They planted pines, ginkgo trees and white wax trees in the Olympic Forest Park.

While planting trees, Hu Jintao, general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) and State president, talked with officials about afforestation across the country.

Hu referred to tree-planting and afforestation as a major issue that would benefit the nation and the people.

"We should do it year by year and generation by generation, to make our motherland's mountains and rivers more beautiful," he said.

Thanks to these efforts to beautify the capital ahead of the 2008 Olympic Games, remarkable achievements have been made in the local environment, Hu said.

According to local officials, Beijing's forest coverage is expected to increase to 50 percent by 2005, when it will reach an average of 50 square meters per capita.

(Xinhua News Agency April 6, 2003)