While natural forests, nature reserves and some tree plantations are State-owned, the majority of forested area in China is tree plantations and working forests collectively owned by rural residents and utilized on a contract basis.

On Friday, the General Office of the State Council, China's Cabinet, issued a document aimed at protecting farmers' property rights and interests in collective forests and promoting the sustainable development of collective forests to improve the livelihoods of rural residents.

The document points out that although significant achievements have been made in reforming China's collective forest rights system since 2008, there is a lack of nationwide data on collective forests to protect residents property rights and interests.

The document calls for the establishment of a mechanism for the development of collective forestry by 2020, better protection of collective forest property rights and improvement of the forest transfer and mortgage loan system, as well as more flexible management of collective forests and the introduction of supportive policies to develop the potential of collective forests, forest products and related industries.

The document says collective forestry rights and interests should be protected in accordance with the law. It calls for further clarifying forest property rights. And while encouraging the transfer of collective forest rights, it says transactions should be open and not go against the will of farmers and undermine their legal rights.

Grassroots forestry departments should strengthen their guidance and supervision to promote the sustainable management of collective forest resources.