SHENYANG, May 8 (Xinhua) -- Zhang Wei, a traveler from the eastern Chinese city of Wenzhou, was stunned by a visit to Shenyang International Horticultural Garden in northeast China.

The elegant garden, venue of the on-going China Shenyang International Horticultural Exposition, boasts 980 varieties of trees and more than 7,000 species of flowers.

"It is amazing!" exclaimed Zhang, "I never thought an old industrial city like Shenyang could be so beautiful."

Thousands of other travelers share similar views as Shenyang was once listed by the World Health Organization as one of the world's top ten cities with the most hazardous pollution.

In 2000, the city's afforestation rate was 23.91 percent with its average per capita green area was 3.7 square meters. Meanwhile, it reported only 73 days with fairly good air quality.

But Shenyang has invested 43.3 billion yuan (5.34 billion U.S. dollars) in environment protection since 2001, with the ultimate purpose of building the city into an eco-friendly one.

"More than 4,000 chimneys have been removed and 7.27 million square meters of unsafe buildings demolished in the past five years to make way for green belts and parks," said a source with the municipal construction committee.

The newly-added green area in urban areas in 2005 alone was 250 percent of the total green area in 2000, while the afforestation rate rose to 40.05 percent and the number of the days with fairly good air quality soared to 319.

"The city has been seeking a still better way to protect the environment while developing industry," said Chen Zhenggao, secretary of the Shenyang municipal committee of the Communist Party of China.

Doeke Faber, president of the Association of International Horticultural Producers, said in an interview with Xinhua that Shenyang has been given the title of 'forest city' and local people should be proud of their achievements.

The China Shenyang International Horticultural Exposition, with the theme of "man living in harmony with nature", will run until October 31 and is expected to attract 10 million visitors from home and abroad, said Yang Yazhou, assistant mayor of the capital of Liaoning Province.

This is the second time China has held the world-class gathering for horticulture. The scenic city of Kunming, capital of the southwestern province of Yunnan, hosted a similar event in 1999.

"We are not far away from when more corners of the old industrial city are as pretty as the horticultural garden," said Zhang Wei, beaming with a broad smile. Enditem