Southwest China's Sichuan Province yesterday banned the transportation of timber out of the province's Aba Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, Ganzi Qiang and Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, the Liangshan Yi Autonomous Prefecture, the Ya'an Prefecture and the cities of Panzhihua and Leshan, an official said. "This constitutes another important move taken by the province to protect the environment of the upper reaches of the Yangtze River," said acting Governor Zhang Zhangwei. Felling trees in natural forests nationwide will be stopped next year, said Zhang Lianyou, an official with the State Forestry Administration.