NE China province to invest billions in water conservancy

Northeast China's Heilongjiang province plans to invest 4.68 billion yuan (737.38 million U.S. dollars) in water conservancy projects by next spring, local authority said Monday. The local government will start construction on about 8.65 million farmland irrigation and water conservancy projects, repair 349 flood-damaged projects, clean up 7,856 kilometers of water channels, and consolidate 490 kilometers of dikes and 97 reservoirs, according to a plan released by the Water Resources Bureau of Heilongjiang. The province has attached great importance to the development of water conservancy in recent years, aiming to increase food production and protect the rural environment. Heilongjiang province is one of the country's major producers of marketable grain and soybeans.