China Adopts New Strategy in Ecological Protection in New Century

China will adopt three different ecological protection strategies according to the distinct problems and characteristics in different regions to lessen ecological deterioration, said an environmental official in Beijing Friday.

The State Council recently issued the National Ecosystem Conservation Compendium, explicitly setting the goal of protecting national ecosystem safety for the first time.

China will provide emergency treatment to important eco-functional zones; help conserve the ecosystem of major resource

exploiting areas; and actively conserve the ecological sound areas,said Zhu Guangyao, deputy director of the State Environmental Protection Administration, at a press conference held by the

Information Office of the State Council.

The eco-functional zones include the headstream of the rivers and the lakes, the major prevention and monitoring zone of the water and soil conservation area as well as the fishery water area.

These zones have played important roles in safeguarding the water environment, ecosystem balance and assuring the safety of the national ecosystem.

"The compendium puts forward the new task of constructing eco-functional conservation zones, which is the basic method to conduct emergency protection to the zones," said Zhu.

He said that while building nature reserves, SEPA will give priority to the emergency protection to key eco-functional zones.

Around ten state-level and a number of local level zones will be set up in the coming five years.

Zhu noted that the abuse of natural resources and irrational development is the major cause of China's current ecological deterioration. The compendium asks for law enforcement and measures to prevent great damage to the ecosystem during the exploitation natural resources.

China will also maintain sustainable development in the ecological sound areas through building nature reserves and ecological demonstration zones, added Zhu.






People's Daily Online --- http://english.peopledaily.com.cn/