Beijing on Wednesday started cleaning the lower reaches of a river that flows through the northern part of the city as part of improving the environment around the Olympic Park being built for the 2008 Olympics.

 

The project, costing 640 million yuan (US$80 million), will clear away silt, improve water quality, and build concrete banks shoring up the Qinghe River, a spokesman with the Beijing Municipal Water Authority said.

 

The current work is the second phase of the clean-up and should be finished by the end of next year, he said.

 

Last year, local government authorities cleaned up the upper reaches of the Qinghe River, which originates in the Biyun Temple in the western suburbs of Beijing, he said.

 

The Olympic Park will cover 1,085 hectares, including a 680-hectare forest and a 405-hectare national sport center which will host the field hockey, archery and tennis events during the 2008 Olympic Games.

 

(Xinhua News Agency November 9, 2006)