DURBAN, South Africa - Su Wei, China's chief climate negotiator, said the country will pilot a carbon trade market for 3 to 5 years before spreading the program to nationwide.

"During this period of time, we will have experiences and lessons learned," he said.

China has decided to pilot carbon trade programs in the provinces of Guangdong and Hubei and the cities of Shenzhen, Tianjin, Beijing, Chongqing and Shanghai.

The State Council, China's cabinet, has passed a work plan on controlling greenhouse gas emissions during the 12th Five-Year Plan period of 2011-15. It includes provisions aimed at encouraging carbon trade in pilot regions and industrial sectors as well as a plan to set up a national carbon accounting system.