Chinese central authorities held a seminar on population, resources and the environment Saturday. President Hu Jintao presided over the meeting and stressed the importance of building an energy-efficient and environment-friendly society in China.

The annual event has been held for consecutive years. Chinese leaders, including Wu Bangguo, Wen Jiabao, Jia Qinglin, Zeng Qinghong, Huang Ju, Wu Guanzheng, Li Changchun and Luo Gan, also attended the seminar.

Hu said that the comprehensive implementation of the "scientific concept of development," the further adjustment of China's economic structure and the transformation of economic growth methods are essential to ease pressure on population, resources and environment for the comprehensive, coordinated and sustained socio-economic growth in China.

"China should speed up the adjustment of its irrational economic structure and completely abandon the 'extensive way' of economic growth. China should promote economic growth based on improvement of quality of the people, efficient use of resources, environmental pollution reduction and the importance attached to quality and economic returns for the building of an energy-efficient and environment-friendly society," Hu said.

Hu urged all to clearly understand "the utmost importance" of economic structure adjustment and growth method changes to the easing of pressure on population, resources and environment.

To meet these ends, Hu said efforts should be made to adjust the investment structure and optimize the investment proportion and ways to pour various production elements.

In the process of promoting socio-economic development, efforts should be made to better save resources, protect environment, improve ecological system and adopt a new way of industrialization, he said.

The key to the structural adjustment and growth method changes depends on the improvement of self-creation ability and the speedup of technology progress, he said.

The impetus to the structural adjustment and the growth method changes rely on the deepening of reform and the innovation of systems and mechanism, he said.

"Creative thoughts and methods should be actively explored by government officials in population and family planning work," Hu said.

Hu also urged continued research on population development strategies, improvement of population quality based on a low birth rate, enhancement of technological and service levels in family planning and the reining of rising gender imbalance.

As for land and resources work, it is important to explore new mechanisms for land and resources administration, implement all regulations on land management, use land in an efficient way, and better protect the arable land, basic farmland in particular, he said.

Hu called for strengthening the administration of natural resources, enhancing the efficiency of resource use and protecting and making good use of China's preponderant mineral resources.

Environmental protection should strive to push forward recycling economy, speed up clean production, enhance pollution control and strengthen ecological protection and construction, Hu said.

Hu required better protected drinkable water resources, instructing all relevant departments to give clean water to the people "the highest priority."

Premier Wen Jiabao also addressed the meeting, highlighting the key works in 2005.

-- On population and family planning, Wen called for a good summary of experiences in rewarding and assisting rural families which abide by the state family planning policy, as well as the experiences in poverty alleviation through family planning.

-- On land management, Wen stressed the earnest protection of basic farmland and the rights and interests of farmers.

-- On energy and other resources conservation, Wen said equal attention should be paid to both resources development and economization.

-- On rectifying and regulating mineral resources development, Wen required to carry out a rectification campaign nationwide with coal mining as the focus.

-- On environmental pollution control, Wen urged to first resolve pollution problems that pose serious threats to the health and security of the people, such as the prevention and control of water pollution, atmosphere pollution control in urban areas, and the strict enforcement of environmental protection laws and regulations.

-- Wen also put construction of "key ecological projects", such as the anti-sandstorm forest belt construction in North China, in prior agenda in 2005.

All regions and departments are required to map out plans on population and resources in collaboration with China's masterplan for the 11th Five-Year Plan and Long Range Objectives to 2020, according to Wen.