One of the pilot provinces for ecological protection and improvement, Jilin, in northeast China, has made big progress in restoring its ecological balance.

Boasting fertile black soil, forests and pastures, the province has set up four national and eight provincial nature reserves to preserve the ecological environment.

In the past two years, the province launched a project to protect virgin forests in its east and a massive project to return large areas of farmland to forest and grassland.

The province now claims a forest coverage rate of 42.5 percent, or 5.4 million hectares, including 3.9 million hectares of virgin forest and 1.5 million hectares of artificial forests, according to sources.

(Xinhua News Agency December 16, 2002)