New environmental legislation by the Kunming municipal government will create approximately 430 square kilometers of protected areas which will be known as the Dianchi Plateau Wetlands Protected Areas, according to a Sina.com report. An official timetable for the creation of the protected areas has yet to be made public.

According to a statement released by the Kunming Municipal People's Standing Committee, the city's goal is to develop into a sustainable metropolis with a healthy Dianchi. Since Dianchi's water quality nosedived in the 1980s, the Kunming and Yunnan governments have spent billions of dollars on cleaning up Dianchi, with negligible results.

Resolutions passed recently by the committee have created four types of protected zones, according to government English-language news site en.kunming.cn:

1) Core areas of four drinking water reservoirs covering approximately 13 square kilometers. The reservoirs are now first-level protected areas – no individual or organization is permitted to enter these premises except for scientific research purposes.

2) Seasonal core areas, covering nearly 300 square kilometers, which will be protected at the same level as the core areas during certain periods such as fishing bans.

3) Buffer areas of forested land surrounding the drinking water reservoirs, totaling approximately 17 square kilometers. No infrastructure projects or activities that harm the environment will be permitted in the buffer areas.

4) Experimental areas composed of just over 100 square kilometers of land with a damaged forest ecosystem. These lands are located near the reservoirs, along the 36 rivers that flow in or out of Dianchi, along the lake's shores and also Xishan, the mountain situated on Dianchi's west side. Ecotourism activities will be permitted in the experimental areas, provided that they do not harm the environment or scenery.

While far from fixing Dianchi's severe eutrophication problems which have turned much of the lake a soupy lime green, the creation of the Dianchi Plateau Wetlands Protected Areas is one of the more decisive measures that have been taken by the Kunming municipal government to address some of the root causes of the lake's pollution.

In 2007 the current government under Kunming Party Secretary Qiu He (仇和) and Mayor Zhang Zulin (张祖林) inherited the seemingly unfixable Dianchi problem. But unlike under previous governments, there is some visible progress being made, the biggest example being the improvement in water quality of the Panlong River, the largest of the rivers draining into Dianchi.

In March of this year, the city government allocated one billion yuan for lake cleanup and also assigned one official to each of the 35 rivers flowing into Dianchi.

In addition to environmental measures, a Dianchi Lake bike path which will circle the lake is currently under construction, and is expected to be completed next year.

Beginning October 31 and running through November 6, Kunming will host the 2009 International Astronomy Year and Extraterrestrial Life Forum. The event will feature exhibitions of UFOs and other unexplained phenomena in China and around the world and will also have experts on site to appraise UFO footage brought in by visitors.

This year – the 400th anniversary of Galileo's invention of the telescope in Venice in 1609 – has been named 'World Astronomy Year' by the United Nations. The Kunming forum, which is co-organized by the Kunming UFO Research Association and the Kunming Municipal Science and Technology Association, will highlight some of this year's major astronomical phenomena, including the July 22 total solar eclipse.

According to Zhang Yifang (张一方) who was director of the Kunming UFO Research Association from its founding in 1985 until 2003, Kunming has had more than 400 UFO sightings since 1972, when a large group of people in Gulü Village in Kunming's Xishan district reported to have witnessed a large shiny object in the sky which resembled a brass bowl.

Zhang said photos and video of recent UFO sightings will be on display at the forum, which is free and open to the public. He added that anyone with photos or video of UFOs or other unexplained phenomena are encouraged to bring them to the forum for appraisal.

The 2009 International Astronomy Year and Extraterrestrial Life Forum will be held on the ninth floor of the Workers Cultural Palace (工人文化宫) located on the south side of Dongfeng Plaza. For more information about the event or appraisals call 6733353.

Friday: Jazz/Latin/Reggae party at Uprock
Uprock will be playing a mix of jazz, latin and reggae plus a special surprise tonight. Music starts at 10, entry is free.

Saturday: Kunming Ultimate Tournament Party at The Hump Bar
Saturday night The Hump Bar will host the official party for Kunming's first ultimate frisbee tournament. DJs Christian, Jon and Martin will provide the tunes from 10 to sunrise. Entry is free.

Saturday: Fluorescent 'Lightning Bug' party
Uprock will bust out the black lights on Saturday night and is encouraging people to dress up in fluorescent clothes, wear florescent face paint, or at the very least brush their teeth before showing up. Party starts at 10, entry is free.

Monday: Open mic and local showcase at Halfway House
For those looking to extend that weekend feeling, Halfway House will be holding an hour of open mic on Monday night from 9 to 10, with sign-up starting at 8. From 10 onward the stage will be taken over by Minjian Funk, Tony and the Degree Band, Rebecca/Fang Zhou/Liu Ke, local rappers Xishan, plus Cristina Sanchez and Lush.

Apparently Halfway is considering reviving its open mic nights, should enough people turn up this time. Entry is free.