Efforts made to preserve ancient canal

When the Grand Canal, the world's longest artificial waterway, was inscribed on the World Heritage list at UNESCO's 38th session of the World Heritage Committee on Sunday in Doha, Qatar, excitement was stirred among the Chinese delegation.

The earliest construction of the canal can be traced to the 6th century BC, and the canal was first connected as a whole in the 7th century AD. The length of the canal and its tributaries is about 3,000 kilometers. Of that total, 1,011 km of the canal - a part that passes through 35 cities and includes 58 historical sites - has been designated for the World Heritage list.

According to Jiang Shili, deputy head of the application office for World Heritage, the southern part of this important communication channel connecting northern and southern China in ancient times still functions well today and is considered a special heritage because it is "alive".