Preparations for the nomination of six Chinese canal towns for UNESCO World Heritage status kicked off last weekend at Shanghai's Tongji University.

The towns are Luzhi, Tongli and Zhouzhuang in Jiangsu Province, and Wuzhen, Nanxun and Xitang in Zhejiang Province.

The six towns all reached their prime during the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644).

With their unique layout characterized by a sentimental living environment featuring gray tilted Ming-Qing-dynasty styled houses, small zigzagging bridges and meandering brooks, these towns have gradually acquired a regional culture peculiar to their own.

Accession to the World Heritage list allows access to a fund which distributes US$3 million annually, plus additional sums for emergency repair work necessitated by natural disasters.

Before the towns can join the list, they must be officially put forward by the government.

"We believe that the ingenuity of the people who used the natural power of the Yangtze River and the water resources of Taihu Lake to create the network of canals and to establish the prosperous Wu Kingdom in ancient time is also a human story that merits are known worldwide," said Minja Yang, deputy director of UNESCO's World Heritage Center.

Co-sponsored by Tongji University and the World Heritage Center, the meeting will run until October 29, according to officials.

(Eastday.com 10/24/2000)