2009-10-21 Source:Xinhua

China set up a foundation on Tuesday to protect the Yellow River, the country's second longest river, from over exploitation and pollution.

The non-profit foundation, named China Yellow River Conservation Foundation, will promote protection programs, fund scientific researches and sponsor international cooperation on the protection of the river.

Organizations and individuals, that have made outstanding contributions to the protection of the Yellow River, will be rewarded by the foundation, according to the foundation's media office.

Launched by the Yellow River Conservancy Commission (YRCC) of the Water Resources Ministry, the foundation is open to public donations, both domestic and overseas.

Stretching 5,464 kilometers from the northwest Tibetan plateau to the east coast, the Yellow River suffers the most serious soil erosion in the world, especially along its middle and upper reaches. The average amount of mud and sand washed into the river every year reaches 1.6 billion tons.

One third of the Yellow River system had been polluted, according to a bulletin issued by the YRCC last year. Industrial sector was blamed as the No.1 polluter, followed by living sewage contributed by urbanites living along the river system and the service trade.

The river, dubbed China's "Mother River", flows eastward through nine provinces and autonomous regions before emptying into the Bohai Sea. It has 35 main tributaries.

Supplying about 10 percent of China's 1.3 billion population and 240 million mu (16 million hectares) of farmland, the river is the biggest water resource in northwest and north China.

The YRCC has its headquarters in Zhengzhou, capital of central China's Henan Province. It is assigned with the mission of overseeing the welfare of the Yellow River system.