Italy has donated 162 million euros (US$203 million) to China for environmental protection over the past six years, a senior Chinese environmental official said on Wednesday.

 

"China and Italy kicked off their environmental cooperation in 2000 and by May this year, the two sides had signed 80 agreements, yielding fruitful results," said Zhuang Guotai, director of the Foreign Economic Cooperation Office under the State Environmental Protection Administration.

 

He said the agreements cover a wide range of sectors, including the implementation of international environmental conventions, ecological surveys and protection, renewable energy, air quality monitoring and sustainable urban development.

 

The projects have been carried out in 14 Chinese municipalities, provinces and autonomous regions including Beijing, Tianjin, Shanghai, Shaanxi and Tibet.

 

The two governments have decided to launch "Sino-Italian Green Week" in Beijing starting from July 3 to further boost environmental cooperation between the two countries, he said.

 

During the week, the two sides will jointly hold a series of activities such as environmental forums and exhibitions of Italian architecture and design.

 

The Italian environment minister will lead a high-level governmental delegation to participate in the activities, he said.

 

"The green week will provide an opportunity for both sides to summarize our past cooperative experiences and find ways to further our cooperation," said Massimo Martineli, special adviser with the Italian Ministry of Environment and Territory.

 

(Xinhua News Agency June 29, 2006)