Once the targets for nationwide eradication campaign, pests in China are facing an even tougher fate in cities as the country begins to include pest prevention into its urban planning.

Initial experience was drawn from the design of the new town of Anting in Shanghai, and China is considering such pest control and prevention measures in other cities at design stage.

Experts said sanitation evaluation and effective control measures for pests must be included in city planning.

"Such planning is essential to prevent the outbreak of epidemics caused by pests," said Liu Qiyong, a research fellow with the China Center for Disease Control and Prevention.

"Though all pest species carrying contagious viruses can not be eliminated in this way, we can still minimize the damage brought by the pests," he said.

Pests have long been a headache for the Chinese.

In the 1950s late Chairman Mao Zedong launched a nationwide campaign to wipe out the "four pests", namely sparrows, mice, flies and mosquitoes.

With the sparrow restoring its reputation as a protected species in China during recent years, the current pest prevention campaign still targets pests like mice, cockroaches and mosquitoes.

Health experts have mapped out the pest prevention program in Anting, which was chosen to pilot the pest control and prevention measures in city planning.

Before the construction of Anting, three special campaigns had been launched against mice and cockroaches in the communities.

Meanwhile, regular inspections will be conducted to closely monitor the density of pests in the area while pest prevention measures are also adopted in public facilities like sewage pipelines, garbage bins and rivers.

Statistics from the Ministry of Health show that 5 percent to 10 percent of China's annual epidemic diseases originating in nature are caused by pests.

(Xinhua News Agency June 22, 2003)