Beijing issues ecological report to solidify South China Sea claims amid US row

In new assessment, China blames Philippines for environmental harm and coral loss at disputed Sandy Cay and Second Thomas Shoal

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Live coral coverage at Sandy Cay in the South China Sea has plummeted by nearly 70 per cent compared with 2016 levels, according to a Chinese ecological report. Photo: Handout

Dannie Pengin Beijing

Published: 7:45pm, 15 Aug 2026

China has published ecological assessment reports on nine disputed South China Sea features, amid an escalating row with Washington over Beijing’s establishment of a “national nature reserve” in the contested waters.

On Friday, the Ministry of Natural Resources’ South China Sea Bureau issued its 2025 marine ecological early-warning and monitoring bulletin, alongside a separate marine ecological protection and restoration report for the region. The releases were announced via an article posted on the ministry’s official social media account.

While the full reports have not yet been made public, the ministry stated that the bulletin represented “the first comprehensive assessment” of overall ecological conditions across the Paracels, known in Chinese as the Xisha Islands, and the Spratlys or Nansha Islands, as well as the Macclesfield Bank and surrounding reefs, part of what China calls the Zhongsha Islands.

“The bulletin particularly highlighted the actual ecological conditions of nine of those islands and reefs, providing a basis for the classified protection and management of the island ecosystems,” the article noted.

The reports come amid intensifying territorial disputes in the region, with China seeking to consolidate its control through environmental protection initiatives.

In a statement issued last Saturday, the US State Department rejected China’s assertion that Scarborough Shoal, known as Huangyan Island in Chinese, constituted a “national nature reserve”, characterising it as an attempt by Beijing to advance its territorial ambitions.

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Beijing issues ecological report to solidify South China Sea claims amid US row

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