As one of the first group of pilot counties under the provincial city improvement program, Xixia county in Nanyang, Henan province, is pulling out all the stops to develop itself into a green city.

Aiming to become a comfortable place for living, industrial development and tourism, Xixia has invited experts from provincial urban-rural planning, design and research companies to create a general plan for the county's development from 2015 to 2030.

As of now, 18 special planning projects have been completed in the fields of transportation, water supply, gas and heat supply, education and fire control. It is expected that the total investment for the projects will reach 38.5 billion yuan ($5.66 billion) between 2017 and 2020.

All the projects have won support and praise from local people, especially the 5000-meter flower belt along Shimen Lake. Local people also call it a landscape corridor in Xixia.

The county has also completed three comprehensive parks, 26 city gardens, seven provincial-level green roads and 26 above-city-level green organizations and communities. At present, the green coverage of Xixia has increased to 42.36 percent.

The county government has also attached great importance to improve living conveniences for the local population. With an investment of 390 million yuan, the Xixia Culture and Sports Center has taken primary shape. The 580-milliion-yuan Xixia People's Hospital will be put into use in October.

Through its efforts, Xixia has been awarded as a national civilized county, national hygienic county and national garden county.

Xixia county in Nanyang, Henan province. [Photo/dahe.com]

Xixia county in Nanyang, Henan province gears up to become a?green city.?[Photo/dahe.com]