Fangshan District
Encyclopedia
Fangshan District is situated in the southwest of Beijing
, 38 km away from the downtown Beijing. It has an area of 2,019 square kilometers and a population of 814,367 (2000 Census). The district consists of 8 subdistricts of the city of Fangshan, 14 towns, and 6 townships.
Fangshan is situated to the east of the Taihang Mountains
. The east and south of the district is a fertile plain, with a narrow hilly area running from northeast to southwest. The district has many rivers and lakes; the Juma River
, Dashihe River, Yongding River
, and Xiaoqing River
run through the district, assuring abundant water resources.
The location, climate and environment provide good conditions for agriculture. The district produces wheat, rice and various high quality fruits as well as large quantities of animal products. At the moment large investments are made for greenhouse production.
and Jingyuan railway cross the district. In addition, the district is serviced by 4 branch railways and 24 railway stations. Jingshi Expressway
also goes through the district. The four main roads are the Jing-Zhou, Jing-Bao, Jing-Yuan, Jing-Liang roads, with branch roads to townships and village
s. The total length of roads is up to 1,800 kilometers. Tanggu Port is only 180 km distant. The programme-controlled telephone capacity supports 128,000 phone sets.
, location of the “Peking Man Site”, which has gained Fangshan the name of “Home of the Dragon”. The famous Buddhist shrine of Yunju temple has precious Buddhist relics, including “Sakyamuni’s Bone” and 14,278 stone slabs with sculpted Buddhist sutras. There are also the remains of the Christian (Jingjiao) Monastery of the Cross from the Yuan dynasty
. There are many ancient towers, temple
s, town sites and other sites in Fangshan. Fangshan also has many scenic spots like Shidu’s mountains and waters, the unique Stoneflower Cave and natural ancient forests in Shangfangshan Mountains. Ecologically, Fangshan has 554 kinds of wild plant and 22 kinds of wild animal.
storehouse” in the west of Beijing; building materials resources are also present in a variety of large deposits. Marble deposits total 450 million cubic meters. A total of 17 kinds have been developed, including “Chinese white marble”, “pink”, “rosy cloud”, and “black jade”. In particular, “Chinese white marble
” is famous worldwide and is regarded as a national treasure. There are also large deposits of quartzite
(29 million tons); silica (28.6 million tons), granite
and buhrstone, in addition to argil, mineral water
and slab stones.
Both industry and agriculture are well developed in Fangshan. Over 2300 enterprise
s owned by the district, townships or villages have been set up and form a complete industrial system in a variety of trades, with different grades and many kinds of products. Yanshan Petrochemical Group, one of the largest state-owned enterprises in China, is located in Fangshan District. Agriculture
has developed from traditional growing and planting to integrated and full development in forestry
, livestock
,greenhouse horticulture and fishery
. The building industry has become the backbone of the district, with annual building area reaching 6 million square meters.
The foreign-oriented economy of Fangshan has developed rapidly in recent years. As of 1999, the District government had approved 345 foreign-invested enterprises. Over 20 countries and territories throughout five continents are represented. There are 100 export-oriented enterprises producing over 40 kinds of product. Liangxiang Satellite Town, approved by Beijing Municipal Government, has become a new hub of development. In 1998, the site of Fangshan People’s Government moved to Liangxiang, making it the district's center of politics, economics and culture. The development Zone of Liangxiang extends favorable policies to business. Under the Ninth Five-Year Plan and Ten-year Outline, the zone will be further opened to the outside and encourage foreign investment in the following industries: electricity, machinery and electronics, instruments, textiles, printing, new building materials, new materials, new energy resources, fine chemicals, food processing, flowers, greenhouse vegetables, tourist facilities, commercial facilities and the animal industry. The zone welcomes overseas Chinese and guests from Hong Kong
, Macau
, Taiwan
and other countries.
Beijing
Beijing , also known as Peking , is the capital of the People's Republic of China and one of the most populous cities in the world, with a population of 19,612,368 as of 2010. The city is the country's political, cultural, and educational center, and home to the headquarters for most of China's...
, 38 km away from the downtown Beijing. It has an area of 2,019 square kilometers and a population of 814,367 (2000 Census). The district consists of 8 subdistricts of the city of Fangshan, 14 towns, and 6 townships.
