Luo Changyi, a 72-year-old citizen from Ningbo, patrols along the creek in his village in Ningbo, Zhejiang province, to remove tree branches floating in it.[Photo/zjol.com.cn]

East China's Zhejiang province has made dealing with water pollution a top priority for 2017, and many cities including Ningbo have made similar pledges in recent days. When the local government announced its anti-pollution drive on TV, nobody was more excited than Ningbo resident Luo Changyi.

The 72-year-old has dedicated years of his life to cleaning up the creek in his hometown of Chaijia'ao village.

In 2013, he donated 110,000 yuan ($16,000) of his own money, nearly his entire savings, to his village to help combat the pollution in the creek. The elderly resident even insisted that he be the supervisor of Chaijia'ao's whole water governance reform process.

Now the creek, which used to be so severely polluted that no fish could be found in it, meets the standards for drinking water, its clear waters a source of pride for all the villagers.

Not one to rest on his laurels, Luo still spends a lot of time every day patrolling along the creek and removing any tree branches floating in it. Touched by his dedication, many other villagers have started to join him.

A few days ago, with the help of other villagers, Luo planted many trees and flowers along the two sides of the creek. He also plans to spend 3,000 yuan buying fry to put in the creek, as the young fish may help purify the water.

"As long as I am alive, I will take good care of this creek—it makes me so happy to see villagers walking along the creek and watching the fish swimming," said Luo.

Luo shares his experience tackling water pollution in Chaijia'ao village in Ningbo to government officials, whom came to inspect the village's water governance. [Photo/zjol.com.cn]