Jiangsu has also set up a provincial-level Grand Canal cultural heritage monitoring and management platform.
Heads of eight cities and 40 county-level regions have been assigned the job of "canal chiefs" to take charge of improving the Grand Canal's environment.
The irrigation system between the Liyun Canal and the Gaoyou Lake, which is known as Liyun-Gaoyou Irrigation Area, was selected as a world heritage site for irrigation engineering by the International Commission on Irrigation and Drainage last year, which marked the first of its kind in Jiangsu province.
In 2021, the water of the canal's Jiangsu section was classified as Grade III on China's water-quality index, meaning it is safe to drink.
The province has also made great efforts to promote the cultural value of the canal from various aspects. The China Grand Canal Museum in the city of Yangzhou, beginning operation last June, has received more than 1 million visitors.
Covering around 80,000 square meters, the museum contains more than 10,000 cultural relics, such as ancient books, paintings, calligraphic works, tablet inscriptions, ceramics, metals and miscellaneous objects, which reflect the theme of the canal from the Spring and Autumn Period (770-476 BC) to the contemporary period.
Jiangsu took the lead in establishing a provincial-level research institute, a key high-end think tank, for studying the Grand Canal.
A number of activities have been held in the province, including the Grand Canal Culture and Tourism Expo, the Grand Canal ecological protection volunteer service and research tours for children.
In addition, the Jiangsu Provincial Sport Bureau has launched a series of sports events relating to the Grand Canal, including hiking along the canal.
The province has hosted the World Canal Cities Forum for 15 consecutive years, which continues to expand global influence with 221 members from across five continents.
Since 2020, two national 5A-level and 10 4A-level tourist attractions; seven national and regional tourism demonstration zones; and four national tourist resorts and leisure sites have been established along the Grand Canal in Jiangsu.
A group of tourism resorts and canal-featured blocks have been established to promote Jiangsu's canal cultural tourism brand. Local residents' sense of gain grows with the culture integrated with cities' construction.
Local governments have also strengthened law enforcement against illegal acts such as damage to cultural relics and pollution from ships over the past two years.
As the longest artificial waterway in the world, the Grand Canal has provided a strong support for Jiangsu's socioeconomic development. Last year, the waterborne freight volume of the Jiangsu section of the Grand Canal reached 980 million metric tons, accounting for one-third of the province's total transportation.
The province has launched the first project to establish the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal green shipping demonstration zone to improve modern shipping.
