生态城市建设与中国西北地区的可持续发展

Ecological City Construction and Sustainable Development of Northwest China

我国西北地区经济发展水平落后、生态环境脆弱,水土流失严重。要实现这一地区的经济发展和人民生活水平的提高,城市化是一个不可逾越的发展过程。而传统的城市化路径是一种粗放利用各种资源的高投入、高能耗、高污染、低效益的发展模式。这种发展道路已经被实践证明是不可持续的。西北地区的很多城市都在致力于寻求促进城市经济社会和生态环境协调发展的有效途径。要实现城市发展的可持续性,关键是要建立一种以物质闭环流动为特征的经济运行方式——循环经济,切实提高城市的承载能力和自净能力。生态城市建设恰好适应了当前我国西北地区的迫切需要,为解决我国西北地区城市及区域发展所面临的危机提供了一条现实可行的途径。

The north-west area of China is backward in economical development level, weak in ecological environment, and severe in soil erosion. Urbanization then becomes an insurmountable developing stage for advancing the economy and promoting the living standard. However, the traditional urbanization methodology, which has extensively taken advantage of the various resources, is a model of high investment, high consumption, high pollution, but low efficiency. And practice has proved that such a development model is unsustainable. Now, many of the cities in the area are trying to find out a way for harmonious development of their economic, social, and ecological environments. But the key solution should be establish an economy operation system characterized with an enclosed circulation of materials, which may be termed Circularity Economy, the purpose of which is to raise the sustaining and self-purification capability of the cities. The paper argues that the approach of ecological city construction could well satisfy the urgent demand. In fact, it should be a practical solution to the crisis confronting the development of the area, both urban and rural.