Demography and geography
The street committee area of Fangshan (population 187 667) contains an urban area, which from examination of the Google Earth image, has an area of 25 square kilometers and an estimated population of 200,000. Other major urban areas are Liangxiang (population estimate 110,000, 93,486 in township), Zhoukoudian (35,000, 39,877 in township), Doudian (30,000, 25,046 in township), and Liulihe (22,000, 37,936 in township).http://harrysworldatlas.blogspot.com/2007/02/china-cn-beijing-metropolitan-province.htmlFangshan is situated to the east of the Taihang Mountains
Taihang Mountains
The Taihang Mountains are a Chinese mountain range running down the eastern edge of the Loess Plateau in Henan, Shanxi and Hebei provinces. The range extends over 400 km from north to south and has an average elevation of 1,500 to 2,000 meters. The principal peak is Xiao Wutaishan...
. The east and south of the district is a fertile plain, with a narrow hilly area running from northeast to southwest. The district has many rivers and lakes; the Juma River
Juma River
Juma River is a river of Amazonas state in north-western Brazil.-References:*...
, Dashihe River, Yongding River
Yongding River
The Yongding River is a river in northern China. It is one of the main tributaries in the Hai River system and is best known as the largest river to flow through Beijing Municipality.-Geography:...
, and Xiaoqing River
Xiaoqing River
Xiaoqing River is a river in Shandong Province, China. It is part of the Bohai Sea basin and empties into the Bohai Sea. The river flows through the major cities of Jinan, Zibo, Binzhou, Dongying, and Weifang. It has a total length of 216 kilometers and a drainage area of 10,336 square kilometers....
run through the district, assuring abundant water resources.
The location, climate and environment provide good conditions for agriculture. The district produces wheat, rice and various high quality fruits as well as large quantities of animal products. At the moment large investments are made for greenhouse production.
Transportation and telecommunication
Jingguang railwayJingguang Railway
The Beijing–Guangzhou Railway or Jingguang Railway is a major arterial railway in the China that connects Beijing in the north with Guangzhou in the south. This dual-track electrified line has a total length of 2,324 kilometres and spans five provinces through north, central and south China...
and Jingyuan railway cross the district. In addition, the district is serviced by 4 branch railways and 24 railway stations. Jingshi Expressway
Jingshi Expressway
The Jingshi Expressway is an expressway in China which links Beijing to the Shijiazhuang. It is c. 270 km in length. Its road numbering is G030...
also goes through the district. The four main roads are the Jing-Zhou, Jing-Bao, Jing-Yuan, Jing-Liang roads, with branch roads to townships and village
Village
A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet with the population ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand , Though often located in rural areas, the term urban village is also applied to certain urban neighbourhoods, such as the West Village in Manhattan, New...
s. The total length of roads is up to 1,800 kilometers. Tanggu Port is only 180 km distant. The programme-controlled telephone capacity supports 128,000 phone sets.
Historical monuments
Fangshan district has a long history and many ancient sites. Best known is ZhoukoudianZhoukoudian
Zhoukoudian or Choukoutien is a cave system in Beijing, China. It has yielded many archaeological discoveries, including one of the first specimens of Homo erectus, dubbed Peking Man, and a fine assemblage of bones of the gigantic hyena Pachycrocuta brevirostris...
, location of the “Peking Man Site”, which has gained Fangshan the name of “Home of the Dragon”. The famous Buddhist shrine of Yunju temple has precious Buddhist relics, including “Sakyamuni’s Bone” and 14,278 stone slabs with sculpted Buddhist sutras. There are also the remains of the Christian (Jingjiao) Monastery of the Cross from the Yuan dynasty
Yuan Dynasty
The Yuan Dynasty , or Great Yuan Empire was a ruling dynasty founded by the Mongol leader Kublai Khan, who ruled most of present-day China, all of modern Mongolia and its surrounding areas, lasting officially from 1271 to 1368. It is considered both as a division of the Mongol Empire and as an...
. There are many ancient towers, temple
Temple
A temple is a structure reserved for religious or spiritual activities, such as prayer and sacrifice, or analogous rites. A templum constituted a sacred precinct as defined by a priest, or augur. It has the same root as the word "template," a plan in preparation of the building that was marked out...
s, town sites and other sites in Fangshan. Fangshan also has many scenic spots like Shidu’s mountains and waters, the unique Stoneflower Cave and natural ancient forests in Shangfangshan Mountains. Ecologically, Fangshan has 554 kinds of wild plant and 22 kinds of wild animal.
