European organizations have teamed up with provincial officials in Sichuan Province to explore potential benefits of bamboo on eco-living and the local economy.

The project will promote the use of bamboo, which has exceptional strength and shock resistance, instead of timber and other non-renewable building materials for Sichuan's reconstruction, said Lise van den Bos, the project assistant from the Benelux Chamber of Commerce.

Bamboo has a shorter growth cycle than timber. It grows a meter a day, making it a sustainable resource. It has been used to build temporary houses in Japan after earthquake and Latin America and can also be used to make furniture, paper and even bicycles.

The project will be exploring the opportunity to develop a bamboo building standard for China, van den Bos said.

Sichuan already has plenty of bamboo resources. There are more than 140 different kinds of bamboo plants in the province. Enhancing the bamboo industry there will also help create jobs for farmers and factory workers, forming a self-sustainable and eco-friendly community.

The "Eco-Friendly Pro-Poor Bamboo Production" project is co-financed by the European commission and implemented by INBAR (the International Network for Bamboo and Rattan) and 3 partners, SFD (Sichuan Forestry Department), EUPIC (European Project Innovation Centre Chengdu) and BenCham.

During the last week of October 2011 the Benelux Chamber of Commerce is organizing an Investor's Study Tour to the bamboo industry in Sichuan. This 6 days study tour, taking place between October 28th and November 3rd, will provide the attendees with a balanced picture of the bamboo investment opportunities in Sichuan.