The 8.0-magnitude earthquake that jolted China on May 12 has destroyed or damaged almost half a million hectares of forests, the State Forestry Administration said on Thursday.

The quake havocked 6.462 million mu, or 431,015 hectares of forests in Sichuan and neighboring provinces, causing direct economic losses of 23 billion yuan (US$3.29 billion), said SFA deputy director Yin Hong.

(Xinhua News Agency June 12, 2008)