Vice premier urges more efforts on national afforestation and greening

Chinese Vice Premier Han Zheng, also a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and chairman of the national afforestation committee, attends a plenary conference of the national afforestation committee in Beijing, capital of China, April 12, 2019. (Xinhua/Ding Lin)

BEIJING, April 12 (Xinhua) -- China should make down-to-earth efforts to promote the forming of a new development pattern on national afforestation and greening cause that are scientific and reasonable, Vice Premier Han Zheng said at a meeting Friday.

Han, who is also a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and chairman of the national afforestation committee, called for accelerating the pace of the new pattern formation.

Both the quantity and the quality of ecological resources should be boosted, Han told a plenary conference of the national afforestation committee.

China should stick to the most rigorous protection system to comprehensively strengthen the protection of forests, grasslands, wetlands and deserts, take strict precautions against forest fires, and severely clamp down on illegal hunting and killing of rare and endangered wildlife, Han said.

The country should develop green industries in a scientific manner to help targeted poverty alleviation. Social forces should persistently be motivated to continue the tree-planting campaign.

The management system on national afforestation and greening should be optimized and investment channels should be broadened.

Local government and departments should improve their target-oriented responsibility systems, strengthen their teams of grass-roots cadres and appropriately allocate public financial investment, Han said.