Qianjiang Ethnic Culture Tourism Area

　　    The Qianjiang Ethnic Culture Tourism Area spans five autonomous counties of the Tujia and Miao ethnic groups—Qianjiang, Youyang, Xiushan, Pengshui, and Shizhu. It mainly includes attractions such as Little South China Sea, Nanyaojie, and Peach Blossom Spring. It is a rare destination to appreciate mountain and river scenery, experience ethnic culture, and pay tribute to martyrs, and also serves as an important gateway to the Zhangjiajie Scenic Area. Qianjiang County is over 400 kilometers from downtown Chongqing and more than 300 kilometers from Fuling District.

　　    Mineral Resources: There are a total of 249 mining sites encompassing 30 types of minerals, including 7 large deposits, 17 medium-sized deposits, 43 small deposits, and 182 mineral (mineralized) occurrences. Sixteen types of minerals have had their reserves verified, among which mercury ore (grade 1.3%), manganese ore (average grade over 24%), bauxite (grade 42–3%), barite, fluorite, and commercial marble rank among the top in the nation or the municipality. Coal, phosphorus, sulfur, sandstone, calcite, lead-zinc ore, clay, quartz sand, and antimony ore are also abundant.

　　    Tourism Resources: The area boasts numerous famous mountains and rivers, with unique and rare natural landscapes that remain largely undeveloped. Realizing the true value of tourism and establishing it as a pillar industry has become a key task in Qianjiang’s second phase of development. Attractions such as Wuling Mountains, Little South China Sea, the treacherous Wu River, Huangshui Park, Guandu, and Peach Blossom Spring are currently under development and will form a tourism loop connecting with the northern Changjiang Scenic Area, eastern Furong Cave, western Golden Cave, and southern Zhangjiajie.

　　    Forest Resources: The land area spans 1.69 million hectares. Of the 729,000 hectares of forestry land, there are 377,500 hectares of timber forest, 51,000 hectares of economic forest, 20,000 hectares of sparse forest, 126,200 hectares of shrubland, 113,200 hectares of young plantation, 92,000 hectares of non-forested land, and 960,000 hectares of non-forestry land. The total timber stock is 13.757 million cubic meters, including 11.577 million cubic meters in timber forests, 574,000 cubic meters in shelterbelt forests, 175,000 cubic meters in fuelwood forests, 343,000 cubic meters in sparse forests, and 1.08 million cubic meters in scattered and perimeter trees. The region has 102 families, 348 genera, and 1,059 species of woody plants, including nationally protected rare species such as dawn redwood, metasequoia, dove tree, ginkgo, and tung tree. The current forest coverage rate is 23.2%, with a greening coverage rate of 45%.

　　    Six National Number Ones in Economic Resources: First, Coptis root—Shizhu Autonomous County leads the nation in Coptis production, accounting for over 40% of the national output, with the premium variety "chicken-claw Coptis." The county has been designated by the Ministry of Agriculture as a high-quality product production base and is known as the “Hometown of Coptis.” Second, Angora rabbits—Shizhu Autonomous County raises 2.5 million Angora rabbits annually, producing one-seventh of the national rabbit wool output, making it the country’s largest rabbit wool production base. Third, tung oil—Pengshui Autonomous County produces over 6,000 tons of tung oil annually, earning it the title “Hometown of Tung Oil.” Fourth, camellia oil—Xiushan Autonomous County yields over 1,500 tons of camellia oil annually, known as the “Hometown of Camellia Oil.” Fifth, artemisinin—Yueyang Autonomous County produces 6,000 kilograms of artemisinin annually, one of only two producers in the country, and the product is recognized globally as a next-generation antimalarial drug. Sixth, electrolytic manganese metal—Xiushan Autonomous County produces electrolytic manganese metal with 99.999% purity, with an annual output of 4,000 tons, classified as a duty-free export commodity.

　　    Abundant Hydropower Resources: The region has many rivers, with streams densely distributed across the territory. There are 86 rivers with a drainage area of 50 square kilometers or more, 40 with areas between 50–100 square kilometers, 27 with areas between 100–500 square kilometers, and 19 exceeding 500 square kilometers. The average annual runoff is 45.843 billion cubic meters, with a developable hydropower resource capacity of 3 million kilowatts. Groundwater resources are also relatively abundant, with annual runoff volumes of 1.35 billion cubic meters in dry seasons, 6 billion cubic meters in wet seasons, and 5.5 billion cubic meters from atmospheric rainfall infiltration per year. Currently, only 6% of the hydropower resources have been developed, indicating huge untapped potential.