June 25th was the seventeenth annual "Land Day" in China. This year's theme was "saving and intensively using land, holding to the bottom line of 1.8 billion mu". Xu Shaoshi, minister of the Ministry of Land and Resources, the chief supervisor of state land, said that the resources of China's limited cultivated land still continue to decrease. At present, we should continue towards the overall goal of 1.8 billion mu (15 mu equal one hectare) of cultivated land, to fully bring about the regulating effects of the programmed land-use, putting the plan into practice and sticking to the most rigid land management system.

At present, there are only 1.827 mu of cultivated land in China, only 1.39 mu per capita, and 40 percent less than the world's average amount. Such factors as a situation of more people and fewer land, extensive cultivation existing side by side, the expansion of newly added construction land, the structure of using an unreasonable amount of land, and the land's extensive use, all have further exacerbated the contradictions of China's people and its land. Xu Shaoshi said that the land use programming and planning should be rigidly enforced; and ensures that the actual amount of construction land, added annually, will be controlled within the annual plan index. All newly added construction land that exceeds the planning index should be investigated and take responsibility.

By People's Daily Online