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Eco-Environment to Top Beijing's Urban Construction List
Beijing, the national capital, is striving to build itself into an eco-friendly metropolis where man co-exists harmoniously with the nature. Eco-environment should top the list of Beijing's urban construction projects, said people's deputies and government officials attending the ongoing fourth session of the 11th Beijing Municipal People's Congress.
Like many other world cities, Beijing is plagued by such problems as population explosion, air pollution, traffic jam, and particularly water shortage.
Aware of the importance of the eco-environment, the municipal government invested 1.1 billion yuan in 1998 to dredge and broaden the city's rivers. To date, a 50-kilometer-long river system, which runs through the city proper, has become a tourist attraction.
According to a work report delivered at the session, Beijing boasted a forest coverage rate of 43 percent in 2000, up 7 percent over 1996.
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