In recent days, villagers from Xiadaun Village in Hetao Street, Chengyang District, Qingdao City, Shandong Province have expressed to the Epoch Times that dozens of acres of farmland in the village have had their topsoil removed, and some areas have been filled with construction waste, household garbage, or sludge. The villagers also reported that nearby mountains have been excavated and encroached upon. They have repeatedly reported these issues to relevant departments, but have not received satisfactory responses.
On October 18, a villager from Xiadaun Village told Epoch Times reporters that since November 2023, over 60 acres of land in the village have been excavated to a depth of about 2 to 3 meters. The good topsoil was removed and sold, and then the land was filled with construction waste and household garbage. This land was originally used for cultivation but is now difficult to continue farming on.
He also mentioned that another parcel of land of less than 10 acres was excavated and filled with sludge, while another area of land was excavated into a waterlogged pit and has not been restored for cultivation.
“It’s just left like that. Some soil has been excavated, and now we can’t plant anything anymore; it has already become a reservoir,” he said.
The interviewed villagers believe that the excavation, soil selling, and filling activities are related to the village secretary and stated that the involved land is classified as basic farmland without proper approval for the excavation.
They estimated that just the earthwork from this land could involve tens of millions of yuan, but admitted that the villagers have not conducted a detailed calculation. They also claimed that the income from selling the soil has not been used for the welfare or social security of the villagers, accusing the village secretary of embezzling the money from selling and excavating soil.
The villagers are demanding the public disclosure of land approval procedures, sales quantities of soil, and the destination of funds. They hope that relevant departments will conduct on-site investigations to identify the materials used for filling the land. They mentioned that while officials had previously inspected the site and found construction waste, the villagers did not receive a satisfactory response.
According to an environmental inspection and petition handling record published by the Qingdao Daily on May 8, 2024, someone had previously reported that around 50 acres of basic farmland in Xiadaun Village had been illegally excavated for sand, which was then sold, and later filled with household and construction waste.
The record quoted a response from the Chengyang District government stating that the involved area was around 160 acres, including the mentioned 50 acres. The uneven surface of the land was attributed to poor management during the leasing period from 2013 to the end of 2023. The community had supposedly leveled the land and started cultivation in December 2023. The authorities denied the allegations of illegal sand excavation and sales by the village secretary.
The interviewed villagers contested this response, stating that the land they reported on is still unusable for cultivation. They requested the public disclosure of land and soil handling data, as well as a re-excavation to verify if waste material has been used for filling the land.
Materials provided by the villagers indicate that since 2012, an area of mountain terrain on the north side of Zhengyang West Road has been gradually enclosed, with structures such as cold storage, houses, and pavilions built inside.
The materials also mentioned that during the installation of high-voltage power lines at the end of 2022, another area of mountain terrain was excavated. The villagers claim they are unaware of where the excavated earthwork went and are demanding public disclosure of construction areas and records of earthwork disposal.
The interviewed villagers questioned whether the proceeds from selling the soil were entered into the village’s collective accounts and criticized the lack of transparency regarding such income to the villagers.
The villager stated that they have reported the issues to relevant departments in Chengyang District, Qingdao City, as well as to authorities in Shandong Province and Beijing, but the problem has ultimately been left for the local government to handle.
“We have been there several times, but in the end, it’s always the local government dealing with it, and we can’t get out of the local jurisdiction,” he said. Initially, there were over ten people raising the issue together, but now only three or four individuals are actively involved. He mentioned, “I was also detained; the police station detained me for 24 hours.” He believed that this incident is related to their continuous reporting on land issues.
He also mentioned that local media had previously published related content, but it was taken down before noon on the same day it was published. There were also reporters from other media outlets who came to inquire about the situation but ultimately did not report on the issue.
The villager believes that the local government is sheltering the individuals involved, preventing a positive resolution to the issue. He demanded that relevant departments publicly disclose land approval procedures, soil handling records, and financial information, as well as provide a written response regarding the filling of farmland and mountain excavation issues.