Nuclear facilities and radioactive sources for civilian purposes in southwest China's Sichuan Province have been confirmed safe and controllable after the May 12 quake, top environment official said on Tuesday.

Zhou Shengxian, minister of environmental protection, told Xinhua that altogether 32 radioactive sources had been buried under debris during the 8-magnitude earthquake on May 12 centered in Wenchuan County of Sichuan.

So far, 30 of the radioactive sources have been recovered by authorities, according to Zhou.

Authorities have already detected the locations of the other two radioactive sources, and have limited access of their nearby areas during their excavation, Zhou said.

The two radioactive sources will also be transported to safe areas soon, he said.

The death toll in the strong earthquake that hit Sichuan on May 12 had risen to 34,073 as of Monday noon, with another 245,108 people injured, according to the earthquake relief headquarters of the Chinese government.

(Xinhua News Agency May 20, 2008)