Known?in?English?as?Jiuzhai?Valley?it?lies?at?the?southern?end?of?the?Minshan?mountain?range,?330?km?(205?mi)?north?of?the?provincial?capital?of?Chengdu.?It?is?part?of?the?Jiuzhaigou?County?(formerly?Nanping?County)?in?the?Aba?Tibetan?Qiang?Autonomous?Prefecture?of?northwestern?Sichuan?province,?near?the?Gansu?border.
The?valley?covers?720?km2?(278?sq?mi),?with?buffer?zones?covering?an?additional?600?km2?(232?sq?mi).?Its?elevation,?depending?on?the?area?considered,?ranges?from?1,998?to?2,140?m?(at?the?mouth?of?Shuzheng?Gully)?to?4,558?-?4,764?m?(on?Mount?Ganzigonggai?at?the?top?of?Zechawa?Gully).
The?climate?is?cool?temperate?with?a?mean?annual?temperature?of?7.2?°C,?with?means?of?-1?°C?in?January?and?17?°C?in?July.?Total?annual?rainfall?is?661?mm,?80%?of?which?occurs?between?May?and?October.
HISTORY
The?remote?region?was?inhabited?by?various?Tibetan?and?Qiang?peoples?for?centuries.?Extensive?logging?took?place?until?1979,?when?the?Chinese?government?banned?such?activity?and?made?the?area?a?national?park?in?1982.?An?Administration?Bureau?was?established?and?the?site?officially?opened?to?tourism?in?1984;?layout?of?facilities?and?regulations?were?completed?in?1987.?The?site?was?inscribed?by?UNESCO?as?a?World?Heritage?Site?in?1992?and?a?World?Biosphere?Reserve?in?1997.
Since?opening,?tourist?activity?has?increased?every?year:?from?5,000?in?1984?to?170,000?in?1991,?160,000?in?1995,?to?200,000?in?1997,?including?about?3,000?foreigners.?Visitors?numbered?1,190,000?in?2002.[3]?As?of?2004,?the?site?averages?7,000?visits?per?day,?with?a?quota?of?12,000?being?reportedly?enforced?during?high?season.?The?Town?of?Zhangzha?at?the?exit?of?the?valley?and?the?nearby?Songpan?County?feature?an?ever-increasing?number?of?hotels,?including?several?luxury?five-stars,?such?as?Sheraton.
Developments?related?to?mass-tourism?in?the?region?have?caused?concerns?about?the?impact?on?the?environment?around?the?park.
POPULATION
Jiuzhaigou?(literally?"Nine?Village?Valley")?takes?its?name?from?the?nine?Tibetan?villages?along?its?length.?Seven?of?them?are?still?populated?today.?The?main?agglomerations?that?are?readily?accessible?to?tourists?are?Heye,?Shuzheng?and?Zechawa?along?the?main?paths?that?cater?to?tourists,?selling?various?handicrafts,?souvenirs?and?snacks.?There?is?also?Rexi?in?the?smaller?Zaru?Valley?and?behind?Heye?village?are?Jianpan,?Panya?and?Yana?villages.?The?Valley's?no?longer?populated?villages?are?Guodu?and?Hejiao.
Finally,?the?Penbu,?Panxing?and?Yongzhu?villages?lie?along?the?road?that?passes?through?the?town?of?Jiuzhaigou/Zhangza?outside?the?valley.
In?1997,?the?permanent?population?of?the?valley?was?about?1,000,?and?due?to?the?protected?nature?of?the?park,?agriculture?is?no?longer?permitted?so?the?locals?now?rely?on?tourism?and?local?government?subsidies?to?make?a?living.
ECOLOGY
Jiuzhaigou's?ecosystem?is?classified?as?temperate?broad-leaf?forest?and?woodlands,?with?mixed?mountain?and?highland?systems.?Nearly?300?km2?(116?sq?mi)?of?the?core?scenic?area?are?covered?by?virgin?mixed?forests.?Those?forests?take?on?attractive?yellow,?orange?and?red?hues?in?the?autumn,?making?that?season?a?popular?one?for?visitors.?They?are?home?to?a?number?of?plant?species?of?interest,?such?as?endemic?varieties?of?rhododendron?and?bamboo.
Local?fauna?includes?the?endangered?giant?panda?and?golden?snub-nosed?monkey.?Both?populations?are?very?small?(less?than?20?individuals?for?the?pandas)?and?isolated.?Their?survival?is?in?question?in?a?valley?subject?to?increasing?tourism.?Jiuzhaigou?is?also?home?to?approximately?140?bird?species.
DEOLOGY?AND?HYDROLOGY
Jiuzhaigou's?landscape?is?made?up?of?high-altitude?karsts?shaped?by?glacial,?hydrological?and?tectonic?activity.?It?lies?on?major?faultlines?on?the?diverging?belt?between?the?Qinghai-Tibet?Plate?and?the?Yangtze?Plate,?and?earthquakes?have?also?shaped?the?landscape.?The?rock?strata?is?mostly?made?up?of?carbonate?rocks?such?dolomite?and?tufa,?as?well?as?some?sandstone?and?shales.
The?valley?includes?the?catchment?area?of?three?gullies?(which?due?to?their?large?size?are?often?called?valleys?themselves),?and?is?one?of?the?sources?of?the?Jialing?River,?part?of?the?Yangtze?River?system.
One?of?Jiuzhaigou?Valley's?lakes
Jiuzhaigou's?best-known?feature?is?its?dozens?of?blue,?green?and?turquoise-colored?lakes.?The?local?Tibetan?people?call?them?"Haizi"?in?Chinese,?meaning?"son?of?the?sea".?Originating?in?glacial?activity,?they?were?dammed?by?rockfalls?and?other?natural?phenomena,?then?solidified?by?processes?of?carbonate?deposition.?Some?lakes?have?a?high?concentration?of?calcium?carbonate,?and?their?water?is?very?clear?so?that?the?bottom?is?often?visible?even?at?high?depths.?The?lakes?vary?in?color?and?aspect?according?to?their?depths,?residues,?and?surroundings.
Some?of?the?less?stable?dams?and?formations?have?been?artificially?reinforced,?and?direct?contact?with?the?lakes?or?other?features?is?forbidden?to?tourists.