The English edition of the book Historical Changes in China's Forestry, which claims that China's forestry will shift focus from timber production to biological construction, was published recently.

The English edition was published by Thomson Learning, a U.S. publishing house and distributed in more than 100 countries and regions.

Zhou Shengxian, author of the book and also the director of the State Forestry Administration of China, reviewed the history of China's forestry over the past 50 years and outlined the strategic directions and development tasks for China's forestry in the new century.

The book probes in depth the new problems China's forestry development faces in such a rapid developing country and also provides an important reference for forestry development in other developing countries, said an official with the International Network for Bamboo and Rattan, a non-profitmaking international organization.

(Xinhua News Agency January 13, 2006)