Concern for the country's deforestation and resulting damage to the ecosystem is great in today's China. The government and the people consider it important to improve the forest ecosystem and to increase forest cover from the present 13.9 per cent to 19.4 per cent within the next 10 years, according to the State Administration of Forestry. The country's forestry resources have grown substantially since the founding of the People's Republic of China in 1949 in terms of quantity, quality and value of economic returns.