From poverty to prosperity

A villager washes clothes outside her house. [Photo by Yang Feiyue/China Daily]

Most grow the stuff, says Junying village's deputy chief, Gao Quanyang.

Some also cultivate fruit, rice or sweet potatoes, he says.

It's a far cry from when the hamlet was one of Xiamen's poorest settlements.

Then, rains melted the roads into muck, an elderly man recalls. And it was difficult to reach town, even during medical emergencies.

"There were chicken and duck droppings on the ground. And I could only bathe every 10 days," he says.

Wastewater previously poured directly into the rivers, which stank and attracted flies and mosquitoes.

The transformation began in 2013, when local authorities decided to turn Junying village into a picturesque attraction. Since then, new roads to and within the village have made transportation easier.

And pollution has been contained.

Villagers were asked to keep their animals in pens and dispose their waste, Gao says.