(July 17, 2000) China plans to build a resource database to track endangered plants in the Three Gorges area with collections of live plants and seeds as well as a gene bank as the dam is due to be completed on May 20th. The Three Gorges area, located to the north of a sub-tropical region, is an important part of Chinaês plant ecosystem, serving as a refuge for ancient and rare plant species. There are about 6000 kinds of plants in the Three Gorges area, 47 of which are rare species, with 37 distinct to the region. Equipment for the gene database is in place and botanists will start to collect gene samples in the region this summer. Three Gorges is the worldês biggest reservoir project, covering an area of 1000 square kilometers.

CRIEnglish.com, July 17, 2000