North China launches research academy on Three-North Shelterbelt Forest Program

HOHHOT, Aug. 28 (Xinhua) -- A research academy on China's Three-North Shelterbelt Forest Program (TSFP), a large-scale afforestation project, was launched on Sunday in north China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region.

The new institute will provide scientific and technological support for major national ecological project construction such as the TSFP.

The academy will center on the difficulties of the project's construction, strengthen research and development of theories and key technologies, establish a demonstration zone for scientific and technology innovation, and vigorously promote the application of scientific and technological achievements, said Lu Qi, head of the academy, also the chief scientist from the Chinese Academy of Forestry.

Launched in 1978, the TSFP consists of forestation in northwest, north, and northeast China. The eight-phase project, covering 13 provincial regions, is expected to be completed by 2050.