up stakeholder collaboration—can effectively mitigate coastal wetland loss. By engaging local residents, scientists, NGOs, and media, the Tiaozini Wetland demonstrated that integrated management strategies, including public participation and environmental education, outperform traditional reclamation in sustaining ecological services. The findings underscore the potential of ecosystem-based approaches to reverse degradation trends in critical habitats like those along China's Yellow Sea-Bohai Gulf coast.

Liang, J., Tian, J., Zuo, P., Dai, Z., Jiang, W., Jin, J., & Yan, Y. (2023). Wise use of coastal wetlands: 10-year reclamation vs. 3-year eco-governance in the Tiaozini Wetland, Jiangsu, China. Frontiers in Marine Science, 10. https://doi.org/10.3389/fmars.2023.1147106