Tongshan, or Copper Hill in Mandarin, is a county under the jurisdiction of Xuzhou prefecture city. The county’s name is transferred from an island called Tongshan Island, located in the Lake of Weishan which forms the county’s northern border.

Tongshan County is located at the junction where four provinces of China border each other, Jiangsu, Shandong, Henan and Anhui. Like a belt encircling the Xuzhou urban area, the county takes all advantages from Xuzhou, a transportation hub, in which all major expressway/highways or railways heading to Xuzhou would first pass towns of Tongzshan, offering these towns a handy transport profits.

The county has abundant natural resources of 21 minerals including coal, iron, lime, etc. Using coal as fuel, the produce of electricity is a major power resource not just for the county but Xuzhou and other neighbor cities.

Tongshan is under the influence of East Asia Monsoon, like its neighbor cities. It has a mild and humid climate and seasons are distinct. The average annual temperature is close to 15ºC and the normal precipitation is around 800 mm yearly.

In about 5,000 years ago, the land was once governed by an ancient state, the Dapengsi State, and later it became a critical war zone, where two states in the late Sui Dynasty, the West Chu and the Han, fought on the territory. Many historical relics since then left including those unearthed Han tombs, terracotta warriors, etc.

Tongshan, with a geographical shape of “C”, surrounds the Xuzhou Metropolis from three directions, north, west and south, leaving only small portion of the northeast of the metropolis bordering Wushan and Zaozhuang, two cities of Shandong Province. Well known with its convenient road transportation, fast growing economy and a major natural resource, coal, the county was ranked on the list of China’s Top 100 Counties (county-level cities) for its comprehensive economic strength.

Tongshan was traditionally an agricultural farmland and its agricultural income occupies a vast portion of the county’s revenue. The principal farm products included wheat, rice, cotton, etc. In the past recent years, the county has started focusing on the production of vegetables, Chinese traditional medical herbs, milk, and livestock. Many of these vegetables have exported to Europe and North America.

Tongshan Industrial Park was established in 1992 and covers an area of 50 square kilometers. More than 700 enterprises have set up their factories or subsidiaries in the area, with total investment funds of $5 billions USD including foreign capitals. In addition, the park is a well-know university town, in which more than 20 higher learning institutions have established their campuse in the park, including China University of Mining and Technology, Xuzhou Normal University, Xuzhou Institute of Technology, Xuzhou Institute of Architectural Technology, Jiuzhou University, etc.

Main industrial sectors include food manufacture, machinery, steel, auto parts and electronics. Many international well-known enterprises have opened offices or subsidiaries in Tongshan as well. The county has ranked three times on the national list of China 100 Top City for its economic stregth.

Due to use of coal as fuel, air pollution is significant in Tongshan. Use of Pesticide and contaminators from chemical factories have made environment polluted. The county has spent noteworthy funding to control the situation and has planted millions of trees to combat the industrial emission. However, the polluted air and environment contamination still worsen. It is a sincere hope the industrialization would not damage the county’s ecosystem.