Marine rescue and salvage teams will be able to save more lives thanks to more accurate and speedy weather updates.

The Ministry of Communications and the China Meteorological Administration on Friday signed an agreement in Beijing to share resources, improving the marine weather service.

The Ministry of Communications will provide large navigation marks and lighthouses for automatic weather stations.

It will also co-ordinate with weather departments, ensuring they install automatic weather stations on large commercial ships, rescue ships and oil platforms.

Meanwhile, the meteorological administration will help train sailors in weather observation techniques.

The new measures and the pooling of information should allow both bodies to improve their gathering of weather data.

In addition, the departments will work together to improve the weather information distribution system, map out emergency plans for typhoons and other natural disasters and explore ways of improving the ocean weather service.

The Chinese mainland has 18,000 kilometres of coastline and there are at least 5,400 islands scattered around it.

With more sea transport routes being set up and exploration for marine resources increasing, marine safety risks are also surging.

"China is often hit by typhoons and bad weather," said Qin Dahe, head of the administration, at the signing ceremony on Friday in Beijing.

The weather service can help avoid losses caused by typhoons and assist with rescue and salvage work, he said.

Thanks to the accurate forecasting of six typhoons this year, there were no deaths reported in the marine transport industry, said Li Shenglin, Minister of Communications.

The meteorological administration aims to increase its role in marine rescues over the next 15 years. By 2010, meteorological departments will be able to provide forecasts of wind speed, wave height, water temperature, visibility, thunder, rainfall and temperature across different sea areas.

(China Daily October 14, 2006)