China improves far-sea territory monitoring

BEIJING - The availability of remote-sensing images brought by China's satellites has allowed the country to better monitor its territory in the far seas, including the Huangyan, Diaoyu and Xisha islands and the surrounding sea areas, a major newspaper reported Monday.

The overseas edition of the People's Daily, the flagship newspaper of the Communist Party of China (CPC), cited sources with the State Oceanic Administration (SOA) as saying it is a significant move in terms of extending China's maritime monitoring network coverage from the near to far seas.

The network entered into service in 2009 after construction began in 2006.

By combining satellite, aerial remote-sensing and ground-based monitoring methods, the system monitors development activities in China's coastal and sea areas "in a stereo and dynamic manner," the paper said.

China's monitoring of its sea territory had long been constrained by its lagging monitoring capacity, mainly due to the shortage of satellites, the report said, citing experts. The situation improved following the activation of the maritime monitoring network.

"The network coverage extension to the far seas will improve the country's ability to protect the maritime environment and respond to potential natural disasters," the report cited Tang Danling, an oceanic research fellow with the Chinese Academy of Sciences, as saying.

The SOA said the country's maritime monitoring network will continue to boost remote-sensing and monitoring over far-sea areas, according to the report.