Initiated by the Lushan Consumers' Association and the Lushan Administration for Industry and Commerce, the team comprises staffdrawn from a variety of local governmental departments, including pricing, transportation, tourism, public security and environmental protection.

Sources with the organizers said the mechanism is the first of its kind to be set up in a Chinese tourist site. If any of the afore-mentioned departments receives a complaint from a tourist, the Consumers' Association will resolve it through the appropriatedepartments.

The center pledges to resolve all complaints during the tourist's stay.

Lushan, one of China's United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) World Heritage sites, received about 1.5 million tourist arrivals in 2002 and reported record revenue of 130 million yuan (15.66 million US dollars), a 40 percent increase from 2001.

The mountain is located near Poyang Lake, China's largest freshwater lake, and the Yangtze River, the longest waterway in the country. Covering 302 square kilometers, the mountain was listed as one of the UNESCO World Cultural Heritage sites in 1996 for its scenic landscape and cultural relics.

(Xinhua News Agency March 22, 2003)