GEF helps conserve China's World Heritage mountain

Global Environment Facility (GEF), an international financing institution for environmental protection, has donated 2.72 million U.S. dollars to help conserve biodiversity on Mount Huangshan in east China.

The government of Huangshan city, Anhui Province, will provide an auxiliary fund of 10.98 million U.S. dollars for the biodiversity protection program covering the mountain, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, as well as several other national and provincial level nature reserves in Anhui Province.

The money will be spent on charting policies, setting up institutes, improving management efficiency and environmental education, according to the city government of Huangshan, where the World Heritage mountain is located.

The program zone, which covers 0.1 percent of China's land space, accounts for 7 percent of China's total number of flora and fauna species. It is home to 456 species of vertebrate and 1,800 species of higher plants.

The program is designed for better protection and sustainable use of biodiversity resources in the area and it will make Mount Huangshan an example of biodiversity protection, according to the Huangshan city government.