A total of 330 households from the city of Fuxin have moved south to Dalian's Paotai County, an economically more developed coastal city in the Northeast Liaoning Province.

The resettled residents are all laid-off workers and their families from heavily deep-mined areas of Fuxin, which is rich in coal resources. The families had lived in Fuxin for more than a decade before the move.

Fuxin has a long history of coal production dating back more than 100 years. But extensive surface areas are now highly unstable as a result of years of underground mining activities. This poses a great risk of land collapse, which threatens the lives of local people and also property. In addition the deep-mined area's economic development is facing problems as well.

To improve the living environment of those affected residents, at the beginning of the year Fuxin embarked on a renovation program to address the problems caused by decades of underground mining.

However, relocation presented the most effective way of solving the problem and improving their prospects in the long term.

At a conference held in April, leaders of Paotai County agreed to accept 330 laid-off workers and their families from the affected areas of Fuxin.

By the end of November, all the families had moved into new homes in Fuxin Paotai Pioneering Work Garden, which was completed in October.

(China Daily December 27, 2002)