The Beijing municipal government has decided to halt all projects aimed at the renovation or removal of old and derelict houses in the imperial city zone.

This is very encouraging news because it serves notice that large-scale real-estate development projects will be prohibited in this area and the regulation issued in April regarding protection of the imperial zone is being taken seriously.

The imperial zone, with the Forbidden City as its centre, runs around 6.8-square-kilometres and is the core of ancient Beijing.

It is the largest and most completely-preserved imperial palatial grouping in the world. The designs and architecture showcased here are of great historical and artistic value. These great treasures belong not only to China, but the whole world.

Beijing was the capital city of six dynasties. There are 25 historical and cultural protection zones in the city, occupying an area of 1,038 hectares.

Five places in Beijing have been designated World Cultural Heritage sites: The Great Wall, the Temple of Heaven, the Ming Tombs, the Summer Palace and the Forbidden City. Beijing is also home to 60 historical relics protection sites at national level, 234 at municipal level and 517 at county level.

The regulation on the protection of the imperial city issued in April and the decision to halt removal and renovation projects within the area are a great start, but far more needs to be done.

In the years immediately following the founding of the People's Republic of China in 1949, most of the ancient wall surrounding Beijing was pulled down because it was then regarded as a symbol of the old feudal society and was in the way of city development. As a result, the original flavour of the inner city was all but lost.

The economic prosperity brought about by the reform and opening up drive accelerated the renovation and renewal of old and derelict houses. Profit took priority over protection of historical and cultural relics as massive development projects unfolded.

As a result of the renovation projects, a conspicuous number of ancient hutong and hundreds of siheyuan -- traditional Chinese alleys and quadrangles -- were demolished.

The siheyuan, four-sided enclosed yards, used to be home to many Beijing residents. It is a typical form of ancient Chinese architecture dating back more than six centuries.

Unfortunately, excessive development continues to gradually erode the unique historical flavour of the ancient city. The roaring bulldozers everywhere cannot but make people worry about the survival of the precious architectural relics in the capital city.

Without efficient measures, the traditional appearance and flavour of Beijing will vanish -- completely and forever.

With 850 years' history as a capital city, Beijing is a veritable goldmine of culture. We have no reason not to cherish such precious cultural heritage.

The celebration of the 850th anniversary of the capital city is to enlighten people about Beijing's history and cultivate a sense of protection in development.

Better protection should start with altering the current development ideology and readjusting the development plan. The mode characterized by the complete demolition of old houses -- including cultural and historical relics -- and replacing them with new buildings must be changed.

Instead, prudence is needed in the improvement and renovation of the city. The expansion of Beijing should no longer be out of control.

In the 1950s renowned architect Liang Sicheng drew up a blueprint for Beijing's development that gave much consideration to protection. That plan, however, was turned down and replaced by a destructive development mode.

City planning is a complicated job, which requires a democratic and scientific procedure in decision-making. In drawing up the blueprint for development, voices from all walks of life should be heard.

The new initiatives in Beijing's development should be orientated towards better protection of its historical and cultural relics.

Those precious relics are impossible to replace once demolished, and the losses can never be made up by fake buildings.

The author is a senior architect based in Beijing.

(China Daily November 20, 2003)