Hunan Province proudly presents its new image as a resource-saving and environment-friendly area as it draws attention from investors from all over the world.

This year alone, 37 enterprises have been closed due to heavy damage to the Xiangjiang River, 18 have been eliminated altogether and 976 pollution control projects have been implemented, according to the province's development and reform commission.

Changsha, Zhuzhou and Xiangtan are the three most polluted cities in Hunan province where the Xiangjiang River passes through. The local government has budgeted 17.4 billion yuan for the region's pollution control projects. Companies and factories are to be assessed by the end of each year. Those failing to meet the environmental standards will either be closed or corrected within a prescribed time limit.

Any investments in Hunan must meet the needs of the "two-oriented society" (environmentally friendly and conservation oriented) so before putting pen to paper, any project proposals will be reviewed closely by the government to make sure the projects are both.

The Hunan government is building up its reputation by holding a series of business conferences and attracting investment from all over the country and overseas. The province is currently focusing on the technology-intensive and capital-intensive industries. High-end manufacturing and the electronic information industry, for example, have become the fastest growing industries in the region.

By this September, two inter-city highways connecting Changsha, Zhuzhou and Xiangtan will be completed. Traveling time among the three cities will be shortened to 15 to 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, the inter-city light rails which center around the three cities will be completed in three years. In the future, a high-speed railroad from Changsha to Guangzhou, Shanghai and Beijing will be built.

Hunan started the building of "two-oriented society" and regional economic integration almost 25 years ago. From the former heavily polluted industry center, the province has developed into a healthy economy with full-fledged transportation, power, finance, information and environment systems. Hunan has become a textbook model for regional development.

(China Daily September 2, 2008)