Modern "Great Wall" for Fire Prevention Built in ShanxiA 2,500-km-long wall has been built near the site of the Great Wall in north China's Shanxi Province.The fire-prevention wall, which is 1.5 meters in height and 50 cm in width, will be 5,000 km long in total length when fully completed in the coming three years. Forest fires have frequently attacked the drought-stricken region over the past years. In April 1999, over 20 fires were reported in Huguan County, where the main structure of the new wall was planned. The ancient war front region, protected by the fortress of the Great Wall, had a greenery coverage rate of less than 7 percent before the founding of New China in 1949. Reforestation efforts over the past two decades have helped increase the figure to 40 percent in the Huguan County, whose woods acreage has reached 55,000 ha. The new wall runs along mountains separating forests from villages, fields and roads, where fires are most likely to occur. |
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