A volunteer, shouldering an eight kilo earth model, inscribed with the Chinese words, "no time to delay in protecting our earth", arrived Thursday in Qiqihar, northeast china's Heilongjiang Province, the twelfth leg of his ambitious nationwide environemtal promotion tour.

The 37-year-old volunteer, Jiang Guishan, who was once a successful chef from east China's Jiangxi Province, plans to stay in the city for a two-day publicity on enironmental protection, and then leave for his coming stops in Heihe and Harbin, qiqihar.northeast.cn reports.

Jiang came up with the idea of promoting environmental protection by way of touring China when he became repeatedly shocked by the increasingly polluted Poyang Lake near his hometown Duchang county, Jiangxi province, where he could no longer see any fish and shrimps. He also became very sad, while working as a chef in Wenzhou, east China's Zhejiang Province, about the rampant pollution caused by an excessive use of plastic bags, one-off boxes and other packing items.

For that, Jiang used aluminum alloy and made a one-meter diameter "earth model" for his environmental protection tour. He painted the continents on his model in orange-red to show their urgency in curbing environmental pollution, greenhouse effects and global warming.

Jiang plans to reach Beijing before 2008. It is expected to take him four years and about 200 thousand yuan, or 25 thousand dollars to finish his whole journey across the country. If he uses up all the money he has saved, he will continue his promotion while working, says Jiang.

Jiang hopes more people will join in the cause of environmental protection. He has realized that this cause requires committed efforts from the whole of society.

(CRIENGLISH.com July 28, 2007)