Fujian province announced that it has been designated China’s first environmental protection pilot zone, which gives it the green light to test a series of measures aimed at energy efficiency, emissions reductions and government accountability. The measures to be implemented include audits of officials to examine their efforts on and financial budgets for environment protection and registering natural resources, such as bodies of water and forests, as intellectual property. Fujian Governor Su Shulin said: “Governments at all levels in the province will strive to eliminate outdated industrial production modes and improve the environmental impact assessment of new projects.” Fujian was selected for the pilot zone because its air and water quality rank highest in the country. Huang Zhigang, Director of Fuzhou University’s Finance Research Institute, said Fujian will advance the preservation of the environment to a higher level and become a role model for other regions. The province’s forest coverage rate reached 65.95% in 2013, the highest in the country. The forest area has increased by 365,000 hectares from five years ago, according to the provincial government.