On top of China's agenda for international science cooperation in the 11th Five-Year Plan (2006-10) are environmental protection, energy and water resource technologies, according to a document released by the Ministry of Science and Technology yesterday.

The Outline of the 11th Five-Year Plan of International Science Cooperation states that technologies in these three areas have become bottlenecks in China's economic development, according to Minister of Science Xu Guanhua.

"Breakthroughs in the three sectors are also urgently needed for building a harmonious society," he told China Daily. "Clean" energy technologies such as 'clean coal' and the comprehensive utilization of oil and gas are given top priority in the outline.

Shang Yong, the vice science minister, told China Daily that the country is poised to join FutureGen, an initiative by US President George W. Bush, to build a giant coal-using but emission-free electricity plant.

International nuclear energy developments like the US$12.8 billion International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor as well as collaboration in energy and resource saving are stressed in the outline.

Environmental protection technologies are given unprecedented emphasis in the outline such as those dealing with urban air pollution, heavily polluting industries and refuse recycling.

The focus on water resource technologies will include those for conservation, use of sea water and prevention of river pollution. The country is facing a critical water shortage partly as a result of rising pollution incidents. Severe toxic spills into rivers occurred several times in the past year.

A chemical leak into the Songhua River in northeast China last November forced water supplies to be cut off for millions of people along the river.

Besides technologies in the three specific areas, the outline gives emphasis to food safety, development of an environment-friendly agricultural industry and medical solutions for chronic and epidemic diseases.

"The improvement of people's health is a primary goal," states the outline.

(China Daily December 4, 2006)