The island province of Hainan, in south China, has launched a three-year program aimed at increasing the per capita green space in its urban areas.

According to the plan drawn up by the provincial construction bureau, the program aims to increase the per capita green space by0.2 sq m annually.

The plan also requires that all cities in the province build at least one 10,000-square-meter park or green square and that all counties build a 5,000-square-meter park, grassland area or amusement park.

Over the last three years, according to statistics from the province's construction bureau, Hainan planted an additional 1.1 million square meters of trees and grass, with the urban vegetation rate reaching 32.6 percent and the per capita green area at 6.1 square meters, both above the national average.

"We want to make 'green' the typical characteristic of Hainan, a tropical island province with a large variety of plants growing all year around," said Yang Qingnian, deputy director of the provincial construction bureau.

The famous coastal city of Sanya, a tourist resort with a population of more than 100,000, has invested more than 700 million yuan (US$84.6 million) in tree- and grass-planting in urban areas over the past few years. The city's green area has now reached 42 percent and its per capita green area, 17 square meters.

In the provincial capital of Haikou, an additional 180,000 square meters of grasslands have been established so far this year.

(Xinhua News Agency November 11, 2002)