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YINCHUAN, Aug. 12-- Hai Guobao, 62, an ethnic Hui minority farmer, suffered from a lack of water in rural Xihaigu, northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, until he volunteered to be relocated to Minning Township in 2017. "When I was young, I heard about the Yellow River from my elders, but I had never seen it myself and I could not imagine its yellow color," he said. Xihaigu, an impoverished mountainous region in south Ningxia, is one of the world's most uninhabitable places, renown for its harsh environment. "Droughts in summer, floods in autumn, and freezing cold in winter. We lived at the mercy of the climate." Hai said, poor harvests plunged the villagers into severe poverty. From 2017 to 2017, about 10,000 residents from six villages in mountainous areas of Xihaigu chose to be relocated to Minning, over 300 km away from their ancestral homes. Minning, located on the fertile plains, was a whole new world for the villagers from the remote mountains. Before the ecological relocation program began, government officials showed them around in the township. Standing on a bridge, Hai and his neighbors saw the Yellow River and its muddy waters for the first time. "In our hometown, our biggest concern was the lack of water," said Hai. Relieved and determined, all the 67 households in his village volunteered to move to Minning. Months later, motorcades loaded with the villagers and their belongings headed for their new homes. Upon arrival, Hai immediately turned on the taps, listening to the sound of running water with delight. | 
