Erhai Ecological Corridor 洱海生态廊道

About Erhai Ecological Corridor

The corridor follows a January 2015 inspection visit by Xi Jinping and his directive on protecting Erhai, after which Dali launched an intensive lake-protection programme; the encircling corridor was one of its major projects. As planned, the project comprises five components: more than 790 hectares of ecological restoration and wetland construction, a 129-kilometre round-lake corridor with environmental monitoring stations, the ecological relocation of 1,806 households across 23 villages, 30 kilometres of upgraded sewage piping, and five wetland-restoration research bases. A 12-kilometre demonstration section, running from Yangnanxi in Xiaguan to Caicun in Dali town, opened free to the public in early 2020.

Along the route, a cycling path and wooden boardwalks run between the lake and rows of white-walled, grey-tiled traditional Bai houses, with wooden walkways extending out toward the water. The project has been linked to a documented recovery in water quality: reporting describes conditions around 2003, when algal blooms made the water unfit even for washing hands, giving way to a period when the sea-cabbage flower (海菜花), a plant that grows only where water quality is good, reappeared along the shore.

What to look for

• The lakeside cycling path and wooden boardwalks running between Erhai and the traditional Bai villages along its shore
• The wetland-restoration sections where the sea-cabbage flower (海菜花) has reappeared as a water-quality indicator

Location & getting there

Getting to Erhai Ecological Corridor

Confirm the visitor entrance and which boat or walking routes operate on your date. Rainfall, water levels and weather can change access.

• Search for 洱海生态廊道 with 大理白族自治州 and 大理市.