Beijing, Jun 22 (IANS): A protection project will be launched this year to restore the natural environment along the key sections of the oldest section of the Great Wall of Qi in east China's Shandong province, said an official.

The Shandong Cultural Heritage Administration is drawing up a construction plan for the cultural and natural scenic area of the Great Wall of Qi, Xinhua quoted Xie Zhixiu, head of the administration, as saying.

The protection plan includes the protection of the walls and relevant military relics, and the treatment and restoration of the natural environment along the route, he said.

Built between 770 BC and 476 BC in the ancient state of Qi, or today's Shandong, the Great Wall of Qi is the oldest Great Wall in China.

It started at a small village in what is now Changqing County, with passes, gates, castles and beacon towers along a total length of 620 km till it met the sea near Qingdao.

Using the walls as military defense projects, more than 20 emperors in ancient China ordered the building or renovation of walls and fortifications. The Great Wall of China was inscribed on the world cultural heritage list in 1987, and the Great Wall of Qi is part of this cultural heritage.