The eastern city of Yangzhou began to recruit 100 "energy police", or inspectors to check on energy saving practices, while their counterparts in Beijing were on the job as of Monday.

The "energy police" will check whether energy consumption in offices, hotels, schools, shopping malls, supermarkets and other big buildings meet national standards such as keeping the air conditioning no cooler than 26 degrees Celsius and heating no higher than 20 degrees Celsius.

If energy consumption is found to be too high, the "energy police" will issue a warning note. The owners of the buildings could be fined if they neglect the warning.

Air conditioners account for 30-35 percent of power consumption in Yangzhou during the summer and if they operate according to national standards a great deal of energy will be saved, the local government said.

The central government of China launched a week-long campaign on Sunday to raise awareness of the need to save energy, with government ministers saying all sectors of society have a responsibility to reduce consumption.

As part of the campaign, members of the public will be urged to use public transport or bikes to travel to work and to reduce the use of air conditioners at home.

Under its latest five-year plan, the government wants to reduce energy consumption per unit of gross domestic product by 20 percent by 2010.

(Xinhua News Agency June 12, 2007)