Storyline: A newly completed on-site evaluation of China's nature reserves indicates significant improvements in biodiversity and environmental conditions, the Ministry of Ecology and Environment said on Friday. The ministry initiated an assessment of the protection effectiveness of the country's national nature reserves in 2022 and announced the results at a press conference. "The conservation achievements can be summarized by the numbers -- 9, 8, 7 and 6. The 9 indicates that over 90 percent of these reserves have witnessed an increase in the populations of major protected species, while the 8 means that 82 percent of the reserves have experienced an expansion in the distribution range of major protected objects, and over 80 percent of the reserves have reported an increase in aboveground biomass and carbon sequestration. The 7 signifies that over 70 percent of the reserves have saw an improvement of natural forest coverage rate, while the 6 means that over 60 percent of the wetland reserves have witnessed an increase in the proportion of natural wetland regions," said Pei Xiaofei, spokesman for the Ministry of Ecology and Environment. So far, the number of Yangtze finless porpoises under first-class national protection has risen from 192 to 269 in three reserves in Anhui and Hubei provinces, with their distribution range expanding. In the Shennongjia Nature Reserve in Hubei, the population of golden snub-nosed monkeys has grown from 1,471 to 1,618, while their habitat area expanded by 13 percent. Rare and endemic fish species, such as the Yangtze sturgeon, have also seen significant population increases in the reserves in the upper reaches of the Yangtze River. The ministry has notified local authorities of the results of an assessment of 145 national nature reserves across 11 provincial-level regions along the Yangtze River Economic Belt, indicating that 98.62 percent of the reserves has registered good performance in conservation efforts. Shotlist: Beijing, China - Nov 28, 2025: 1. Various of press conference in progress, reporters 2. SOUNDBITE (Chinese) Pei Xiaofei, spokesman, Ministry of Ecology and Environment: "The conservation achievements can be summarized by the numbers -- 9, 8, 7 and 6. The 9 indicates that over 90 percent of these reserves have witnessed an increase in the populations of major protected species, while the 8 means that 82 percent of the reserves have experienced an expansion in the distribution range of major protected objects, and over 80 percent of the reserves have reported an increase in aboveground biomass and carbon sequestration. The 7 signifies that over 70 percent of the reserves have saw an improvement of natural forest coverage rate, while the 6 means that over 60 percent of the wetland reserves have witnessed an increase in the proportion of natural wetland regions." FILE: China - Date Unknown: 3. Various of river, Yangtze finless porpoises 4. Various of forest, golden snub-nosed monkeys 5. Various of fish 6. Various of river, forest [Restrictions: No access Chinese mainland]