'Paradise' lost in property boom

With a coastline blocked by high-rise buildings, formerly lush mountains scarred by construction and a blue sea tainted by sewage, Boao, a town on China's southernmost island province of Hainan, is feeling the harsh realities of a building boom.

In 2011, Boao was chosen as the permanent venue for the annual Boao Forum for Asia, a high-level conference promoting regional economic integration.

But such high visibility has come at a cost, as the once tranquil fishing town on the east coast of Hainan has been shaken by bulldozers clearing the way for mushrooming housing projects.

"I came to relax and enjoy beautiful scenery, only to find densely packed concrete buildings that don't suit a place nicknamed 'Paradise Town'," said tourist Cheng Fei, who lives in the provincial capital of Haikou.

"Boao used to be a quiet fishing village with few people and a lot of tile-roofed houses in the 1990s," local resident Xu Dafu said, adding that it is quite different now, as an abundance of real estate development projects are diminishing the tranquility that once prevailed in Boao.

"The coastal areas are full of property development projects and I think Boao has been ruined by overdevelopment. What's worse is that overdevelopment and lax regulation on the part of the government have taken a toll on the local environment," Xu said.

Further detracting from the "Paradise Town" tag, sewage pipelines can be both seen and smelled from the beach. Tourists have to cover their noses while walking past the pipelines.

Developers and home buyers are driving the property boom. According to statistics from the Boao government, housing prices have quadrupled in seven years.

Boao was once dominated by Nanyang-style Qilou buildings, which are balcony-type tenant buildings for both residential and commercial use.

But with the booming housing market, many residents like Xu have razed their traditional houses and built new concrete ones that are often two or three stories high.

In addition to the coastline, real estate developers have also turned their attentions to Boao's mountains, with trees felled to make room for buildings.

"We should be aware of this dangerous trend," said Wang Yiwu, a professor at Hainan University.

Preserving Boao's environment and building it into a tropical resort town with its unique features is the path that should be taken, he added.