BEIJING, Jan. 17 (Xinhua) -- China has set up a research center on the ecological environment of the Qilian Mountains to protect the vast mountain range in northwest China, according to the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS).

Led by the Northwest Institute of Eco-Environment and Resources, the research center is coordinated by other units such as Lanzhou University and Qilian Mountain National Nature Reserve Administration in Gansu Province.

The center will focus research on ecosystem restoration, water resource management as well as the ecological management of the Qilian Mountains under global climate change.

It will combine fundamental research and application research to conduct environment monitoring and assessment, providing support for the creation of the national park in the Qilian Mountains.

The Qilian Mountains, on the border of Gansu and Qinghai provinces, was designated a national nature reserve in 1988.