China adopts law to protect navigation channels

China's waterways will become more regulated after the country's top legislature adopted a law on navigation channels on Sunday.

The target of the law is to ensure clear passage and security of the country's navigation channels, to boost the economies for coastal regions.

It was passed through a vote by members of the National People's Congress (NPC) Standing Committee at its bi-monthly legislative session which closed here Sunday afternoon.

The law lays down requirements for the planning, construction and maintenance of navigation channels, and for the construction of waterway-blocking, -crossing and -adjacent architectures.

Before the vote, it went through two readings in April and at this session.

China now has about 130,000 kilometers of inland waterways. Around 11 percent of all cargo in China is transported by waterways.