Hebei Province in north China has formulated an outline for improving its ecological system over the next 30 years.

According to the plans, 1,015 projects have been drawn up to protect and improve the province's ecological system with a total input of 418.8 billion yuan (US$51.6 billion).

The projects cover many aspects such as policy-making, restructuring of industries, poverty alleviation, water and soil conservation, and pollution control.

"Protection of the ecological environment is the only way out for the province to overcome the bottleneck of sustainable development," said Guo Gengmao, vice-governor of the province.

"Over the next 15 years, the province will face a serious conflict between economic development and environmental protection," Guo said.

"If Hebei still insists on the extensive mode of economic development, with high investment, high consumption of resources, serious pollution but low output from the investment because of low efficiency, the current reserves of resources and energy will simply be unable to cope," Guo said.

Now the province faces many ecological problems. Water resources, for example, are only 300 cubic metres per capita. Land is less than 0.3 hectare per capita, just one-third of the national average. "The shortage of natural resources and the fragile eco-environment require Hebei to change its style of economic growth," said Ji Zhenhai, director of the Hebei Provincial Environment Protection Bureau.

Hebei has also had to bear more environmental protection responsibility, due to its unique geography embracing Beijing, the nation's capital, on all directions and surrounding Tianjin Municipality. The province plays an important role shielding the two cities from wind and sand and supplying valuable water resources.

(China Daily September 7, 2005)