China's nuclear plants, ambitious power plans unshaken by tremors

China says its nuclear facilities have not been affected by Friday's massive earthquake in Japan, where two nuclear power plants are seriously damaged, and that plans to expand the use of nuclear power will not change.

Deputy Environment Minister Zhang Lijun said, however, that China could learn lessons from Japan amid growing concerns over the safety of nuclear development.

'China has switched on its nuclear safety monitoring mechanism in coastal cities to look out for any impact of the leaks at Japan's nuclear plants on China,' Zhang said on the sidelines of the annual session of the National People's Congress.

'So far, the findings are normal and China has yet to be affected,' he said, adding that all of China's 13 nuclear reactors were safe. He said nuclear safety authorities had been communicating with their Japanese counterparts after the quake.

Nuclear safety has long been a key concern among environmentalists and the public, as the development of nuclear power is listed as a priority in an attempt to reduce China's reliance on dirty coal, a major source of greenhouse gases, in the next decade.

In the economic blueprint for the next five years, China said it would accelerate the development of nuclear power in coastal regions and push ahead with the building of more nuclear plants in central provinces.