Full Text: Report on the Work of the Government(11)

We will set a ceiling on total energy consumption and strengthen energy conservation in key areas such as manufacturing, transportation, and construction. We will work hard to develop a circular economy and promote the recovery of resources from industrial and household waste. There is enormous potential in China' s market for energy conservation and environmental protection; we will develop the energy conservation and environmental protection industry into a new pillar of the economy.

Forests, grasslands, rivers, and wetlands are ecological riches and gifts of nature that we must take greater care to cherish. We will carry out major ecological projects; extend key eco-function zones; work to establish zones that demonstrate best practices for promoting a sound ecology; carry out pilot projects to improve the overall condition of rivers; expand the trial of having localities situated on the upper and lower reaches of river basins compensate each other for their impact on water quality; and ensure the sources of the Yangtze, Yellow, and Lancang rivers are effectively preserved. We will expand the areas of natural forests under protection, and work in a planned way to put a stop to commercial logging in these forests. This year, we will return an additional 666,667 hectares of marginal farmland back to forest or grassland, and afforest 6 million more hectares of land.

In ecological protection, progress comes only through action, and success only through persistence. We must take a firm and unrelenting approach in this work, to ensure we always have blue skies, lucid waters, and sustainable development.