56 volunteers hiked through Taibai Mountain to pick up trash

The "Pure Water Birds" volunteers picked up trash in Taibai Mountain. After four days of trekking, 56 "Pure Water Birds" volunteers from across the country traversed Taibai Mountain. Along the way, they collected various types of household waste, burned, buried, and disposed of large amounts of plastic bags, and carried discarded gas canisters down the mountain left behind by hikers. With their concrete actions, they restored the original purity and cleanliness deep within Taibai Mountain.

    The Pure Water Bird is a small bird that lives near the shores of ErYe Hai and DaYe Hai lakes. Its scientific name is White-capped Redstart, but locals call it the "Pure Water Child" or "Pure Water Bird." It sometimes skims the water surface and other times perches between rocks, pecking at small grasses and twigs on the water to prevent any pollution of the lake. The large-scale environmental protection activity "Pure Water Birds of Taibai Mountain" promotes this very environmental philosophy. Each year, it organizes volunteers to hike through Taibai Mountain, reaching DaYe Hai and the highest point of the Qinling Mountains, to clean up trash around Xi'an’s water sources.

Pu Wei, the initiator and organizer of the "Pure Water Birds" activity, said that the "Pure Water Birds" are a group of outdoor enthusiasts who love and are close to nature. Many of them give up their busy jobs, abandon their status and positions to participate in the activity. Some even endure 10-hour hikes along mountain trails without giving up. While purifying the environment, they are also purifying their own souls. The "Pure Water Bird" is a spirit, a positive and uplifting attitude toward life, and they will continue to pass on this spirit and the power of environmental protection.

It is understood that since 2004, the "Pure Water Birds" volunteers have organized this event for nine consecutive years, with over 2,100 participants. They have burned, buried, and collected more than 3 tons of trash, and picked up approximately 18,000 gas canisters.