Mineral resources
Fangshan has coal deposits up to 2.1 billion tons, which makes it a veritable “coalCoal
Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock usually occurring in rock strata in layers or veins called coal beds or coal seams. The harder forms, such as anthracite coal, can be regarded as metamorphic rock because of later exposure to elevated temperature and pressure...
storehouse” in the west of Beijing; building materials resources are also present in a variety of large deposits. Marble deposits total 450 million cubic meters. A total of 17 kinds have been developed, including “Chinese white marble”, “pink”, “rosy cloud”, and “black jade”. In particular, “Chinese white marble
Marble
Marble is a metamorphic rock composed of recrystallized carbonate minerals, most commonly calcite or dolomite.Geologists use the term "marble" to refer to metamorphosed limestone; however stonemasons use the term more broadly to encompass unmetamorphosed limestone.Marble is commonly used for...
” is famous worldwide and is regarded as a national treasure. There are also large deposits of quartzite
Quartzite
Quartzite is a hard metamorphic rock which was originally sandstone. Sandstone is converted into quartzite through heating and pressure usually related to tectonic compression within orogenic belts. Pure quartzite is usually white to gray, though quartzites often occur in various shades of pink...
(29 million tons); silica (28.6 million tons), granite
Granite
Granite is a common and widely occurring type of intrusive, felsic, igneous rock. Granite usually has a medium- to coarse-grained texture. Occasionally some individual crystals are larger than the groundmass, in which case the texture is known as porphyritic. A granitic rock with a porphyritic...
and buhrstone, in addition to argil, mineral water
Mineral water
Mineral water is water containing minerals or other dissolved substances that alter its taste or give it therapeutic value, generally obtained from a naturally occurring mineral spring or source. Dissolved substances in the water may include various salts and sulfur compounds...
and slab stones.
Industry and agriculture
Business
A business is an organization engaged in the trade of goods, services, or both to consumers. Businesses are predominant in capitalist economies, where most of them are privately owned and administered to earn profit to increase the wealth of their owners. Businesses may also be not-for-profit...
s owned by the district, townships or villages have been set up and form a complete industrial system in a variety of trades, with different grades and many kinds of products. Yanshan Petrochemical Group, one of the largest state-owned enterprises in China, is located in Fangshan District. Agriculture
Agriculture
Agriculture is the cultivation of animals, plants, fungi and other life forms for food, fiber, and other products used to sustain life. Agriculture was the key implement in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that nurtured the...
has developed from traditional growing and planting to integrated and full development in forestry
Forestry
Forestry is the interdisciplinary profession embracing the science, art, and craft of creating, managing, using, and conserving forests and associated resources in a sustainable manner to meet desired goals, needs, and values for human benefit. Forestry is practiced in plantations and natural stands...
, livestock
Livestock
Livestock refers to one or more domesticated animals raised in an agricultural setting to produce commodities such as food, fiber and labor. The term "livestock" as used in this article does not include poultry or farmed fish; however the inclusion of these, especially poultry, within the meaning...
,greenhouse horticulture and fishery
Fishery
Generally, a fishery is an entity engaged in raising or harvesting fish which is determined by some authority to be a fishery. According to the FAO, a fishery is typically defined in terms of the "people involved, species or type of fish, area of water or seabed, method of fishing, class of boats,...
. The building industry has become the backbone of the district, with annual building area reaching 6 million square meters.
The foreign-oriented economy of Fangshan has developed rapidly in recent years. As of 1999, the District government had approved 345 foreign-invested enterprises. Over 20 countries and territories throughout five continents are represented. There are 100 export-oriented enterprises producing over 40 kinds of product. Liangxiang Satellite Town, approved by Beijing Municipal Government, has become a new hub of development. In 1998, the site of Fangshan People’s Government moved to Liangxiang, making it the district's center of politics, economics and culture. The development Zone of Liangxiang extends favorable policies to business. Under the Ninth Five-Year Plan and Ten-year Outline, the zone will be further opened to the outside and encourage foreign investment in the following industries: electricity, machinery and electronics, instruments, textiles, printing, new building materials, new materials, new energy resources, fine chemicals, food processing, flowers, greenhouse vegetables, tourist facilities, commercial facilities and the animal industry. The zone welcomes overseas Chinese and guests from Hong Kong
Hong Kong
Hong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...
, Macau
Macau
Macau , also spelled Macao , is, along with Hong Kong, one of the two special administrative regions of the People's Republic of China...
, Taiwan
Taiwan
Taiwan , also known, especially in the past, as Formosa , is the largest island of the same-named island group of East Asia in the western Pacific Ocean and located off the southeastern coast of mainland China. The island forms over 99% of the current territory of the Republic of China following...
and other countries.