Beijing Organizing Committee of the 29th Olympic Games (BOCOG) has purchased more than 5 million biodegradable plastic bags for rubbish disposal at Olympic venues.

As one of the efforts to achieve a "green Olympics", BOCOG made seven kinds of bags available for the 2008 Olympics. More than 92 percent of the ingredients of the material used in the bags was completely biodegradable.

In 2007, Beijing New Material Development Center invited relevant organizations and experts to carry out investigations and appraisal of the biodegradable plastic products for Olympics.

These measures, together with the international symposiums and expos on new biodegradable products, have provided the basis for using biodegradable bags for the Beijing Olympics, said a BOCOG official.

(Xinhua News Agency August 12, 2008)