The Grand Canal’s Suzhou Section. [Photo/ China Daily]

Visitors look at the diorama of ancient Shantang Block along the Grand Canal in the Grand Canal Suzhou Monitoring and Protection Center. [Photo/ Chinanews]

The Suzhou Bureau of Cultural Heritage, Jiangsu province, established the Grand Canal Suzhou Monitoring and Protection Center recently in the Grand Canal History Pavilion.

The center aims to coordinate with other cities along the Grand Canal to protect the world’s oldest and longest artificial waterway, collect data from the water, environment, transportation, construction, and other government departments to issue a daily water quality and navigation report, and to manage the Grand Canal Archives.

The center will use remote-sensing technology in dynamic monitoring of the Grand Canal and serve as a role model for the protection of this UNESCO World Cultural Heritage.