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| A damaged section of the Great Wall in Laiyuan county, North China's Hebei province is visible. |
由于非法采矿，长城摇摇欲坠
At one wild section in Laiyuan county, North China's Hebei province, the wall has completelycrumbled due to fly-by-night operators who are stealing reserves of iron, copper, molybdenumand nickel that are buried along a 150 kilometer stretch of the famous landmark
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A survey has revealed more than 80 percent of the Great Wall in Hebei province is in badshape due to tourism and inappropriate infrastructure. But it is the illegal mining that is causingthe most damage to site.
"We have no idea how many enterprises are engaged in the mining along the Great Wall site,"says Guo Jianyong, an engineer from the Hebei provincial ancient architecture protectioninstitution. "The cultural heritage department has no knowledge of the specific information onthe passages in the mining, either."
He claims that the government should play a more active role in protecting the Great Wall.
"Because of the remote location and the length of the Great Wall, its protection needs theattention and support from the local government, who we suggest deploy more personnel andincrease the financial assistance."
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| A section of the Great Wall in Laiyuan county, North China's Hebei province has collapsed due to illegal mining. |
