An eco-friendly exhibition hall, with all its external walls and roof covered by soilless turf, was to open for visitors to the 2008 Olympic Games next month, builders said on Thursday.

It showed Beijing's promise of a "green Olympics", said Mao Yu, board chairman of the turf producer.

The hall, located at the Olympic Green Park at the north end of the center axis of Beijing, covered an area of 1,000 square meters.

A total of 2,400 pieces of soilless turf are used to "wrap" the hall, Mao told Xinhua.

According to the hall's manager Yan Jin, as the wall was built with environment-friendly materials with insulation effect and covered by the turf, the temperature inside were about 10 degree Celsius lower than outside.

Even without an air conditioner, the air temperature was at about 25 degrees at noon, he said. This cut down electricity consumption at the hall to only 10 percent of others.

Mao said he believed the soilless technology would help save cropland and water, both of which fell short in the country.

Annual water use for one square meter of soilless turf was only 0.9 tons, compared with more than 10 tons for traditional lawns.

Committed to a "green Olympics", Beijing has built its key game venues into not only showpieces reflecting the most imaginative architectural feats in the world, but also energy-saving models.

The National Stadium, known as the Bird's Nest for its unique latticework of interwoven steel, is considered a template for water conservation, with 70 percent of its water supply coming from recycled water.

The National Aquatics Center, or the Water Cube, is also designed as a comprehensive energy-saving building.

(Xinhua News Agency July 25, 2008)