Juancheng county in Heze, Shandong province has been ramping up efforts to ensure that people who have been relocated from the Yellow River's flood plain live a good life.

In China, the Yellow River Basin serves as a significant ecological barrier as well as an important commercial zone. Within Juancheng, the river winds 52.5 kilometers, and the river's flood plain covers 12.8 percent of the county's entire area.

Flooding used to be a major concern for people living on the plain between the Yellow River and its dikes, reducing crop yields and requiring costly repairs. Flooding can sometimes throw people back into poverty.

Shandong launched a relocation project in 2017 to safeguard communities from flooding and lift them out of poverty. 

By October 2020, all 12,949 households in Juancheng residing on flood plains had been transferred to new homes in safer areas.

Workshops, kindergartens, community service centers and schools have also been built in the new communities. 

Juancheng has also supported development of agricultural projects and industrial parks to provide jobs for relocated farmers.

A farmer works at a strawberry greenhouse in Dongkou town, Juancheng county, Shandong province. [Photo/Iqilu News]

Farmers are busy picking, sorting and packing strawberries at a greenhouse in Juancheng's Dongkou town. The smart agricultural industrial park in Dongkou has cooperated with multiple agricultural cooperatives to offer more jobs to farmers and increase their incomes.

Benefiting from the innate advantages of fertile soil and a suitable climate, Dongkou is also establishing honeysuckle plantations as a pillar industry.

Linpu town in Juancheng has established a demonstration area of leisure agriculture and rural tourism based on local ecological parks, historical parks, and ecological picking gardens along the Yellow River.

Juancheng has also taken steps to encourage small and micro businesses to provide employment opportunities for relocated residents.

Farmers work in the honeysuckle fields in Dongkou town, Juancheng county, Shandong province. [Photo/Iqilu News]

A relocated villager works at a workshop in Juancheng county, Shandong province. [Photo/Iqilu News]