07:57, 05 May 2009 | GMT +5
Heritage sites in China's Xi'an under termite threat
BEIJING. May 5. KAZINFORM More than 70 percent of ancient buildings in Xi'an are under attack from termites, posing a long-term risk to the city's heritage, it was revealed Monday, Kazinform refers to Xinhua.

Pest control teams are already at work to battle the bugs in Huajuexiang Mosque, built in 742 during the Tang Dynasty (618-907), and Baxian Temple, which dates back to the Song Dynasty (960-1127), said local authorities.
Termites, also known as white ants, feed on dead materials such as wood and can cause serious structural damage to buildings.
"We have received more than 3,000 calls from local residents about white ants since March 28," Gao Lianggang, director of Xi'an termite prevention and control institute, said.
Hu Chenglin, head Taoist priest at Baxian Temple, said the site has suffered for more than five years with termites, which experts said usually spread when the pests fly to other buildings during hot and wet weather, particularly during the months of April and May.
Sun Fuxi, deputy director of Xi'an municipal administrative bureau of cultural heritage, said it would be a long-term fight to rid all of the city's ancient sites of the insects but assured every effort was being made by the authorities and management at the various buildings to quell the potential danger, Kazinform cites Xinhua. See www.chinaview.cn for full version.