Villagers in Kanas Scenic Spot, a famous nature reserve and geological park in Northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region, have received a subsidy from the scenic spot's management office, local news portal tianshannet.com.cn reported.

A total of 16 million yuan ($2.6 million) have been granted to 2,100 villagers, with 10,000 yuan going to each villager in Kanas village, and 5,000 yuan to each villager in Hemu village.

The subsidy was established 2008, to improve the herders' living conditions and protect the environment.

Herders living nearby used to lease their houses for businesses, such as hostels and eateries, which damaged the local environment.

Kanas - known as "the last piece of pure land on Earth" — is part of the Altay Mountains range in Xinjiang.